Ganda Needs Your Help!
How You Can Donate To: Ganda Needs Your Help!
A few days ago, Balabhadra found Ganda, a 17 year old ox, sitting at the end of the ramp that provides entry to the barn. Ganda was just sitting there looking up at the ramp. We had noticed that he would hesitate to leave the barns and to enter the barns. Now we knew why. He was afraid of slipping and falling. Apparently he had slipped and that was why he was sitting at the end of the ramp. The ramp is two feet from the ground due to erosion and when it rains there is boot sucking mud at the end of the ramp. It is just too much for Ganda due to his arthritic back legs to get through the mud and step up two feet.
We need to extend the ramps so they are level with the ground to help cows and oxen like Ganda. Half of our herd is in old age. The plan is to reinforce with stone and extend the ramps to a slight uphill location to divert the water that causes the erosion and mud. This is one project we need your help to complete. Another is replacing some fencing so Ganda and his friends are protected from roaming outside the ISCOWP farm where they may be taken away to be sold for meat. The last project is the hay barn roof which needs to be extended and replaced due to the many holes in the old recycled tin which leak water onto the hay spoiling it. The spoiled hay is not good for Ganda and his friends to eat; in fact they often refuse to eat it. To prevent waste and to ensure the health of the cows we need to replace the roof.
We need to complete these projects as soon as possible. The hay barn is mostly empty right now but will fill up in a couple of months with hay for the winter. Now, would be a good time to replace it. There is an immediate need to fix the fencing and the two ramps to the barn.
Help cows and oxen like Ganda:
Cow Ramps
The two ramps the cows use to enter and leave the barn drop into sucking mud into which a cow can get her feet stuck. This is particularly unsafe for the older cows who have less strength to remove themselves from the mud and may fall in the process. When a cow falls, it can be a dangerous situation, especially when they can not get up. Due to the 4 stomachs and overall weight of a cow, lying down can make the organs dysfunctional.
The two ramps should be extended another 4-10 feet to avoid the mud and make life safer and easier for the cows. This would cost approximately $8, 200
| Excavation | $1,500 |
| Stone for Base | $2,200 |
| Concrete 24 yards | $2,520 |
| 6 x 6 x 8 posts 30@$20 each | $600 |
| 2 x 6 x 12 fence boards 50@$7 each | $350 |
| Total | $8,220 |
Cow Fencing
We have 165 acres, 80 of which is pasturing for the cows. Pasturing is the natural proclivity of a cow and makes the cow very happy. All of these 80 acres must be fenced to keep the cows from roaming beyond the farm where they may be taken by someone and never returned with the strong possibility of being sold for meat.
Fencing is an on-going project as there is always
destruction in some part of the fence each year by deer, weather causing
falling trees on the fence, the cows trying to eat the grass on the other side
of the fence putting pressure on the wires therefore loosening them and the
forces of time which can cause the posts to come loose.
There is a stretch of the fence that badly needs help as it lays in a swampy, overgrown area. We have been patching this area for years and it now is beyond patching and needs to be completely replaced.
We figure it would cost $2,450 for the labor and materials. It would have to be done all by hand as machines could likely get stuck in the swampy overgrown location. Digging the holes for the posts by hand is hard labor.
| Fence Posts 100@$4 | $400 |
| Wire | $300 |
| Wire Fence hardware | $250 |
| Labor | $1,500 |
| Total | $2,450 |
Cow Hay Barn Roof
The hay barn does not provide shelter for all the hay. When the hay gets wet it gets mold and it is not good for the health of the cows to eat it, in fact they don't like to eat it. Therefore there is waste. The roof could be extended to cover all the hay stored for the winter.The hay roof, like all the other first roofs on the other cow barns, was made of recycled tin which had already seen a lot wear. There are numerous holes in the roof that are leaking rain and snow onto the stored hay. We thought at first we could patch the holes, but it looks like there are too many. It seems like the sensible thing to do is to replace the roof when extending the roof.
| Tin | $2,489 |
| Nailers 1x 5x 16 28@$4 | $112 |
| Rafters 2 x 6 x 14 30@$7 | $210 |
| Bracers 2 x 8 x16 16@$10.85 | $170 |
| Uprights 6 x 6 x 20 4@$80 | $320 |
| Labor | $3,000 |
| Nails | $50 |
| Total | $6,351 |
The total for this campaign is $17,021
Please donate what you can to help make the lives of the cows safer and healthier. Thank you so much.
-
To find out how you can help and our gifts to you:
Thanking you in advance,
Balabhadra and Chayadevi
(William E. Dove and Irene M. Dove)
ISCOWP Managing Directors
