Drought takes a toll on livestock in county

Pam Lynch and her 13-year-old daughter Madison, winner of last year's champion goat title who also looks after lambs and steer, had to cut the number of pigs they raise from 10 to 6 this year because of feed costs. Texas production of sorghum - or feed grains - cotton, corn, winter wheat and soybeans are all expected to drop by at least 40 percent because of the drought, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture's anticipated crop harvests for this year. The drought is teaching many kids what it costs to raise animals and what it takes to keep them healthy, said Paul Zylman, Montgomery County Fair Association president. Zylman had to sell off two-thirds of his own beef master cattle and all of his calves this year because of dead grass and low water levels in his ponds. Ranchers who sell cattle they can't feed face another big problem: more income means more taxes, Anderson said. [...] the tax code allows ranchers to postpone payment or reinvest those funds if drought conditions or shortages of water or feed cause the atypical sales, according to the Texas Department of Agriculture.