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Wool is key to Monaro says worried grower

Monaro wool growers fear the loss of markets if wool loses its attraction to clothes buyers in the global recession. But Ann Hudson from Bobundara near Cooma continues grazing in difficult seasonal conditions. The high cost of drought and never ending loads of expensive feed forced many like her to sell at Coomas large drought cattle sale on Friday. "The money is all gone on feed and agistment" she says of the tough drought year on Monaro. But Ms Hudson says she and fellow growers can cope with drought, it is the world market she is more worried about. She says growers need stability.

Expensive weekend says grower who lost 160 sheep to freak weather

Sheep deaths were the talk of Fridays cattle sale after the previous weekends surprisingly ferocious wet and cold conditions. Bill McDonald at Nimmitabel lost 160 new shorn ewes and lambs. "We had been promised rain every weekend for 2 months and it came when we shore" he says. "It was an expensive weekend" he says. He estimates the ewe/lamb value at a combined $90 per head. He had invested heavily in the sheep for these young ewes in their 2nd year of production. He says they had 5 more years of productive lives ahead. "I fed them since July. (The mob got) $60 a day, and they weren't overfed" he says of the cumulative loss that runs into many thousands and will impact on his productivity for many years.

Black humour to survive adversity

Bill McDonald from Nimmitabel says there's no point getting around with a glum face. Thousands of dead sheep across the Monaro is no laughing matter, but its the Australian way to laugh at adversity. Black humour keeps people focussed so they dont fall in a heap - and just get on with the job, no matter how unpleasant. One of the Monaro's great farmer story tellers, Michael Green recalls a similar, sheep killing cold snap in late spring 40 years ago. He says a well intentioned grazier piled the snap frozen dead sheep into a truck to take to the lions and meat eating animals at Taronga zoo in Sydney. However, he says they didn't make it half way due to the hot conditions thawing the stock. Mr Green says the weather is often the enemy of the farmer "as we have only been on the land such a short time".