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Cattle producers battle blizzard conditions

An eastern Iowa cattle producer says this week’s blizzard conditions have taken a toll on his herd.

Lance Lillibridge raises red angus cattle in Benton County. He tells Brownfield 30-to-40 below wind chills have impacted cattle health.

“They tend to not drink as much,” he said. “And if they are not drinking as much, then they aren’t eating as much, which means we’re not putting weight on them.”

Lillibridge says he took extra steps to be prepared for the storm.

“The biggest thing is to have them on a good bedding pack,” he said. “We use corn stalks. We shred those corn stalks right into the pen. Probably the next most important thing is making sure they’ve got (unfrozen) water.”

He says having enough feed supplies on hand has been another priority.