Pre-lamb shearing

Press, 10 October 1984, Page 16

Pre-lamb shearing

Sir,—Patricia Hoy must not feel put down by the farm editor’s reply to her letter. Many of us feel that pre-lamb shearing can be a very cruel practice. Although I farmed sheep for 30 years and more, I could not bring myself to shear before November, not because of the financial risk but simply because of the dreadful

scenes of misery I saw over the other man’s fence. Far too many farmers cannot read a weather map, and that goes for shearers and contractors as well. Often I have seen sheep hopping out of shearing-shed portholes the very next morning after a grim weather map shown on television the evening before. The presentation of the weather forecast is ridiculous and one forecaster I know agrees. There is preoccupation with the conditions and temperatures that we have had, but only eight seconds for the map.—Yours, etc., JIM RICHARDSON. Amberley, October 7, 1984. Sir, — That southerly storms occur between August and November every year and that shorn ewes cannot find shelter in paddocks bounded only by wire must be as obvious to farmers as to the townspeople who annually express concern about these matters, yet every year losses occur from those causes. Would the farm editor state what is the rate of compensation available to farmers for loss of ewes and lambs in spring storms? Some observers might wonder whether any compensation is justified to farmers, who, knowing the weather patterns, fail to provide wind breaks or other adequate shelter for sheep. — Yours, etc., VALERIE HEINZ. October 6, 1984.

[The farm editor replies: “Compensation for ewe and lamb losses is not payable by the Government in the normal course of climatic events. For any compensation to be available, a farming district or province has to be declared a disaster area and this has not occurred, nor is it likely to occur after spring storm damage in the South Island. It is up to the farmer to take reasonable care of his livestock, which are his livelihood by providing shelter for ewes and their lambs.”]