Extremely dry conditions in many areas of the Province especially in the South West have people concerned about the potential wildfire situation.

Rick Toney is Chair of the Saskatchewan Cattlemen’s Association and says the fire situation is a growing concern even more so than the shortage of feed.

“I had a fellow call me from that Consul country worried about wildfires. You know after our devastation last year I would say even more so than the feed issue, guys are really concerned about wildfires. You look at the fires in British Columbia right now started by lightning and we have our Cypress Hills sitting there and they’re just a disaster waiting to happen.”

Last year wildfires took a toll on lives, livestock and land in the southwest burning over 80,000 acres of crop and pasture land, killing cattle, burning fences, outbuildings and other structures

The worst fires were in the Burstall, Leader, Tompkins, Glentworth and the R.M. of Waverly areas.

It’s a reminder to everyone about the potentially dangerous fire situation that’s building with the hot, dry conditions.

A spark, wind and the dry conditions can be a dangerous combination.

He notes especially in the southwestern part of the province it’s extremely dry for the second year in a row.

He says livestock producers are looking at a limited hay crop with many trying to buy hay to help get them through:

“Guys are hustling right now trying to figure out where they're going to get it and where the price is going to go. Guys are trying to get whatever they can, the hailstorm that went through Cabri area there’s guys up there trying to salvage what they can, putting it up as silage and green feed.”

There’s some speculation that we could see an early calf run this fall as producers try to reduce their herd size.