I was talking to a veterinarian the other day, and he said many cattlemen do not realize how many of their cattle die from swallowing twine off round bales or from eating plastic bottles.
He said, “I have posted a lot more than you would think.” Often, a rancher will just say, “I don’t know what happened,” or he will blame it on hardware. I remember my Dad saying that often when a farmer had a trash or junk pile a calf would find an old toothpaste tube, chew on it and would often swallow it. I have pulled string or twine out of a calf mouth several times. My mission now is picking up twine in pastures and sometimes roadside, and often some of that has been half buried for years.
President Donald Trump made some tariff threats that seemed to have gotten the world’s attention. The ones against Trump are saying he is an absolute idiot, and it will raise the prices on a lot of things. The ones for Trump are saying he is just making those threats for strategy to get some necessary changes.
Most of us realize there need to be some changes, but we just hope that it doesn’t affect our situation that much. Whatever the case, fasten your seat belt. There will be some changes. Or if you are riding a horse, don’t get bucked off.
My wife and I and my mother-in-law went to the Holy Land. While we were there, my mother-in-law died. The undertaker said it would cost $5,000 to ship her body home, or we could bury her there for $150. I said I want to ship her home. He said why on earth would you spend $5,000 to ship her home, and it would be nice to have her buried in the Holy Land and only cost $150. I said 2,000 years ago a man died, was buried, then rose from the grave. I just can’t take that chance.
Editor’s note: The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not represent the view of High Plains Journal. Jerry Nine, Woodward, Oklahoma, is a lifetime cattleman who grew up on his family’s ranch near Slapout, Oklahoma.
