Most farmers do not need a vacation to Las Vegas or Atlantic City to play the slot machines, because they gamble every day with their livelihoods. While some risks are unavoidable, farmers can mitigate others by taking time to be more cautious.
Weather
While the weather can flood crops or cause them to burn up, farmers, however, often are forced to take other weather-related risks. The risks of skin cancer rise as the sun beat down on them as they work. They often have to work in flooded conditions to save their livestock when others hideaway indoors. High winds can knock down live power lines, but the fence must still be repaired after a windstorm before their livestock gets into the neighbor’s grain crop.
When the weather turns bad, and everyone else heads inside, these farmers often find that they must bundle up and go outside because it is on those days that animals seem to experience the most problems. Farmers must also work in snow, ice, mud, and on other slippery surfaces. They can often be found outside when temperatures top 100 degrees and are seen outside when temperatures drop below zero.
The Machinery
Tractor rollovers are the leading cause of death in farmers. Mowing is the most commonplace that these rollover accidents occur. There are at least two contributing factors that farmers can control, but they often choose not to in the interest of getting everything done.
The first one is that heavy machines that lack safety equipment are often relegated to mowing tasks so that better equipment can be involved in more profitable operations. Secondly, younger drivers without as much experience commonly are assigned mowing tasks or the very old who are starting to have vision issues.
Other farm machinery can also be problematic, including hay balers, grain drills, skid steer loaders, corn pickers, combines, and brush hog mowers all come with safety warnings that farmers need to take time to read, understand, and obey. But when an accident occurs, there is often no one around to get help quickly or stop moving machinery. Farmers also often find themselves having to climb up on high machinery, which can cause accidents to be more severe than if they happened at ground level.
Chemical Use
Farmers must use chemicals to accomplish many different farm tasks. Farmers often come in regular contact with veterinary medicines that can be problematic to human skin, lungs, and organs. Yet, without using those chemicals, they cannot sell sick animals, and they need to be able to sell those animals in order to make a living. Crop farmers regularly have to spray their fields with chemicals to control weeds so that they harvest a bountiful crop that will bring top dollar at market. Yet, these chemicals can cause them to become sick. These problems may not show up for years. By then, the farmer is so invested in their operation that they have no other choice but to keep going.
Terrain
Most people work on floors that are maintained regularly, but that is not true of farmers who must frequently work on all types of terrain. Tall grass and weeds often fill holes until the farmer does not know that they are there until they accidentally fall into it. Water and snow can create hidden dangers that the farmer has not seen until after they have fallen. Even in regularly used paddocks and feedlots, animals trampling through mud can create uneven terrain that farmers must walk on. This can lead to many slip-and-fall injuries that may lead to concussions, broken bones, and other injuries.
Animals
Farmers often have to find themselves in close contact with their animals. Most of those animals are not tame pets. Therefore, their behavior can be very unpredictable. Add to that the fact that problems often arise late at night when farmers must hope that there is enough moonlight and vehicle headlight power to allow them to see what they are doing. Even animals that are regularly kept in stalls or come into the milking barn daily can still react unpredictably when they get spooked. Almost every farmer has a story they can tell about being chased by a wild bull trying to get to a cow in heat or a momma sow who thought the farmer wanted to hurt her babies.
Terrain
Most people work on floors that are maintained regularly, but that is not true of farmers who must frequently work on all types of terrain. Tall grass and weeds often fill holes until the farmer does not know that they are there until they accidentally fall into it. Water and snow can create hidden dangers that the farmer has not seen until after they have fallen. Even in regularly used paddocks and feedlots, animals trampling through mud can create uneven terrain that farmers must walk on. This can lead to many slip-and-fall injuries that may lead to concussions, broken bones, and other injuries.
Isolation
Farmers often find themselves working in isolation. While this is one of the reasons that many love farming when something bad happens, it can lead to additional problems. In situations where seconds count, it can take time for someone to discover an accident has occurred. It can also take time before emergency services can reach remote farmsteads. Even after they arrive, getting to the exact accident scene can be challenging and time-consuming.
Fire
Fire can be a massive problem for farmers and ranchers. Isolation can mean it can take a while for farmers to receive professional firefighting help. Large fires can create their own wind making their direction of travel very unpredictable. Additionally, farmers working with high equipment often face electrical fire risks because they forget to look up. Farmers may not regularly inspect many buildings on the farm, so it is easy for pests to eat electrical wires and start fires.
Especially during calving season or harvest season, many farmers work incredibly long days. They never have a bell that rings to tell them that it is time to go home. They are often up waiting for the sun to rise in the morning and racing to try to beat dusk in the evening. This can cause farmers to make mistakes that can be costly. There are seldom overhead lights to help them see, and the farmer’s helper holding a flashlight may be his son or daughter who is more interested in chasing a butterfly. Farming is full of risks, but most farmers and ranchers would not trade their lifestyle for anything in the world. Be smart while working even if it means that you will lose a few bucks because it may cost you your life otherwise.
Alliance Insurance Agency offers a variety of solutions for agricultural applications. Talk to an expert today!