Buffalo Time

Every November the Durham Ranch runs the herd in and separates, vaccinates, and preg-tests their Buffalo. I usually get in on it and such was the case the other day. A good set up and a knowledgeable crew makes a dangerous job go relatively smoothly and be quite enjoyable in the processes.

Before we got going we had to ship out a load of fats to head for the the slaughter house in Colorado. 

All of the calves raised on the ranch are then kept on the ranch and fed until they reach about 1100lbs. These bull were prime and ready to go. 

You definitely don't want to get in the way of these bad boys on their was up the chute. You can chase a Buffalo anywhere it wants to go. 

It was then time to get to work inside. The current working set up at the ranch has been a work in progress for the past several years. They are pretty well dialed in these days with a Binford 2000 squeeze cute, hydraulic sorting cube, and a building to keep us out of the cold November wind. 

John was in charge of lining everybody out, including his dad. 

One of my jobs was to scan every critter that came through the chute. 

The information was then sent to Erin and she could pull up all the data history of the cow and enter its current stats. 

Marshall had the most strenuous job of preg-checking. This wasn't he first rodeo. He arms the cows to see if they are bred or not. And then he reaches down to see if she is still milking. If so it means she raised a calf this summer. If dry, she probably lost it along the way and might not be worth running again, depending on her track record. 

Ultra sound certainly makes testing Buffalo easier and more accurate. 

Pat does it all, from running the chute, to bleeding certain cows, to de-horning damaged horns.

I enjoy coming down and hanging with everybody and lending a hand. But the monster cookies are the real reason I show up. 

And to get my annual mug shot next to a willing bull.

A good time is always had when hanging with the Flocchini's. The run a smooth outfit. We can have fun and still get a lot of work done. Better yet, the Bison they raise are in peak shape and live in as stress free environment as could be imagined for a wild animal. Nice work boys. Keep up the Good work.