Like most sheep producers throughout the state, Don and Pam Mudford with their two sons and two daughters and extended families are battling the torment of dry weather and fine-tuning their operations to survive through one of the most severest droughts in living memory.
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At their Dubbo property, Parkdale, dust storms are regular and sheep access to water is of paramount importance.
As well, they have cut back the number of breeding ewes running on the family's aggregation out west at Enngonia and Barringun, which had some relief from a total of 111 millimetres of rain in May and a minor flood of the Warrego River in June.
Don Mudford said with selecting their Poll Merinos for higher genetic fat (yfat) in the past 11 years, the general good health with limited feed supplies will ensure a good lamb survival at birth on those properties.
As rain catchment on Parkdale is good in most seasons, up until now the family hasn't had to worry about water, as dams would top-up three or four times a year.
However, to keep fresh water up to their sheep and goats, the family has worked hard to clean out the 100 or so dams on their Dubbo property.
"We bought a second-hand excavator and an old fuel tanker that can hold 35,000 litres of water, and we haven't stopped," Mr Mudford said.
Sons, Robert and Scott, with stockmen, have already cleaned out silt from 20 dams and they have another 82 to go.
We bought a second-hand excavator and an old fuel tanker that can hold 35,000 litres of water, and we haven't stopped
- Don Mudford
"As we clean a dam we put in fresh water, but it's slow work," he said.
It takes nine hours to fill the tanker from a single bore between the homestead and sheds, so they deliver two tanker-loads a day to top-up each dam.
"We fill the tanker overnight for the first load and then do another in the afternoon."
Each dam varies in size, but the latest cleaned out is 3500 cubic metres and will take some time to fill.
"But we are just making sure there is fresh water in each so the sheep and goats don't need to walk too far," Mr Mudford said.
He said this work was keeping their farm staff fully employed, which was also an important part of surviving the drought.
"Because the property is normally self-sufficient for water, we don't believe the associated infrastructure costs of running piping to troughs throughout the property would be cost effective," he said.
The pressures associated with managing all aspects does bear pressure on Mr Mudford, he admits.
"But I spend a lot of time out west just to give me a mental break," he said.
"I purposely go out there and spend four to five days every other week in the western area where the sheep are happy.
"Whereas here, we've got dust storms and the trailer outside full of hay and silos full of grain, and that's all our sheep have to eat."
