thinking of getting 2 buffalo,anyone raised

My neighbor had 8 and they were difficult to contain. They could and would exit the pasture thru the fence anywhere if a stranger came around. The animals are too difficult to handle and they are dangerous IMO. You could not give me a live one if I had to keep it!

 

Buffalo(s) are not pets in my opinion. The Bulls, when full grown weigh in excess of 2,000 pounds. They can run thru most fences like a bulldozer and not look back. You would never enter a pen to pet the pretty animals. They are unpredictable and will Kill if they feel threatened. There maybe people who think that they are Cute but I'm not in that group. Most ranchers that I know will tell you that even dehorned bulls from very domesticated breeds are NOT a Plaything. They have one purpose in life and they can't Bark so if they can't fulfill their geneatic imperative they will be turned into hamburger......fordy

 

I wouldn't recommend to anyone to have buffalo unless they have many many acres of land. They can and will jump a six foot fence, not meant to be a feed lot animal. Get a cow.

 

I was just talking with a guy the other day who has raised buffalos for years. He said that the market has disappeared. It sounds like your buck a pound is someone looking to make a good deal for themselves.

This man told me that good breeding cows are now selling for only a couple hundred bucks. He's selling out, as there is no money in it anymore.

For a buck a pound, you can get a good steer.

Jena

 

I too heard they will bust through fences,I aso was always told never turn your back.Theyll run you down.why not texas longhorn cattle we raise those yes the horns are scary Theyre more afraid of you.Just be aware the horns are there.but easy to care for theyre docile compared to dairy.If you breed say a white bull to red cow you could get a black calf.You have no idea what it will look like.Beautiful animals.we have 40 acres we keep just enough kind of a hobby I guess dont want to be in it big time. We really enjoy them.

 

Where can you hunt Bison? As far as raising them on 50 acres...I can't imagine that 50 acres would be enough land for even 1 weaned calf. Bison are wild animals & they truely like to roam. Many attempts have been made to raise them commercially,in a fenced enviorment,& almost all have failed because bison have absolutely no respect for fences. Any fence that will actually keep them in is VERY expensive.Any commercialy successful operation that I've heard of involves thousands of acres of open range land. Add this to the fact that they can't be herded,but can only be stampeded,& you can readily see why the meat is so expensive.These behavioral characteristics of bison were most certainly known by the early settlers of the plains,& were among the many reasons that they were hunted to near-extinction to make room for domestic cattle. P.S. I really am interested in where you can hunt bison.

 

most of what has been said is true to a point they are not the same as working cattle, they don't medicate the same way, they are not cute pets, they need more room, they will fight if threatened, but there are several misconceptions they can be herded some but it is a different then domestic cattle....they are much more disease resistant then domestic cattle.......the reason for eradication of the species was predicted on control of the plains native population who were dependant on them.......they can be raised with proper pasturage without additional graining.....the meat is much leaner then beef ,pork,lamb,turkey................they are hormone free meat for your family....they are nonantibiotic laden meat for your family........info on them and raising of them is available through the buffalo trust in okla................
Bob Littlehawk

 

At the store in Viroqua, WI where I shop they sell Buffalo burger patties for $4.00 a pound, and they sell out quickly. I realize that is a little pricey but I am fussy about what I eat, and the buffalo burgers are the best I've ever had. We also buy grass fed beef from our neighbor, but I like the buffalo burgers the best. I don't understand why as was posted earlier that there's no money in it since it seems to sell well here.

 

My neighbors raise buffalo - I have 17 on my fence line and in my yard all the time! Don't do it. There is no market anymore and they are neat to look at but eat huge amounts, and not only do they go through fences they jump them like champion jumpers 6-8 foot from a standing jump is nothing to them. The insurance liability is horrendous if you can get it.

 

My brother in-law bought about 20 over a year ago. They are temperamental on feed, water, and attitude. Heck one died of a heart attack due to stress of being in the corral for worming and shots, did not even make the chute.

He has lost 6 cows mainly due to parasites, in the last few months. Fencing cost him a fortune, as the fences need to be at least 6 to 7 feet tall, and numerous strands of barbed wire.

His corral, tub area and chute is 2 3/8 pipe 7 ft tall, tub is same with plate steel for inside of tub, all made from recycled metal from other projects. The man hours alone in this project is crazy, if you need to buy new metal it goes way up on cost.

In the chutes they go crazy, flipping over backwards, and if the top of he chutes did not have pipe, they would probably get out.

The cows rip their sides open scratching with there horns.

His Bull was not fertile last year, so he lost a whole calf crop this year. Takes longer than normal for them to get fertile.

I would say heck NO to BISON

 

We have a bison farm here close. They hauled them in from Colorado, took 4 years for them to acclimate. The first 2 they had to feed all alfalfa, lost a lot of them. You do not want then close to a road, 2-3 fences back or they will be on the road all the time. They are harder on fences then the elk at the elk farm. Never walk in the pasture, always in a pickup or tractor. They have settled in after 25 years, need very little hay but the owner says you need 20 cows to keep a bull content, bison need a sizable herd to settle down. I have hauled them in enclosed trailers and bull racks, never want to haul them in an open top truck, even with 8' sides. Never had 1 go over but continually trying. They never settle in when being hauled, like cattle do. Always fighting being enclosed....James

 

They had some get loose around here and they could not catch them sheriff order them shot.

 

Someone in Hermiston has some and every time I see them they are lazy layabouts. A herd of about 10 in little more than a few acre dry lot, behind a guardrail type fence. I've always wondered how they keep them so content. Maybe next time we are out that way I'll knock on the door and ask.

 

There was a small ranch S of me when I lived near Bristow that had them. They used metal pipe for posts and ran cable through them for fence with big springs at each end. Last few times I went by there I didn't see any.

 

A guy in Jersey crossed them with cattle, and calls them "beefalo". Gets a lot per pound, and said they were calmer, grew on grass alone, a little smaller than bison...