McALLEN, Texas — Texas cattle rancher Charles Kothman is down to six calves and their mothers after selling off 80 animals in recent months.
The drought that has baked pastures and dried ponds has ranchers in Texas and Oklahoma — the nation’s top two beef producers — culling their herds. Some have sold off all their cattle, but Kothman is hanging on and hoping for rain.
“I may get to the point that I say ‘no’ and take them over to the sale barn,” said Kothman, whose ranch is about 70 miles south of San Angelo. Some ranchers say they may sell out and get back into the business down the road. Others may never get back in, Kothman said. “My reason for saying maybe is because I’m 74 years old.”
Cattle ranchers either have to sell cattle during droughts or buy feed because their barren pastures can’t sustain the animals. If they opt to buy hay while watching for rain clouds, they risk running into bankruptcy. If they sell off cows of calf-bearing age instead, they do it knowing rebuilding the herd later will be a long, costly process. Read more…
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