Pheba have you thought about changing the genetics of your cattle. I switched to Highland beef. They are the oldest registered breed of cattle in the world. They have the highest feed conversion rate of any cattle. You cannot feed them grain. They are very old genetic stock that were developed in the Highlands and Ireland. If pasture is bad they browse. They calf unassisted in anyway, you never call a vet or interfere, they do it themselves. Pulling a calf is unheard of, the Highlanders turned them out in the mountains 500 years plus ago and left them on their own. The ones that could not birth unassisted were weeded out of the genetic pool by natural selection, they died out. The female will not even breed in bad years such as severe drought, they prosper were other cattle become a rack of bone. They produce very high end beef, if you pay 1.00/lb for ordinary beef Highland Beef never gets on the open market and is taken up by select restaurants and hotels at 5.00/lb. There are numerous links on google if you want to read up on them. They have huge horns and shaggy coats. They are very prolific and will still calve at 20plus years of age, 20 calves versus 5/6 from an exotic. A lot more pounds of beef for market at very low input cost minimum care or work load and more money for more pounds of beef. Check it out. They do well here in N. Alberta at 40/50 below 0F. I am also going to start growing hierloom grains such as wheat and spelt. They bring a premium and do not require fertilizer or herbicide or pesticides. Something else to look at.

Good evening from Pheba From the Farm:
How nice of you to respond to this post.
I became so busy with other stuff that I forgot I had posted this beginning post.
Wow, Katrina and rising gas prices are causing changes. If you would visit the post titled "Mental State" you will find a posting by me explaining my mental state right now.
Okay, to respond to the first post; things have not improved since Katrina, things have gotten worse.
I volunteer at a local food bank. The poor are becoming desparate.
The situation is very bad. I feel a sense of doom all around me.
I was signed up to teach a class at the local vo-tech center.
I was going to teach an introduction to petroleum, and show the End of Suburbia Film. The class was cancelled. The reason given: Lack of interest.!!!
People complain about high gas prices, but nobody wants to admit what is really happening.
Food prices just keep going up, and people complain, but just refuse to make the connection.
There is a small town auction near my place, and the auctioneers have switched from selling small items (smalls) to selling just furniture.
The dealers who were buying the small items to sell at flea markets are not selling anything. Small stuff is dead. People are only buying what they need, and used furniture seems to be selling well.
I have a small booth at a local flea market, and my sales have just died.
I even sell used clothing, and there is just no market right now for anything that is not a necessity.
Donations to the food bank/thrift shop have skyrocketed since Katrina, but it is mostly junk I would not let my dog sleep on.
Everything just seems to be fallilng apart at the seams.
The local small town gas station closed, and now we have to drive 10 miles to get gasoline.
When we gas we have to prepay because the average gas station in this area was showing over $4,000.00 dollars in drive-offs every month.
So, now have to surrender a check, credit card, or prepay cash before filling up.
My father in law and Mother in law live on a pension and social security. They always had a bit of cash left over each month so they could save it, or spend it.
Since rising gas prices, there is not one dime left over.
Strange weather has brought strange virus among cattle. We have had sick cows, virus unknown. The virus has hung on for about a month, and cattle need cooler weather, but so far it has been unseasonably warm here in mid-missouri.
Had to give a whole lot of LA200 antibiotic to keep some of them from dying from pneuomonia.
The thought of my strictly mid-missourian husband getting HIghland cattle has to make me laugh.
My husband is a part of a sociology here that would not support the Highland cattle. Breeding some highland blood into the lines might be a good ideal. Personally, I doubt if the highland blood could stand the heat and humidity. They sound like a cold weather breed.
Our simmental are cool weather. They just start getting comfortable at 55 degrees F.
This hot summer has been dreadfully hard on them.
We are weaning just as soon as we can get them vaccinated. Hopefully this will give the mothers a rest and allow them to get over this dreadful virus.
I have seen Highland cattle and I think they are so cool. But, my husband raise them, I kind of doubt it.
Pheba.

Pheba -

sorry to hear the problems are already so advanced round you.

I've enjoyed your posts a lot and at last have something I can post in return, that I think may be some help.

Many years ago we had a rather fine young Welsh Mountain stallion, who got a bit of a cough in the autumn.
We got the vet to him, paid for the drugs and his time, to no avail.
We got him back the next month, and paid some more. Cough got worse.
Got him back. Now really losing condition. Got him back, and so on.
Finally, in March, with the pony now in bronchitis verging towards pneumonia, the vet said,

"Well, I 'spect he'll get better with the spring."

We thanked him, paid him and went to see a professional herbalist.

What he recommended was 3 days of a mash including the dried root (steeped in water overnight)
of a plant called Elecampane (looks like a sort of small hippy sunflower).
This cost us about 1/60th of what we'd spent on the vet & his drugs over the winter.

I kid you not within a week not only was brochitis gone, but the cough too.

Since then I've also used it on dogs and people, to very good effect. Mind you its bitter so children need honey with it.

I don't know about suppliers in the US, so in case it's difficult here's a link to the oldest British firm who are very reliable.

www.baldwins.co.uk

Hoping this may be some help,

regards,

Backstop

Ugly maybe, but tough bastards are we Highlanders.

Good day from Pheba:
Talked with hubby last night and he said that Highland cattle would not survive Missouri summers. They could tolerate the humidity, but not the heat. I also like the Kerry breed of cattle. They are a miniature and are also very hardy.
My question is; are any breed of cattle a natural species for Missouri? Is part of this problem the fact that we are trying to raise these animals in areas where they do not belong.
Pheba

Well Pheba: I know it's not nice to say this but I don't think your Hubby has done his research on Highlands. They thrive all over the world. Even in Texas. In the heat they simply shed their coats. In fact just about all English beef have some Highland blood except for the very southern breeds and Saler's if you have seen any were created out of Highland stock. They do well in the sparse interior of Australia as well. I am very familiar with Simmantal as I cowboy all breeds of beef at one time or another. Simmental are known for 120 lb. calves and big vet bills, lots of C sections and anti-biotics stuff their heads into a 1500 lb round bale that would feed two Highlands. Anyway here is a link. http://www.chcs.ca/elinks.htm

Hello Phebagirl,

About the cattle have you thought about asian cattle, water buffalo also Australia has and is developing breed suitable for tropical and subtropical regions and conditions.

http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/cattle/