Drought Causes Problems For Cattlemen

The unusually dry winter is causing problems for many Arkansans and cattlemen, in particular.

Pasture grasses dried too early this season forcing ranchers to buy hay to feed their animals at the last minute. Rainfall in De Queen, for instance, is down 20 inches and rancher Al Wright says buying hay for his 500 cows will cost him about $30,000.

Wright says if things don't improve by the spring, the cows will have to be sold because there is no grass for them to eat. He says near-record level prices for calves currently have kept many Arkansas ranchers from going out of business.

Usually, Arkansas gets about 50 inches of rain a year. But the National Weather Service says only 34 inches fell during 2005. The year was the second-driest on record for most of the state, according to preliminary estimates.