Australian Talk.

[wbvs58]

That will be a nice way for you to wind things up Dale. I would not rush into a truck, there are a lot of fellows around that will cart your animals for you at a very reasonable cost. I have a truck because it became available at a very reasonable price. It is a 1994 Isuzu FSR and is a very good truck, I could jump in it tomorrow and drive to Sydney no problems, it only cost me $5000, a tray for it I picked up for $400 and I built the crate, materials cost about $2000. If I didn't have the truck, I would not have got into the stud cattle, it gave me the freedom and ability to to go to sales and bring home just a couple of cows from wherever I wanted to go. For commercial cattle just going locally it is not necessary.
It has dried out real bad here again, the wind earlier in the week did the damage. The possibility of a storm tonight did not eventuate.
Ken

 

[burglar]

Thanks Melking, you never how these things end up.

Ken, Thanks again for your advise on the trucks, I will definitely take it slow. I do want a simple transportation solution so I can also buy and sell a few at a time if need be. No good on the wind, looks like more rain possible this week though, fingers crossed hey.

 

[Suzie Q]

We too bought a truck cheap. It was cheaper for the girl to buy a truck and transport 3 showjumpers from Cairns to here and sell the truck, that it was for her to get them transported here. It cost us around $5,000.00. Hubby did take out the walls for the tack room and make it into a cattle truck.

It is what we also built our stud with like Ken. We could buy 1 - 3 cattle if we wished. We could take 1 - 5 cattle to the sales. It is the luxury of being able to move them when you want to.

We also used to take hay to Dalson Park with it. We ended up buying a new truck out of want not need and now we take the hay in the ute and have a lesson every week instead of going in the truck once a month.

Good luck with the nomination Burglar.

Is Jamie your dog as well, Ken?

A Christmas party with hubby's family yesterday and we took Mum too. It was great and a lot of fun.

A secret santa I haven't played before. No 1 was the worst number to get. No 17 was the best number to get. Number 1 picks. No 2 then has the choice of taking No 1's present who can pick again or picking a new one. The next one can then take a choice out of No 1 or 2's present. If they take number 2's present they have the choice of taking anyone ele's for them only No 1 or picking again, and so on. Hence No 17 is the best as you can pick any present you like and it can't be stolen from you. It was actually a lot of fun and amazing how different the presents were, and which presents were stolen.

The most popular one seemed to be a tea pot which didn't interest me in the least. A lot of chocolate as well, which I was lucky I didn't end up with because I probably would have eaten it. Or I guess I could have shared it out at work.

Hubby stole a photo which was of him and his niece pulling funny faces. He was adamant that no one else could steal it back and that no one was going to ever see it. There was chocolate and coffee cups with it I think. Of course the rules were that anyone could steal what they want before they pick and a lot of them pretended to want to steal his just to see him react!!! I picked an electronic raquet for zapping insects and I HATE insects which is why I already have one at home, so now hubby can have one too. Or I can regift it to a friend as it is a good prezzie for a guy and guys are hard to buy for.

Mum picked out a bottle of wine and a wine cooler and she really liked the wine cooler. It was like gel bubbles that you would put in the freezer, and then put your wine in it. I told her not to get attached to it yet.

and yes it was stolen so she picked again and picked the present I took. She had no idea which one I had brought and I was soooo HAPPY that she picked that one.

I took the memory foam bath mat. Chocolate brown so won't show stains. It can go in the washing machine. It won't slip and it is just pure luxury to stand on. I now have the bath mat and a big fluffy lovely bath sheet and getting out of the shower and standing on the mat (I have 2 of them!!!) and wrapping myself in the bath sheet is just pure heaven and I enjoy it every single morning. It is my one thing of just bought for pure luxury even though more expensive thing. Except I bought it online, so didn't pay what you would if you bought it at say Myer.

Now that Mum has that I can give the one I bought for her for Christmas to my friends who let me come and stay at their place during lunch time as I wouldn't have had enough time to buy another one online and get it by Christmas maybe and I didn't plan far enough ahead.

After breaky we are going to Dalson Park and having a riding lesson. Coming home and going to Roadvale Hotel for their free Christmas lunch which includes a bbq of steak and sausages with a buffet of salads. I am making the decision now that I will only drink water and not soft drink as I did splurge yesterday. We will see if that decision is solid!!! Then it will be home to rake our long paddock.

 

[wbvs58]

Suzie, Jamie is actually my daughters dog but she has been with me now for about 7 years.
We have just had a pretty fair storm go through, I would guess about 25mm of rain.
I brought my pump and motor home today. I had the motor running and was going to take her down the dam and try her out but I picked up a fitting that was the wrong size so I have to wait till the shops open tomorrow to see if my impellor works.
Ken

 

[burglar]

Hi Suzie, I can see that convenience in the truck for sure. Maybe I will pick one up in the trading post or a clearing sale. Happy to hear about the rain Ken, hopefully more this week.

2 sleeps for us.....

