08/10/06 Heat Wave Devastates Dairies

The older I get the more I don't like it hot. This last heat wave also took a lot out of my horses. Despite providing shade and the respite of a garden hose shower a couple days of 108 degree weather was trying for all of us. As I was soaking old Smokey down my heart went out to all the California Dairy farmers in the Central Valley who watched helplessly their cattle died in the heat wave. The Western United Dairymen based in Modesto is lobbying for the region to be declared a disaster area. Disaster it is. It is estimated that California Dairy industry has lost over 1 billion dollars due to milk production declines and animal death. Farmers struggled to dispose of cattle carcass's and under emergency rules landfills were forced to accept dead cattle. One dump estimated that it disposed of over 1800 cows. Dairymen aren't out of the woods yet as the heat wave is projected to cause a continued decrease in milk production because it can take up to nine months for a cow to build up milk .