Dairy farmer Peter Rough says he doesn't want to do it, but the drought is sending him broke so he has to send part of his herd to an abattoir.
A Sunshine Coast dairy farmer says he has been forced to send his prized milking cows to slaughter as hopes for drenching summer rain begin to evaporate.He has been told he can't access water from nearby Baroon Pocket DamHis property at Moy Pocket, west of Coolum, is desperately short of water.If there is no rain in coming weeks, another 20 will follow.
It is a decision Mr Rough said he wanted desperately to avoid, because he was able to irrigate just a couple of months ago when the nearby Mary River was still flowing.He said it now cost him an extra $1,300 a day above what he would normally spend to feed and water his livestock.But they are also his only form of income, and fewer cows means less milk and less cashflow.
With the industry facing problems nationwide, the Queensland Dairyfarmers Organisation said a milk shortage could be looming.
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