 

[Old_man_emu]

I got into work early this morning after I got last night to say the new harrows that were supposed to be delivered on Saturday will be in this morning!
He is 40 minutes late so far but I was surprised when he said he was going to be here at 7.30 am and now of course I got a call from the neighbour to say I need to go see him within the half an hour. You can almost bet your last dollar that the minute I leave the driver will be on the phone looking for me.

 

[Suzie Q]

That is always the way isn't it OME?

A sad day yesterday. My tractor mechanic collapsed at work. He didn't actually fall. The mower mechanic is the first aid officer and he is also a fireman trained with CPR, etc. The tractor mechanic sat down and called him over. He didn't like the look of him and got him to lie down before he fell down.

He was taken by ambulance to Ipswich and they then transferred him to St Andrews. He is paralysed at the moment on the left side of his body. That is all I know so far.

We went and looked at a motorized scooter in town, Sunday afternoon. We agreed to buy it for Mum. So Saturday I will probably drive it to David Evans and load it onto our ute from the loading ramp there.

It is a golf buggy so can go off road, and has a canopy. It is the second battery so she should be in front there as it is the batteries that are the expensive bit.

You can thank us for the rain. Hubby cut on Saturday. 8 mm we had yesterday. Which isn't normally enough to wreck the hay, it is just better for us with the hay to get it overnight. Not during the day like we did yesterday. Ah well. I will go down and rake it at 6.30am and see how we go.

 

[Old_man_emu]

Too right Suzie. I was heading out the driveway when I noticed a truck on the side of the road and sure enough that was him.
I am sorry to hear about your mechanic, I hope he comes good soon. Sounds like he was lucky that the mower mechanic is well trained.
It's another cool and overcast day here, it's 11.4C but only feels like 9.5C thanks to the breeze. We're supposed to be 80% chance of 5mm to 10mm but I doubt we will get anything. We could use an inch a fortnight for the next 6 weeks and some warmth to go with it.
Best be getting out and seeing the mums and bubs!
OME

 

[wbvs58]

I forgot to do a post last night, got going on other things.
We ended up with 28.5mm by yesterday morning and then another 2mm this morning. That couple of mm of follow up is very handy as it just keeps the surface moist for an extended period and there is still the chance of more showers today.
I took my pump down to the dam and hooked it up, took a bit to prime it as the non return valve was sticking but once it got going she pumped water real good, makes the work I put into fabricating the impellor all worthwhile, it was an enjoyable exercise and especially when successfull.
I brought it back up to the shed and did an oil change on the motor and splashed a bit of paint around on the frame to cover up the welds, screw some sheets of iron on the roof and today I will take it back down and set it up permanent.
OME, what are the harrows for? cultivation work or dragging around the pasture?
Ken

 

[Old_man_emu]

I will do a little of both Ken. I just finished using after cultivating a paddock with the aerator. I don't usually cultivate but this paddock is particularly hard and I'm going to plant a hybrid millet next week.I Tried planting another paddock earlier in the year with breaking the ground first but the seeder bit bite into the ground much and I got a poor result. I also use the harrows for manure spreading and after normal aerating, I don't do a lot of either but when conditions are right I do a bit.

 

[AussieLim]

South Australian report:

DRY AS A NUN HERE!
I'm a rather positive person and an optumist but this year has shaped up almost as poor as 2006 (start of the drought)
We are an all grazing property, finishing prime x-bred lambs and cattle of lucerne/grass pastures. Our property is only 10kms from the coast and we lie between a range and the ocean so usually jag rain either way.
After a previously poor Spring, this last Summer we missed all rain events as we usually jag a decent Summer thunder storm which kick starts the lucerne and sets up our Autumn. So we went into Autumn with little feed and it never got any better.
Winter then was apon us and although a late start we did get a significant amount of rain through June/July. Unfortunately when feed grew it was all water and then just as it was hardening up we got struck with colder weather than ever experienced (usually mild winters here and stock do well) Stock slowed up growing and so did the pasture.....
July was over and i will be honest that was our last decent rain. We skipped Spring (as in we didn't have one) and here we are.
Management has been the only saviour here. It shows that as farmers we do learn from past experience and we have been able to sell off finished stock as per normal and do some pasture preservation.
Crops yields in this area have been surprisingly good, however the sandy country struggled. It seemed as though the Winter rain event got croppers through. Canola and Beans in particular have been the most rewarding here.
Lets hope 2013 will be more giving and Cattle prices head North.

 

[Australian]

sad news about the BJD problem in Queensland. One of the best Red Brahman herds in the country. Lots of stud herds affected. This will test the useless NLIS scheme out. I'm thankful that I have none of the bloodlines from that stud herd. Hopefully it will be resolved before a lot of great bloodlines are lost.

