Bison acquisition and other stressors
I'm going down to the ranch tonight, but wanted to give an overview of what Jess and I have been doing over the last few weeks.
During our previous time on the ranch, Jess and I were able to finish installing the three water-based fence posts that allow the bison to access the edge of our pond without wading in and filling it with poop. I've heard from some people that bison won't do this the way cattle will, but I've heard from others that they will do it during hot weather. This limited access gives me the chance to test which belief is true. If it turns out that they like to stand in the water all day and poop in it, I'll fence off the pond and install a cattle water trough.
In addition to the pond fencing, we also finished upgrading the electric fence from a 0.5 joule energizer to a 3 joule energizer. Though the 0.5 joule energizer was supposed to be able to adequately charge a fence like mine, it didn't. The new system is very similar to the previous system with its solar panel and 12 volt battery. Everything is just bigger.
Once we had the fence working, Jess and I also installed the two internal vehicle gates. It turns out that I had fabricated both gates two feet shorter than they should have been, so I've spent the last few evenings after work creating steel extensions, which I plan to install this weekend.
Finally, over the past several weeks we've been ramping up our search for animals to start my herd. A big part of our business model is to produce bison meat in a manner improves the genetic health of the species. Specifically, I am referring to concepts such as avoiding inbreeding depression, maintenance of genetic variation, and reduction of cattle genes. Essentially, Jess and I would like to establish a herd that is able to function as both a "conservation herd" and a healthy food source for people. Doing this requires us to be much more thorough in our search for bison, which means posing lot of specific questions to potential sellers that, in some cases, may annoy them. We've also had to navigate the individual state requirements to importing or exporting bison, which has, at times meant having to call state officials until I'm forwarded to the right person. While these extra steps are a headache and not much fun, we have been able to locate some potential sellers and hope to visit them in the next few weeks.
On a final note, you may notice that this posting is void of any photos from the ranch. This is because, during our last visit, it rained so much I was never able to bring out the camera without risking water damage. I hope to be able to make up for this during the coming weekend.
During our previous time on the ranch, Jess and I were able to finish installing the three water-based fence posts that allow the bison to access the edge of our pond without wading in and filling it with poop. I've heard from some people that bison won't do this the way cattle will, but I've heard from others that they will do it during hot weather. This limited access gives me the chance to test which belief is true. If it turns out that they like to stand in the water all day and poop in it, I'll fence off the pond and install a cattle water trough.
In addition to the pond fencing, we also finished upgrading the electric fence from a 0.5 joule energizer to a 3 joule energizer. Though the 0.5 joule energizer was supposed to be able to adequately charge a fence like mine, it didn't. The new system is very similar to the previous system with its solar panel and 12 volt battery. Everything is just bigger.
Once we had the fence working, Jess and I also installed the two internal vehicle gates. It turns out that I had fabricated both gates two feet shorter than they should have been, so I've spent the last few evenings after work creating steel extensions, which I plan to install this weekend.
Finally, over the past several weeks we've been ramping up our search for animals to start my herd. A big part of our business model is to produce bison meat in a manner improves the genetic health of the species. Specifically, I am referring to concepts such as avoiding inbreeding depression, maintenance of genetic variation, and reduction of cattle genes. Essentially, Jess and I would like to establish a herd that is able to function as both a "conservation herd" and a healthy food source for people. Doing this requires us to be much more thorough in our search for bison, which means posing lot of specific questions to potential sellers that, in some cases, may annoy them. We've also had to navigate the individual state requirements to importing or exporting bison, which has, at times meant having to call state officials until I'm forwarded to the right person. While these extra steps are a headache and not much fun, we have been able to locate some potential sellers and hope to visit them in the next few weeks.
On a final note, you may notice that this posting is void of any photos from the ranch. This is because, during our last visit, it rained so much I was never able to bring out the camera without risking water damage. I hope to be able to make up for this during the coming weekend.
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