Those Darn Mosquitoes...

[RobinFarmandRanch]

I think most of yall dont have many problems with mosquitoes. I got a call thursday afternoon to go help my friends work the bulls to cope with the mosquitoes for the fall. Get down to the marsh on Friday and hear of 5 cows that were smothered by mosquitoes. YES SMOTHERED, thats how thick they are right now for us. They have pretty much tore down every piece of fence around his place.

On a lighter note, i experienced first hand yesterday how hard it is to rope a cow in a canal off of a boat and a jet ski. 8)

 

[Ben H]

Because of the mosquitoes, we've had 14 horses die in Maine this year from EEE and just recently about 120 pheasants out of one flock that were being raised for release.

 

[katrina]

I think most of yall dont have many problems with mosquitoes. I got a call thursday afternoon to go help my friends work the bulls to cope with the mosquitoes for the fall. Get down to the marsh on Friday and hear of 5 cows that were smothered by mosquitoes. YES SMOTHERED, thats how thick they are right now for us. They have pretty much tore down every piece of fence around his place.

On a lighter note, i experienced first hand yesterday how hard it is to rope a cow in a canal off of a boat and a jet ski. 8)

Pictures!!!! We need to see pictures!!!!

 

[Hereford76]

On a lighter note, i experienced first hand yesterday how hard it is to rope a cow in a canal off of a boat and a jet ski.

This reminded me of a story I feel like sharing.

I summer a group of about 60 cows on Lake Elwell - the grass is BOR land and it is basically Marias River breaks that were dammed up to make the lake. There isn't a whole lot for shore and there are many cliffs that are contiously falling into the lake. Anyhow there is a cow trail around the cliffs on the chunk of grass we lease and two summers ago the cliff sluffed off while a cow was walking along it and she went over and ended up in a little cove with no shore and no way to walk herself out of there. The sherriff called one morning saying a fisherman reported the stranded cow and I finally found her. I spent the rest of the day trying to swim/walk her out of there but gave up. I could not figure how to get her out of there as she had fallen about twelve feet and there was nothing but completely vertical cliffs surrounding her in this cove on the lake. I was going to go down and shoot her when we go the idea to try and rope her and drag her out of there in the water. The cow was very cooperative after spending atleast a few days standing in knee deep water with no where to go. I ended up putting a long haulter on her and tying the end of the lead rope off to another thirty foot rope back to the boat. my brother in law tied it off to the boat while my father in law "hit it". The cow went right under the water and we drug her far enough out to get her feet from underneath her. I swam out to the boat, we hand pulled her right up to the side of the boat with her head right up high on the boat and tied it off. we drug that cow for atleat a mile down the shore line to find a spot where she could climb out of there. we passed a couple of fisherman that took pictures but I never did get there names. we got her close to shore, untied her, and I swam her back to shore and she climbed out and started grazing the second she hit the grass line like nothing ever happened. I wish we would have taken the video camera.

 

[RobinFarmandRanch]

I think most of yall dont have many problems with mosquitoes. I got a call thursday afternoon to go help my friends work the bulls to cope with the mosquitoes for the fall. Get down to the marsh on Friday and hear of 5 cows that were smothered by mosquitoes. YES SMOTHERED, thats how thick they are right now for us. They have pretty much tore down every piece of fence around his place.

On a lighter note, i experienced first hand yesterday how hard it is to rope a cow in a canal off of a boat and a jet ski. 8)

Pictures!!!! We need to see pictures!!!!

I wish i had some. It was raining on us so i didnt bring my camera. Im sorry yall i dont usually bring my camera when we are working cows cuz we are always in the marsh and i get wet so much that id go through them pretty quick.

 

[katrina]

I think most of yall dont have many problems with mosquitoes. I got a call thursday afternoon to go help my friends work the bulls to cope with the mosquitoes for the fall. Get down to the marsh on Friday and hear of 5 cows that were smothered by mosquitoes. YES SMOTHERED, thats how thick they are right now for us. They have pretty much tore down every piece of fence around his place.

On a lighter note, i experienced first hand yesterday how hard it is to rope a cow in a canal off of a boat and a jet ski. 8)

Pictures!!!! We need to see pictures!!!!

I wish i had some. It was raining on us so i didnt bring my camera. Im sorry yall i dont usually bring my camera when we are working cows cuz we are always in the marsh and i get wet so much that id go through them pretty quick.

I still would like to see your country... It's the only trips I get.... Are you far from Robertmac??? He's on my short bucket list...

 

[Whitewing]

I've often wondered how any mammal can survive in those marshes with the mosquito populations in the fall. They're just astounding AND aggressive.

 

[RobinFarmandRanch]

Katrina, it depends on where hes at in Mississippi if im close or not.

WW it baffles me how they can stand it. Between that and the heat, we have to breed for big ears so we are putting alot of Brahman influence in all our cows. Even farther north where i live, im going to have to have alot of brahman in them so they can survive the heat, humidity, and mosquitoes. Another friend lost a bull today and a calf lost an eye to the damn things. We are supposed to get a cool snap tonight that might kill some of them off.

 

[Whitewing]

Katrina, it depends on where hes at in Mississippi if im close or not.

WW it baffles me how they can stand it. Between that and the heat, we have to breed for big ears so we are putting alot of Brahman influence in all our cows. Even farther north where i live, im going to have to have alot of brahman in them so they can survive the heat, humidity, and mosquitoes. Another friend lost a bull today and a calf lost an eye to the damn things. We are supposed to get a cool snap tonight that might kill some of them off.

If any breed can survive 'em, it'll be the Brahmans.

There's a lot of Brahman influence down here too RF&R to deal with the heat, poor forage conditions (long walks for food and water), and ticks. There are times of the year when we see a few, and I mean a FEW mosquitoes, but nothing ever like what you guys get there in those marshes.

I recall trying to deer hunt a wooded area down around Forked Island one October. I had plenty of bug spray on so they weren't biting me, but I could hardly hear myself think because of the swarm of mosquitoes hovering around looking for a meal.