Livestock fire plan

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In many if the major grass and scrub brush fires mother nature or the Good Lord put them out.
In West Oklahoma in the spring of 2018 we were on a fire that moved 3 miles in 30 minutes burning everything in it's path. Weather changed and the next day we just put out hot spots.
 
The paddock with prob 5 shade trees in 2acre has less than an inch of grass at this time, and has roads on both sides...I am also grazing down the roadside vegetation.

I think any forest or dense tree atea would be over 400m away at least, so it was the radiant heat I was thinking of.

If they would move away from this....could always leave a perimeter exit...but that may not be a good idea for a few reasons.

Lots to think of.....
 
Brute 23 said:
I assist some friends burn quite a bit every year and have the same thoughts from time to time. All I can say is if you have not been around pasture burning take what you can imagine and x10. With enough fuel it's very violent. I've seen 20' flames off pasture and when it gets in trees is just flat out scary.

Statigic fire breaks around your property would be the best bet. Use roads, ponds, etc that are already in place to help. Mowe 30-50' and disk or plow 10-20'. Its not a guarantee but it sure helps. Go around trees lines, not between.

Nailed it, Brute.
 
Timely topic. Red flag warning was issued this morning with 45 mph winds, gusts up to 60. Crews from 5 towns, 2 counties are currently battling a fire that's a mile long and about 10 miles south of us. Fortunately they were able to move the cattle and no injuries or fatalities reported so far. Our ranch is covered in smoke, even in our garage and the cattle are fired up - they clearly sense danger. Although that could be from me pacing around, watching the south pasture. 10 miles seems like a lot but not when it's been dry and there's nothing but pastures & crop land.
 
Yeah, that is not far if there is good winds and you have stuff that will burn.....embers can come raining down....

We have had long drought, been extremely dry spring and into summer, 100 to 115 f days and similar winds on some of those hot days, which in some places changes direction.....poor comditio s prior for hazard reductions.....so viola....perfect storm.

We will start our flood plans soon...
 
sstterry said:
kenny thomas said:
Brute 23 said:
I will also add at the end of the day they are just cattle. I know it sounds glorious to say you went down trying protect your animals but that doesnt help your family and friends any. I dont care how clever you are, how experienced you are, etc... fires are no joke and have a mind of their own. The best plan of action is to get the be nice out of the way and join a fired dept or forestry group or some thing if you want to be a hero.

I am no hero but planning ahead can save them. Again I have been a wildland firefighter for 46 years and I feel I have saved lots of cows, wildlife, houses and humans and feel like no hero. Hope none of you every have to deal with it. Be prepared way before the fire gets to your place. .
During Kenny's first firefight, Noah's flood put it out.... :tiphat:
Just joking Kenny I admire what you do.

Haha.....we probably got 2 inches that time..... :) :lol:
 
kenny thomas said:
I have seen lots of fires over my 46 year career and several cattle, horses, deer, and lots of small animals burned. The shorter the grass the less the danger but seen lots of ranchers disc around their pastures. Seen a fire in Western Oklahoma last year where the ranchers stopped parts of the fire by discing a wide area. A disc and as a last resort burning from the disc area away from the cattle.

I have straddled that fire line dragging a 22 foot disc. It's pretty amazing how much you kill with a disc. Dry ground turns really well.

I was burned out in '90. Lost 3 barns. Lost all fences. They saved my house. I was not home at the time.

I had one lot by the house. We rounded up loose stock. We fed and watered them. Most folks claimed their animals within a day or two and were grateful. One guy from the metroplex got here a week later mad as hell that I had his stock on my property. You just never know folks.
 
Back to the original post. We get winds out of every direction.

A disc can do you a lot of good. If you get into the red flag condition, it's a good idea to have that disc hooked up to the tractor.

My little liquid fertilizer rig puts out a nice spray pattern. I fill it with water and check the tires every 4th of July or when we get in dangerous conditions.

I'd much rather put the fire out on my neighbor's place. If fire breaks out, it's best to nip it in the bud. If gates are locked, just cut a gap in the fence. You can always fix it later. They'll be appreciative.
 
Ya it's not that hard to put out fire if it's not crazy. If you have shredded or eaten the grass down low a regular sprayer like you spray brush with on your utv can knock quite a bit of fire back. Add dishwashing soap to your water. A $300 transfer pump from harbor freight will really knock a fire back. If you can get a couple hundred gallons mobile with a pump you can definitely fend off an area if there is not too much fuel.

A back burn is the best route but you can only do that if you have decent fire break already in place.
 
kenny thomas said:
The dishwashing liquid is a great addition. Thanks for mentioning that

I was always told we could use a spreader that we use with weed sprays, something like agral, would this be correct. Is it the foaming or spreading action that works better. My brother is a water well driller and he has some pretty good foaming chemicals they use to bring the cuttings up out the hole, i could get my hands on that. I remember when we were teenagers some of my mates (not me) used to tip some into the water fountains they have in the roundabouts in town. Used to cause a right commotion.
 
Anything like that will work. Soap just makes water wetter and it sticks and does not evaporate as fast. The thinker the foam covers anything the better.
Can't find a link offhand but one company makes a container that hooks into your water hose and the soap gets mixed as you spray. Enough to coat a house.
 
Would either a fertilizer attachment for a garden hose or a soap attachment work? There are a few on amazon, and most any garden shop will carry a fertilizer attachment for a hose. Some you actually can use with a bigger container and there used to be one that would siphon right out of an actual bucket.
 
farmerjan said:
Would either a fertilizer attachment for a garden hose or a soap attachment work? There are a few on amazon, and most any garden shop will carry a fertilizer attachment for a hose. Some you actually can use with a bigger container and there used to be one that would siphon right out of an actual bucket.

If it's an eductor type suction line, absolutely. It will pull soap water into the main line.
 
backhoeboogie said:
farmerjan said:
Would either a fertilizer attachment for a garden hose or a soap attachment work? There are a few on amazon, and most any garden shop will carry a fertilizer attachment for a hose. Some you actually can use with a bigger container and there used to be one that would siphon right out of an actual bucket.

If it's an eductor type suction line, absolutely. It will pull soap water into the main line.
I think I saw one on amazon that said something about a backstop valve so that the soap only was sucked into the hose and not back into the water supply? I would have to go look it up, but I do know that there are a couple of types of fertilizer attachments that you attach to the hose near the sprayer end that puts fertilizer into the water that you are using so it feeds and waters the plants at the same time.
 
My pressure washer has an attachment that will draw in a decent amount of whatever foaming cleaner you put into it...like for washing trucks......but they are on 5 to 10m hoses and small water volume....and you would need a 2400w generator....but the water supply could be an IBC with just gravity feed.....

If you have room for 2 on your truck or trailer, may be useful ?

For me, I think a well grazed paddock with some breaks is the go.....

I have IBCs...I should fill them put them here and there,,,and get a pump and hose to suit....
 
Kenny,
Back when we had the Gatlinburg fire in the Smokies, there was a lot a discussion around here about a fire retardant foam that could be sprayed on buildings with a garden hose that is quite common in Calif. Do you know much about this?
 
On another note, we have had a lot of problems with fire retardands.....basically many were poison...for people and the ground...
 

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