Donation protected
The drought in Western NSW and Southern Queensland is the worst in living memory.
My brother Mark has a Farm in Goolma NSW, just east of Dubbo. Mark has managed and worked as a farm hand for many large properties around Western NSW over the last 23 years. In 2013 he fulfilled his dream of buying his own property to produce and manage his own cattle. Mark worked hard to create his herd and has and won many awards at the cattle shows around the region. Over the past 7 years he established an amazing herd of cattle working to create the best blood lines possible to produce quality cattle.
Mark is a single father whose older two children have followed him into the agricultural industry, with his daughter studying to be an agricultural teacher, and his eldest son currently completing an agricultural traineeship at a large horse breeding stud just outside Mudgee. His youngest son is also likely to work in the industry, as the passion for farming is in their blood.
Due to many large properties being subdivided into smaller hobby type farms in the Mudgee/ Dubbo area, Mark was unable to sustain his family from the land.
Six years ago Mark started working as a miner just outside Mudgee. This income has allowed Mark to try and sustain his cattle for as long as possible. Unfortunately due to the horrific drought conditions in Western NSW, he has no feed and very few water resources to sustain his cattle and has been required to sell off most of his stock, including the breeders. Even trying to acquire feed now is a near impossible task. His resources are at an all time low. As of Tuesday 29 th of October the last of his breeding cows will be sold due to his hay reserves running out and no money to buy more.
Mark has taken the calves from their mothers on his property as the mothers would be unable to sustain themselves and their calves on the small amount of hay he currently has available. Mark gets up at 4am on work mornings to feed his 13 very cute calves that takes about an hour and then follows up in the evening with their second feed. The cleaning the measuring (for each age calf) and the patience he has to do this is pretty incredible.
After sharing his plight the other day, many kind people offered their support to sponsor a 'poddy calf'. Here is your chance to help a struggling farmer to keep his small number of cattle alive and ensure he has a small number to restart a herd when the drought finally breaks.
Anything you can donate would be greatly appreciated by Mark and any other farmers that come on board and his young calves.
Calf feeding Cost and information
-Currently mixing 37 litres of milk per feed
-When all 14 calves are on full ration it will be 42 litres.
-Currently 37 litres requires 4.81kg of milk powder. A 20kg bag therefore lasts about 2 ¼ days or 4 ½ feeds.
-This cost approx. $300/wk in milk powder alone. He is trying to source milk powder from Victoria and have it freighted to Dubbo to reduce costs.
-They will be fed milk until early January before being weaned.
-They also get fed a mix of Lucerne and oaten chaff and calf pellets adlib.
The cost and availability of these products is also becoming more expensive and harder to source.
I will need about 40 bags of milk powder to get them through to weaning.
Currently I am paying $95/bag. I am hoping to get this stuff out of Victoria for $60/bag. I’ll get a full pallet (50 Bags) $3000. I know this doesn’t help our local produce stores and community but the price difference is just to great.
Health info.
When lots of calves are grown in a very close environment diseases can spread very quickly.
Close monitoring and timely treatment is essential.
At this time of year flies spread diseases rapidly. The calves have all been treated to try and keep flies away and pens and equipment needs to be cleaned regularly.
Diseases like scours and pink eye are very common and can go through a mob very fast.
Facebook link for more photos and information
Mark is by no means the only farmer in this situation and we are more than happy for other farmers in the area of Western NSW to contact us with their stories to try and help save their calves with the long term goal of saving their herds.
Mark with his beautiful daughter Peyton
Mark with his boys Connor and Mitchell staying with family in Newcastle.
My brother Mark has a Farm in Goolma NSW, just east of Dubbo. Mark has managed and worked as a farm hand for many large properties around Western NSW over the last 23 years. In 2013 he fulfilled his dream of buying his own property to produce and manage his own cattle. Mark worked hard to create his herd and has and won many awards at the cattle shows around the region. Over the past 7 years he established an amazing herd of cattle working to create the best blood lines possible to produce quality cattle.
Mark is a single father whose older two children have followed him into the agricultural industry, with his daughter studying to be an agricultural teacher, and his eldest son currently completing an agricultural traineeship at a large horse breeding stud just outside Mudgee. His youngest son is also likely to work in the industry, as the passion for farming is in their blood.
Due to many large properties being subdivided into smaller hobby type farms in the Mudgee/ Dubbo area, Mark was unable to sustain his family from the land.
Six years ago Mark started working as a miner just outside Mudgee. This income has allowed Mark to try and sustain his cattle for as long as possible. Unfortunately due to the horrific drought conditions in Western NSW, he has no feed and very few water resources to sustain his cattle and has been required to sell off most of his stock, including the breeders. Even trying to acquire feed now is a near impossible task. His resources are at an all time low. As of Tuesday 29 th of October the last of his breeding cows will be sold due to his hay reserves running out and no money to buy more.
Mark has taken the calves from their mothers on his property as the mothers would be unable to sustain themselves and their calves on the small amount of hay he currently has available. Mark gets up at 4am on work mornings to feed his 13 very cute calves that takes about an hour and then follows up in the evening with their second feed. The cleaning the measuring (for each age calf) and the patience he has to do this is pretty incredible.
After sharing his plight the other day, many kind people offered their support to sponsor a 'poddy calf'. Here is your chance to help a struggling farmer to keep his small number of cattle alive and ensure he has a small number to restart a herd when the drought finally breaks.
Anything you can donate would be greatly appreciated by Mark and any other farmers that come on board and his young calves.
Calf feeding Cost and information
-Currently mixing 37 litres of milk per feed
-When all 14 calves are on full ration it will be 42 litres.
-Currently 37 litres requires 4.81kg of milk powder. A 20kg bag therefore lasts about 2 ¼ days or 4 ½ feeds.
-This cost approx. $300/wk in milk powder alone. He is trying to source milk powder from Victoria and have it freighted to Dubbo to reduce costs.
-They will be fed milk until early January before being weaned.
-They also get fed a mix of Lucerne and oaten chaff and calf pellets adlib.
The cost and availability of these products is also becoming more expensive and harder to source.
I will need about 40 bags of milk powder to get them through to weaning.
Currently I am paying $95/bag. I am hoping to get this stuff out of Victoria for $60/bag. I’ll get a full pallet (50 Bags) $3000. I know this doesn’t help our local produce stores and community but the price difference is just to great.
Health info.
When lots of calves are grown in a very close environment diseases can spread very quickly.
Close monitoring and timely treatment is essential.
At this time of year flies spread diseases rapidly. The calves have all been treated to try and keep flies away and pens and equipment needs to be cleaned regularly.
Diseases like scours and pink eye are very common and can go through a mob very fast.
Facebook link for more photos and information
Mark is by no means the only farmer in this situation and we are more than happy for other farmers in the area of Western NSW to contact us with their stories to try and help save their calves with the long term goal of saving their herds.
Mark with his beautiful daughter PeytonMark with his boys Connor and Mitchell staying with family in Newcastle.Organizer
Shaun-Jen Whitehouse
Organizer
New South, Wales