catch 22

tommylimerick

Hi fellow farmers , i am 33 years old going on 34 now , i will be inherting a farm pretty soon i don t know how much . the farm is about 150 acres and also have the option of renting another 30 acres .i would need to invest about 150k straight away to meet enviro”mental” standards and another 50k on machinery over the next 5 years . yes there is some pollution coming from the farm. I sold all the lactating animals this year and am going to sell the in-calf heifers pretty soon .my dad died when i was young and my mum had to raise us by herself which must have been tough on her . i try to empathise but i really only understand my own perception of the world i could not articulate these thoughts my vocabulary is not strong enough .some neighbours were very helpful and i really respect this . i do. I have asked all the land owners bounding the milking platform would they rent me their land and all of them said “no” . there is only about 90 acres around the milking platform of some of the best land in the world we are right in the heart of the golden vale. It may seem ironic but i think i could make more money from not farming over the next 3 years by not farming . then i will face a squeeze from both sides lower income and more outgoings . most farmers my age are looking at expanding to 200 cows when (if) milk quotas go . what will i be doing milking 70? I can keep my milk quota for this year but will be forced to sell it or lose it next year. I want to keep my options open . i do not feel that the local community have much respect for us farmers . i may be wrong ???? and now they want us to pull them out of a hole . i also find dealing with sick animals and training young calves to drink stressfull , i have very little patience maybe this is something i should work on .eg. if a calf is worth 100 euro and the vet charges 50 euro to treat the animal what is the moral thing to do ??? considering the vet only saves about half the cases .. my vet is a good man i am not having a go at him.... i also suffer from depression a lot and am on anti depression medicine and medication for stress relief . i am also a bit of a perfectionist and hate when things go wrong . i know it s only a game but the table is slanted isn t it ? when i see a lovely field of grass it looks beautifull and then the cows go in and eat it all . ya i know thats the point of growing it in the first place . i am thinking of doing a asset strip and maybe starting a new business but i don t know what yet... if land come up for sale bounding the milking platform i wpuld try and buy it . keep it simple ..even though i think it is too dear but it will only come up once i reckon .. i think farm partnership is the way forward . we all have to work together just as long as your motives are pure .when i was younger i was a very enthusiastic farmer but now i am old and cynical .i do not want to be positive i want to be OBJECTIVE . i have also abused a lot of drugs in my life but now i am willing to face the future in a braver fashion . Ireland will once again get to the top and this time we will rip off the world not each other. Deep thoughts or a pile of **** you decide.. any advice is welcome
Lets share ideas , i never knew ideas could be wrong just the implemetation of bad ideas

Dunedin

cannot believe that the neighbours wouldn't rent you their land - very inconsiderate - maybe you should have asked them just to give it to you instead:(:(:(

could you make the post a little longer as I find really long posts, all in one paragraph very interesting.............

PMU

Dunedin wrote: »

cannot believe that the neighbours wouldn't rent you their land - very inconsiderate - maybe you should have asked them just to give it to you instead:(:(:(

could you make the post a little longer as I find really long posts, all in one paragraph very interesting.............

very helpful dunedin,could you please keep your smartarse comments to yourself.this man is looking for some help

dar31

PMU wrote: »

very helpful dunedin,could you please keep your smartarse comments to yourself.this man is looking for some help

very true, any one looking for help and advise shot not be shot down like that. it probably took alot of time and effort to get all that down.

locky76

Tommy, just so i inderstand you correctly, you're going to inherit 150acres and you're expecting the world to feel sorry for you?
Get on with it man and farm the land as it should be farmed, all this financial speak of asset stripping and not being able to milk 200 cows, i don't know, i really don't.
Look at what you have with ambition and excitement, your glass looks more than hal full to me!

tommylimerick wrote: »

Hi fellow farmers , i am 33 years old going on 34 now , i will be inherting a farm pretty soon i don t know how much . the farm is about 150 acres and also have the option of renting another 30 acres .i would need to invest about 150k straight away to meet enviro”mental” standards and another 50k on machinery over the next 5 years . yes there is some pollution coming from the farm. I sold all the lactating animals this year and am going to sell the in-calf heifers pretty soon .my dad died when i was young and my mum had to raise us by herself which must have been tough on her . i try to empathise but i really only understand my own perception of the world i could not articulate these thoughts my vocabulary is not strong enough .some neighbours were very helpful and i really respect this . i do. I have asked all the land owners bounding the milking platform would they rent me their land and all of them said “no” . there is only about 90 acres around the milking platform of some of the best land in the world we are right in the heart of the golden vale. It may seem ironic but i think i could make more money from not farming over the next 3 years by not farming . then i will face a squeeze from both sides lower income and more outgoings . most farmers my age are looking at expanding to 200 cows when (if) milk quotas go . what will i be doing milking 70? I can keep my milk quota for this year but will be forced to sell it or lose it next year. I want to keep my options open . i do not feel that the local community have much respect for us farmers . i may be wrong ???? and now they want us to pull them out of a hole . i also find dealing with sick animals and training young calves to drink stressfull , i have very little patience maybe this is something i should work on .eg. if a calf is worth 100 euro and the vet charges 50 euro to treat the animal what is the moral thing to do ??? considering the vet only saves about half the cases .. my vet is a good man i am not having a go at him.... i also suffer from depression a lot and am on anti depression medicine and medication for stress relief . i am also a bit of a perfectionist and hate when things go wrong . i know it s only a game but the table is slanted isn t it ? when i see a lovely field of grass it looks beautifull and then the cows go in and eat it all . ya i know thats the point of growing it in the first place . i am thinking of doing a asset strip and maybe starting a new business but i don t know what yet... if land come up for sale bounding the milking platform i wpuld try and buy it . keep it simple ..even though i think it is too dear but it will only come up once i reckon .. i think farm partnership is the way forward . we all have to work together just as long as your motives are pure .when i was younger i was a very enthusiastic farmer but now i am old and cynical .i do not want to be positive i want to be OBJECTIVE . i have also abused a lot of drugs in my life but now i am willing to face the future in a braver fashion . Ireland will once again get to the top and this time we will rip off the world not each other. Deep thoughts or a pile of **** you decide.. any advice is welcome
Lets share ideas , i never knew ideas could be wrong just the implemetation of bad ideas

