Absolutely devastating! Blizzard kills 1600 dairy cows in Lower Yakima Valley, Washington

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An estimated 1,600 dairy cows died in the Lower Yakima Valley during blizzard conditions over the weekend and Monday. Absolutely heart-breaking!

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1,600 dairy cows die in blizzard west of Tri-Cities, Lower Yakima Valley in the state of Washington. via video

Dairy farmers who had been in the business their entire lives said they had never seen anything like the weather that hit areas near Grandview and Sunnyside between the Tri-Cities and Yakima. People were expecting some snow. But not one was expecting it as bad as it was.

At Sunny Dene Ranch about eight miles south of Sunnyside, co-owner and veterinarian Bill Wavrin said he had 30 inches of snow, 44 mph winds and temperatures that fell to 18 below zero. Just unbelievable!

SNOW PREPARATIONS NOT ENOUGH

Farmers prepared for the snowstorm and were working around the clock to protect their animals as weather conditions worsened:

  • providing extra bedding for cows and extra feed because cows need to eat more in cold weather.
  • preventing freezing water in troughs and making regular checks, breaking ice when needed.
  • creating wind breaks in addition to the ones already on their farms by stacking bales of straw.

But even with all the precautions and preparations it still wasn’t enough!

Washington state ranks 10th in the nation for milk production. It’s a $1.13 billion industry in the state, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service data for 2017.

Similar cattle mass death occurred very recently in Australia (floods) and Argentina (heat).

I hope everyone is a little extra appreciative for the breakfast on their table because it was a little harder than usual this time.

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[TriCityHerald]

4 Comments

  1. thank god im lactose intolerant……just like 95% of blacks, 85% of Latinos, 65% of Asians and 45% of whites. haha…..

  2. I used to live in Washington State for 10 years. We had never had so much snow because the cold current of the Pacific Ocean dictated the temperature along the North West. Yakima is more inland and dry area. But still they have a huge agricultural industry, especially apples and cherries. I guess, at certain point, all the farm animals are dying because they should not exist on the Earth. Eating meat is against the Cosmic Law.

    • That’s the most asinine comment. These are DAIRY COWS honey. Used for MILK and CHEESE…. NOT meat. Goodness… ?

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