 

[wbvs58]

What's the official long range outlook for you down that way AussieLim. Up here they are now talking about above average rain for summer. We had a very dry latter part of winter and spring has just been holding in there though where I am, I have been fairly lucky with showers and storms, areas close by have missed out. I hope 2013 is better for you.
Showers again today, nothing serious but keeping the surface damp.
Well I finally got my pump fully setup and is now pumping to the header tank. I have an auction to go to on Saturday, there are a couple of small travelling irrigators I might have a go at now that things are working good.
Ken

 

[Suzie Q]

Good luck with the irrigators Ken. They are priceless now that you have a pump that works. It is just the cost of the power that is a killer.

What is BJD Australian? I haven't heard about what you are talking about?

We are waiting for rain here too, AussieLim. I just wish it wasn't today and a couple of days as hubby cut on the weekend. We started off with sun and I raked. 8 mm yesterday and it was very wet. I didn't put the sail down and flung it as far as I could.

I took a couple of hours off work, but nope a light spit which was heavier as I approached the paddock, so I came up and waited. Nope still drizzle. About to go down and heavy on the roof. Waited again and I went down and raked and the hay was a lot drier than in the morning .......and it then rained for me to get out and open 2 gates, go from the tractor to the house and from the house to the car to go back to work. 2 mm all up which is just enough to not let the hay dry and not enough to do any other good.

I just wish it would do that overnight and not during the day. Then the hay would be okay.

Morning tea with the Friendship Club tomorrow if I don't have to come home and rake.

It appears that our mechanic might have epilepsy as well as the stroke. Apparently he knew something was wrong as he saw the writing on the ute backwards. The same thing happened to him again in Hospital today so they won't be letting him out yet. He has never had anything like this happen to him before.

 

[melking]

Sorry to hear about your mechanic Suzie, Hope he gets okay. Ken, I never had a question of whether your impellor would work. Congratulations. Nice to hear from southern Austrailia. Hope you get the rain you need soon. We are getting showers today. Highly unusual as we are in the dry season. I'll take whatever rain we get.

 

[Australian]

Suzie have you been out of the country lately it is one of the most talked about and reported problems in the beef industry in Qld for a very long time. Its Bovine Johnes Disease. Its always been thought that Qld was free of it. It is endemic to more dairying regions of Vic and coastal NSW. I live in a protected area though all the zones have recently changed. Have a look at the last two Queensland Country Life papers that will give you a better scenario of what is going on. There are more than 150 Brahman herds involved now. probably many more commercial ones till they are all checked. The disease is not specific to any breed of cattle. Its involved the red Brahman so far, because it was found at a very good stud just south of Rockhampton.Any cattle that were purchased from that stud in the past 7 years are suspect. The stud involved regularly sells 15 to 20 bulls at Rocky Brahman week each year as well as many privately through the year. There are herds quarrantined in NSW WA and Qld. The herd where it originated have no idea where the problem started. It often does not start or show up until the animal is 4/5 years old. A number of breeders have destroyed newly acquired sires recently purchased. That is a bit silly before they are tested, but I suppose they need to lessen the impact on their herds should a problem show up. It will make a difference to bull sales next year to those affected. As I said before I am not involved unless they find another few studs affected that I may have bloodlines from. Hope its resolved ASAP.

 

[Suzie Q]

Thank you Australian.

Around here the only thing they have talked about affecting cattle at the moment is ticks. We had one down the other day. We blood against ticks, so if they go down it is more likely 3 day sickness. Hubby noticed her down and got her up. The next day I saw her down and she got up before I got to her and I didn't see her down again so she seems okay.

We also inject with dectomax which kills ticks and to be honest I haven't seen ticks on our cattle for a long time. Not even when we bring them up into the yards, when ticks stand out because of the adrenalin pumping through their system with them being more stressed than usual.

We have 3 red brahman, but they would be older than 7 years as quite old at a guess. One is a bit younger. They were bought at the Beaudesert Sale and I have no idea where they came from before that.

 

[wbvs58]

Mel, do your gators disappear over winter?
Suzie, the blood has no effect on ticks, it is only to immunise the cattle against the 2 Babesia and 1 Anaplasma organism, hence 3 germ vaccine, that cause tick fever and are carried by the ticks.
Suzie, the main use of my pump is to pump water up to a header tank to feed the water troughs but if I get a small irrigator I intend to do a couple of small plots to sow some temperate perennial grasses, then if things go dry on me I can put some water on them until they get established. In this situation the cost of fuel to pump water would not be a big issue as it would only be until the sown grasses are established and can survive on their own.
My satellite NBN gets installed tomorrow. I hope it is a big improvement on the current satellite service.
Ken

 

[Suzie Q]

Thanks Ken, that is what I meant. We blood them so as if they go down we don't have to panic that they have tick fever.

It is the dectomax that kills the ticks. We inject it and it gives dates on the packet as when to reapply to get the ones that dropped off the first time around.

 

[Australian]

another big drop of rain overnight NOT. 2.5 mls. been from this to 4 mls the past four days. Keeping it green but we need more than that and some hot weather. We have plenty of good water as we always do. We are to about 29 inches for the year, average should be 36.