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The Rural Voice, 2002-03, Page 40GENERAL CONTRACTING * Agricultural * Residential * Commercial * Repairs * Renovations KEN DURRER MILDMAY ALLAN DURRER PHONE: 519-367-5225 FAX: 519-367-5966 they eat'?" (Whatever makes them get big quick.) "When do they eat'?" (Whenever they're not sleeping or breeding.) "What did you do with the dead ones?" (We had a funeral for them, of course.) With prepared charts, graphs and tables I made a valiant attempt to convey to him the scope of our projected losses in Tight of such complexities as genetics, ruminant nutrition and annual markets. He interrupted me in the middle of- an explanation of accelerated lambing with, "Have they ever refused to eat?" (Well, once they went on a hunger strike. They were marching around with placards bearing slogans like "one ewe, one ram", "My children are worth it", "the hell with hormones — accelerated lambing's a pain in the Iamb's quarters", "all hay and no play makes Jill a dull girl", "why do I always have to have womb -mates", and "what's wrong with ewe?"). He wanted to know how we knew which sheep was which. I assured him that they were all tagged. "Do you put the tags around their necks? he asked. Decision Making is Tougher Than Ever! The biggest change in the farming business is the rate of change. Farm managers are now faced with a multitude of issues which are more complex than ever. At times, the options and the consequences are overwhelming to the decision maker. We feed them whatever makes them big quick For 30 years Ward & Uptigrove has been helping farmers make decisions by providing advice with respect to: • financial projections for expansions or other projects • bookkeeping and accounting systems • income tax planning and annual income tax filings • government assistance programs includifsg NISA 1 _ • estate and retirement planning • business succession • GST issues Give us a call. We would be pleased to meet you to review your farming business and the issues you face. If you decide we are the type of people you need to succeed — great. If you decide not to use our services, at least you will have received some fresh ideas and a free coffee. WARD & UPTIGROVE, LLP 145 MAIN STREET EAST LISTOWEL, ONTARIO N4W 3H2 PHONE: 519-291-3040 Fax: 519.291-1850 EMAIL: WUCA@WU.ON.CA PARTNERS: R.E. UPTIGROVE, CA C.D. NEWELL, CA R.H. LOREE, CA R.K. NEWELL, CA N.M. MACLENNAN, CA T.J. SOLTYS, CA R.K. UPTIGROVE, CA SENIOR PRINCIPALS: P.J. HAK, CMA B.R. BUCHANAN, CGA PRINCIPALS: D.C. LEGAULT, CGA G.T. SLOT, CA ASSOCIATES: B.W. CORNELL, CA R.D. DEYELL, CA C.L. GIBSON, CGA A.J. MCKAY, CA D.T. PATTEN, CGA (No. We use self-adhesive labels that say things like "Hello! My name is Dick. Occupation: ram.") Eventually the "investigation" moved outdoors. He motioned towards the Tush hayfields behind the barn. "Is this your pasture?" he asked. "No", I politely replied, motioning to the front fields. "You drove past the pasture on your way in. This part is not fenced." "But do you put them out there to eat?" he questioned. "No." "But why not?" he pursued. "This part is not fenced," I reiterated. (There's an echo out here.) He motioned towards the ewes in the front field. "Are those yours?" (No, that's the flock from the church on the corner. They belong in another fold). I unhooked the electric gate at the barnyard to let him come through. I didn't hear the characteristic "snap" as the wire touched the ground. It wasn't turned on. I couldn't resist 36 THE RURAL VOICE