Using other people's pasture (water question)

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

I have read repeatedly about people who run their animals on the unused land of others. Since I don't really have any land within a reasonable distance of my house for keeping stock, I have thought about doing this. I always wonder how I will keep the animals watered, though. Does anyone know how other people do it? I really appreciate all the helpful answers I get on this forum!

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), September 03, 2000

Answers

Laura: Everyone I know who uses someone else's pasture that doesn't have water available, uses a portable tank in back of a truck, on a trailer, or takes water in 55 gallon barrels with spigots on them to empty into the stock tank, as many times weekly as necessary. It can be quite a chore, but if you have no other pasture available, you do what you gotta do! Good luck! Jan

-- Jan in Colorado (Janice12@aol.com), September 03, 2000.

I'm with Jan on this one. Also you would typically be expected to provide the water tank in the pasture unless one is there. You would maintain/repair the fence, although major repairs would generally be done by both the land owner and the stock owner. The upside of having to haul water is that gets you to the stock frequently so you can check on their condition. You probably will be able to save most animals if something unfortunate happens. Which is the downside of not being close to your animals, things will happen and you won't know about it in time. But that's relatively rare. Around this area, at least, if someone sees a problem they'll either deal with it for you or at least call you to tell you to get over there.

Sometimes the landowner charges you pasturage fees, sometimes they don't. You might want to ask around a bit before making a decision on where to go. You might find someone who just wants the weeds kept done and will be happy to pasture your animals for free. Someone else might want a field gleaned. Having your own method of transporting your animals would be a big help and give you more flexibility in finding pasture. Gerbil

-- Gerbil (ima_gerbil@hotmail.com), September 04, 2000.


One of my pastures is dry, I have an old utility trailer, that I carry a 350 gallon tank in which feeds a 175 gallon stock tank through an float vale, (automatic waterer). Around here most people keep horses and the pasture usually is free. For cattle, I get $7.00 for a cow & calf, per month. I don't have horses, they are too hard on pasture.

-- Hendo (redgate@echoweb.net), September 04, 2000.

One aspect to keep in mind is how are going to load the critters when it comes time to cull or take them elsewhere. I have a corral and sometimes loading cattle becomes a rodeo. When I started cattle farming I swore I would never use a shock stick. However, sometimes critters just need to be goosed. If they are familiar with it, sometimes just buzzing it works.

As rule of thumb is between 8-10 gallons per day per 1,000 pounds of stock for cattle, 10-12 for horses. Summer consumption may be two to three that of winter. If you have freezing winters, keeping a trough ice-free may be a several times a day job.

-- Ken S. in TN (scharabo@aol.com), September 04, 2000.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