joeboard

From reading your post your mind seems to be travelling at a million miles per hour, stop thinking too much to the future and concentrate on things that you can influence at the moment. You will never be happy if your worried about what someone else is doing.
You are in a lot better position that some unfortunate couples that have bought houses in the boom and have now found themselves unemployed.
You descibed yourself as an old man at 34, my advice to you would be to grow up and be a man, Rome wasn't built in a day, all anyone wants is a roof over their head and something to eat, I don't mean to be harsh but greed is what got this country in the mess it is in at the moment.
Start to look at the positives and try to eliminate the negitivity it will only bring you down and achieve absolutely nothing.
Best of luck

djmc

There is a very good dvd on http://www.farmersjournal.com/store/productDetail.php?c=5&p=24
which has a good section on rearing dairy calves
I used to bucket train calves now I use nipple feeders jfc or milk bar and start them on a bottle called speedy feeder the calves are trained to it in minutes training to a bucket the old way took hours days and I would never go back.
As for calf health make sure they have plenty fresh air dont let numbers build up in shed and put them out in a sheltered field as soon as they are strong enough 3wks aprox and feed them milk outside with nipple feeder
Dont rush out spending loads of money until your sure you know what you want to do.
Dairy farming can be hard going 7 day for 360 days a year but at least it would keep the mind busy and plenty fresh air.
maybe join a dairy discusion group and meet other dairy farmers with there ideas.
As for the other stuff lay off the drink and nights out if you are feelin down and talk to people, keep active and get out doors.
best of luck whatever you decide to do and 150 acres is a nice size farm.

pakalasa

If there is one thing I really like about Ireland now, despite all the doom and gloom, it's the growing awareness of mental health issues. The farming community do seem to be particularily affected. I suppose it's the social isolation and the constant stress of having to work, 7 days a week. There's no going home at 5 o'clock, like any normal job and leaving it all behind ya. Years ago, any sizeable farm had a number of workers sharing the workload and in a way it was a little social community of it's own. Now one person is expected to carry all that burden. It aint easy!

So Tommy As Luimneagh, if you dont want to farm, then dont do it. Maybe rent out the place for a few years. Put it up for rent and I guarantee, you will get a taker. In the goldenvale, come on.:rolleyes:

Maybe travel the world, live a little. Here's betting you'll come back with a new lease on life and a passion for that green grass.

It's funny, but when you get older, you see things from a different perspective. Losing a parent is one of the most traumatic things that can happen someone, especially at a very young age.

Best of luck anyway, in whatever you decide to do!:D........and lay off the fecking drugs.

tommylimerick

thanks for yer replies
ya my brain is a bit scattered at the moment .. yes i loved farming when i started but i just think the world is really corrupt . i am not sure i have the strenght of character to milk cows it is very demanding ..i am not of strong character
thanks for not judging me ..
a problem shared is a problem halved
i just need time off to get my head back in order
it seems like mission impossible to me at the moment
but i am following doctors orders now and will continue to do so
maybe i will just keep some beef cattle
few people inherit farms i know i am very lucky in this regard
maybe i am a little greedy but so is everyone else "greed is good"?
whats the point in being naive ?
why would i subsidise something that is already subsidised
is there much logic to that?
i have a lot of personal development to do. for sure and some growing up to do too .. i find cows too demanding 7 days a week every farmer should have at least 2 days a week off i think ..
yes farming can a lonely occupation
i do feel a bit sorry for myself .. you are right ..
i don t have any debts so all is good in that regard ..
yes for certain loads of people are in a worse off position than me and were ripped off .. no doubt .. but two wrongs don t make a right
thanks for all genuine replies ..

whelan1

yes milking cows is very demanding BUT if you are spring calving you can have a couple of months off and do once a day milking in the autumn... maybe do a bit of suckling and see how it goes , as you said you are debt free which is a god send in this day and age... take one day at a time

JohnBoy

Tommy, take a step back and breathe.


go talk to someone, I mean someone professional, a counsellor or something.


Get your head straight and decide what you want to do.

Dont farm because you think you have to.

poor farmer

health is your wealth farming just fills the days

tommylimerick

if ye haven t guessed yet what i am ye might be not thinking it through
i can be your best friend or worst enemy
i have a anti social personality disorder what is the definition of that ???
i have lucid dreams
sometimes i am driving on the road and see farms abandoned
other times i have no silage and hundreds of cows
i feel danger approching
sorry will not be posting on this topic again

dar31

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