Mass livestock sell-off as farmers run out of feed and water amid droughtBy Angus Verley, Annie Brown and Prue BentleyABC RuralTopic:Droughts18m ago18 minutes agoFri 9 May 2025 at 8:15pmFarmers have been handfeeding their animals during dry conditions. (Supplied: Stuart Pendergast)In short: Large parts of southern Australia are enduring a horror run of dry conditions — the driest on record in some parts.Some drought-stricken farmers are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on hay and grain, and selling livestock they cannot afford to keep.What's next? Farmer lobby groups want governments to do more to help.abc.net.au/news/farmers-drought-livestock-sell-off-no-rain-sheep-dry/105272202Link copiedShareShare articleFarmers running out of feed and water for their stock are being forced to sell animals in huge numbers as drought conditions roll on in southern Australia.Some farmers have been handfeeding livestock and trucking in water for the past 18 months.But they are reaching a breaking point, where the cost and logistics are too much — so they are selling their stock.No feed, no water, no moneyBrie Lewis farms near Cavendish, in the foothills of the Grampians, in western Victoria.She said the drought was dealing a crippling financial and mental blow."We don't really have a choice but to buy feed, so we're just buying in feed and spending so much money," she said.This picture, taken in the same paddock at the same time of the year, highlights how poor last winter was for Brie and Daniel Lewis, compared to the previous season. (Supplied: Brie Lewis)"It could be anywhere from $7,000 to $10,000 or even more, every week, and we would have spent upward of $250,000 just last season alone."Ms Lewis said some people had reached breaking point."Who knows how much longer this is going to go on for?" she said."You run out of feed, you run out of water, you run out of money, there's nothing left."Rainfall data shows many parts of southern Australia have received close to or even their lowest totals on record in the past 18 months.This is one of numerous dams that have gone dry on Brie and Daniel Lewis's property near Cavendish. (Supplied: Brie Lewis)Mass sell-offRon Rutledge is the livestock operations manager for Nutrien in southern Australia.He said in recent weeks, there had been a huge jump in current and future breeding stock being sold off."We're calculating an extra 30 to 35 per cent of calves are being sold at the moment. We're seeing high numbers of cows being slaughtered, and in the sheep sector, one in five ewes sold for processing have probably got a lamb inside them," he said.Wodonga saleyards saw a massive yarding of 6,200 head recently. (ABC Rural: Annie Brown)He said grain was getting harder to source, hay was scarce and water shortages were critical."People have got to do their budgets with their livestock analysts and ask if it is really worth putting hay and grain down the throat of the animal," he said.Mr Rutledge said the Victorian government needed to do more to support struggling farmers, and said freight subsidies should be available for things like trucking in water and sending sheep away on agistment.Dry conditions stretch on in southern Australia. (Supplied: Stuart Pendergast)Dry forces tough decisionsMichael Purcell is a cattle producer from Acheron, in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range, north-east of Melbourne.He spoke to ABC Rural at the Wodonga saleyards, where he was selling most of his calves as part of a massive 6,000-head yarding.Michael Purcell from Acheron sold 90 calves at the Wodonga saleyards. (ABC Rural: Annie Brown)"We've pretty much run out of feed, so all the calves had to go so we can try and keep the cows through to the spring," he said.Mr Purcell said one positive in an otherwise grim situation was that cattle prices were holding up reasonably well — which often did not happen in drought conditions when markets were flooded with livestock."Clearly the rain in the north has grown a lot of feed," he said.He said he was not banking on seasonal conditions improving anytime soon."I like the line, 'If you want to make God laugh, make a plan', so there are a lot of things that can change between now and spring," he said.Farmers have been carting water for their animals to drink as dams run dry. (Supplied: Mark Billings)Dairy sector smashedMark Billing heads up the advocacy group Dairy Farmers Victoria and is a dairy farmer at Larpent, in south-west Victoria.He said while the cost of buying in fodder was enormous, water shortages were hitting even harder in the dairy sector, given the enormous water requirements of dairy cows.Mark Billing says farmers need subsidies to offset the cost of trucking in water. (ABC Rural: Jane McNaughton)"There are farmers having to make critical decisions right now about their farming future," he said.He said while he did not support subsidies for transporting fodder — given they had been shown to push up the price of fodder — water transport subsidies were desperately needed."I think the best we can do is make sure the government is fully aware of what's happening and how critical the situation is," he said.Farmers are spending thousands of dollars to feed their livestock. (Supplied: Mark Billings)Government supportThe South Australian, Victorian and Tasmanian governments have all announced varying drought support schemes.In South Australia, drought support now totals $73 million, while in Victoria there is a $13.5 million package and in Tasmania, a $4.8 million scheme.In Victoria, the majority of that funding is in the form of infrastructure grants, where farmers in eligible local government areas can apply for up to $5,000 on a dollar-for-dollar basis.An Agriculture Victoria spokesperson said more than 1,569 grants had been provided to primary producers "to upgrade farm water systems, install stock containment areas, and to purchase grain and fodder storage infrastructure".The spokesperson did not say whether freight subsidies for transporting livestock and water were being considered.ABC Rural RoundUp newsletterStories from farms and country towns across Australia, delivered each Friday.Your information is being handled in accordance with the ABC Privacy Collection Statement.Email addressSubscribePosted 18m ago18 minutes agoFri 9 May 2025 at 8:15pmShare optionsCopy linkFacebookX (formerly Twitter)Top Stories'Third party' vote looks set to beat CoalitionTopic:ElectionsPhoto shows A triangular chart showing an example of some electorates shifting from LNP to 'Other candidates' at the 2025 federal election'We've hit the lottery': Businesses cash in on Labor's home battery rebateTopic:Energy IndustryPhoto shows A man with a t-shirt, hat and sunglasses on top of his head smiles at camera.Labor win turns sour as the bloody realpolitik takes centre stageLAnalysis by Laura TinglePhoto shows Two men in orange hi vis vest, with one holding up a dollar coinErin Patterson was building Lego hours after serving deadly meal, court hearsTopic:CourtsPhoto shows A close up photo of Erin Patterson looking over her shoulder wearing glases.India's retaliation to terror attacks reflects a changed strategy. 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