DAVIESS CO., KY (WFIE) -
Farmers are keeping a close watch on their cattle as an emergency livestock heat stress alert has been issued for Kentucky.
Animals have died and the stress of this hot weather is affecting the production of dairy cows.
All of the animals at Lyddane Farms in Daviess County from the livestock down to the kittens are facing some really serious and dangerous conditions as temperatures continue to climb.
The warm blooded creatures can't take much more.
"I'm putting these mister rings on the fans in the barn," farm manager Ferd Reeves told 14 News.
That's why Reeves is doing all he can to keep his cattle happy and cool.
"The milk production will go down and the cooler you can keep them, the better they'll milk," Reeves said.
But the milk isn't the main concern.
If the animals get too stressed from the heat, they're just like us. They can dehydrate and potentially die.
"The biggest thing is trying to get water and mist on them where they can evaporate that heat off with the fan," said John Kuegel with Lyddane Farms.
Kuegel says all barns have extra water and they're moving nearly 150 cows under sprinklers.
"I'd say once we get into this afternoon, we'll run fans and misters 24 hours a day until we get out of this," Kuegel said.
Cattle farmers say these extra precautions they're taking over the next week will really ensure that all the animals stay safe.
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Kuegel says all barns have extra water and they're moving nearly 150 cows under sprinklers.
