Cattle have stopped breeding, koalas die of thirst: A vet's hellish diary of climate change
SMH,
26
December, 2019
Bulls
cannot breed at Inverell. They are becoming infertile from their
testicles overheating. Mares are not falling pregnant, and through
the heat, piglets and calves are aborting.
My
work as a veterinarian has changed so much. While I would normally
test bulls for fertility, or herds of cattle for pregnancy, I no
longer do, because the livestock has been sold. A client’s stud
stock in Inverell has reduced from 2000 breeders to zero.
I
once assisted farmers who have spent their lives developing breeding
programs, with historic bloodlines that go back 80 years. These stud
farmers are now left with a handful of breeders that they can’t
bear to part with, spending thousands keeping them fed, and going
broke doing it.
Cattle
that sold for thousands are now in the sale yards at $70 a head.
Those classed as too skinny for sale are costing the farmer $130 to
be destroyed.
They
are all gone and it was all for nothing. The paddocks are bare, the
dams dry, the grass crispy and brown. The whole region has been
completely destocked and is devoid of life.
For
22 years, I have been the vet in this once-thriving town in northern
NSW, which, as climate change continues to fuel extreme heat, drought
and bushfires, has become hell on Earth.
Here,
we are seeing extreme weather events like never before. The other day
we had about eight centimetres of rain in 20 minutes. These downpours
are like rain bombs. They are so ferocious that a farmer lost all of
his fences, and all it did was silt up the dam so he had to use a
machine to excavate the mud.
Most
farmers in my district have not a blade of grass remaining on their
properties. Topsoil has been blown away by the terrible, strong winds
this spring and summer. We have experienced the hottest days that I
can remember, and right now I can’t even open any windows because
my eyes sting and lungs hurt from bushfire smoke.
For
days, I have watched as the bushland around us went up like a
tinderbox. I just waited for the next day when my clinic would be
flooded with evacuated dogs, cats, goats and horses in desperate need
of water and food.
The
impact of the drought on wildlife is devastating to watch, too.
Members of the public are bringing us koalas, sugar gliders, possums,
galahs, cockatoos and kangaroos on a daily basis.
The
koalas affect me the most. To see these gorgeous, iconic animals
dying from thirst is too hard to bear. We save some, but we lose just
as many.
The
whole town is devastated. My business has halved. But with no horses
to breed, no cattle to test and care for, what am I going to do? I
have worked day and night to build a future for my family, but who
would want to buy our property out here? Who would want to buy a vet
clinic in a town where there are no animals to treat because it’s
too hot and dry? Where the cattle become infertile from the 40-degree
heat. All this on black, baked ground.
I
am 53 years old. Can I start again?
Climate
change for us is every day, and I am not suffering on the same level
as my friends, my clients and the helpless animals I treat. As a
veterinarian I am becoming more and more distressed, not just about
the state of my town, but the whole world.
Personally,
I have had weeks when I just cry. It just bloody hurts me. I also
have times when I get really angry and I start to swear, which I have
never done in my life.
I
also have times when I think about the potential this country has to
create a renewable future with clean, green energy, and end our
reliance on fossil fuels.
'Too
emotional, too hot': World's top energy chief laments Australia's
climate debate
You
only have to look at how resilient our farmers are in the face of
devastating, extreme weather conditions to understand that we can
make a powerful, meaningful difference to our future.
The
government has no idea what it’s like for us. It has no empathy.
Its members don't know how much it hurts when they just say yes to
another coal mine.
I
would invite Scott Morrison to come and see what life in Inverell is
like. In case he chooses not to, I'll paint this picture for the
country and hope people can start to realise and understand the
devastating impact climate change is having. I hope they will take a
stand for the people, the places and the animals whose voices are too
small for him to hear.
Just heart breaking!
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