Roundup!
As is evident in the above surveillance photographs, the bison have already had the last several weeks to inspect the components and eat any grass they found growing there.
My "open door" corral policy backfired this morning, however, when I observed through a security camera that one of the calves had gotten itself trapped inside a sorting pen. One of the doors (the only one I hadn't tied in place) had blown shut in the wind while the calf was in there and both the calf and it's mother were in full-panic mode. Grumbling, I walked up there and let it out.
Tomorrow Jess and I will try to work the bison through the squeeze chute for the first time. We hope to be able to tag last years calves and pull tail hairs for genetic analysis. One of the big bulls also needs a new tag. Because it is a little late for a bison roundup (roundups are usually done in the fall or early winter) the pregnant bison cows will simply be allowed to pass through the chute without any squeezing. This is to avoid over-stressing them.
The "roundup" was done this morning after I let the calf out of the sorting pen. I simply dropped three big bales of hay into the big pen, the bison walked in through the main gates to eat the hay and I closed the gates. Let's hope tomorrow goes as smoothly as today did.
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