Evidently this conversation is going on in some sort of chat. We are trying to locate it. This was sent to us by a friend. They thought we needed to know what was going on in the bison industry.
The names & addresses have been removed so as not give any type of credit where it may or may not be due.
Thank you,
I have been contacted by a cutting horse training facility
about using Bison calves. I have read here about others doing
this. What kind of arrangement (fees, etc.) is typical?
For those who have done it, has it worked out or not? Any
information and recommendations will be appreciated.
Thanks
L. /Bison Farm
To: L/Bison Farm
O.K., I'm going to sound like a girl here, but why would you
do that to calves? - separate them from the herd or at least
other calves. We have neighbors with a horse arena that use
calves for cutting. They have had bison tear the heck out of
their expensive horses, so then they tried cutting off a portion
of the horns so not to injure the horses. We are told the calves
love the cutting experience. Really. We said "no" when they wanted
some of our calves.
PJ H
To: L /Bison Farm
You as a bison rancher know the integrity & nature of the animal
and how through the thoughtless destruction of the vast herds in
North America, that was done by those before us. The species has
ironically avoided most of man's desire to change corrupt &
domesticate everything on the planet. Domestication, by my
definition is to remove all natural instinct of the species.
As we all know these animals are of a highly excite nature,
to do anything unnatural with them is very stressful, more so
than any domesticated animal . When anything , whether it be a
bacteria, plant, animal or human is put in a stressful environment
is detrimental to their health. All the "knowledgeable" people,
with concern for the species will over come the greed for the
almighty dollar and not subject them to those conditions.
In the long run you will have healthy buffalo and will be
preserving one of the few species of the planet that man has
not totally ruined. Please give it some thought. Let's look at
the state of the world today and try to save this magnificent
creature.
From: B. R.
Response: by Tim Frasier/TBE & FCH
Reading these words makes me afraid for the buffalo and the bison species. When I refer to buffalo/bison I mean calves and yearlings that may be sold without information. When I refer to bison species I mean all of them.
The dim and negative view you take of this application for the bison calves is a product of misinformation and lack of information. This is not your fault. For every one or two negative experiences you' all may have, we have 100's of positives experiences. Our company places thousands of bison with hundreds of horse operations. We are constantly experimenting with business plans that work for both the producer and user of the bison while focusing on teaching management that results in a good mental & physical state. What is done before the calves are sold is of equal importance to their well being as what happens after. One of our biggest frustrations in the trade is convincing the average bison rancher of this. If we cannot, we do not handle their animals.
"Why would you do that to calves" L/Bison Farm writes. Because in many cases the value of that calf will support it's mother for another year. Without a market for the calves their mothers die. If done correctly the calves return to the industry species destressed and immunally evolved. I can prove this. The bison that tore the heck out of the expensive horses, were a bad product going in, not the fault of the horseman. The knowledgeable horseman do not attempt to change the behavior of the buffalo. They use it to their advantage but allow their fear to leave the animals over a period of time. After we have proven to them that we are not going to hurt them they begin to allow the horseman inside their family group. Then and only then can behavior modification be successful and bear fruit for the horseman as a training aid. The horseman that use our techniques and follow our line of logic have 100% success with bison as training aids and influence their neighbor who is to cool for school. Then try to understand and get along with the bison better.
What I have written in response to E-mail brought to my attention is the tip of the iceberg. The bison are finding their way to this application and market. Ironically they are doing what they have always done. They are migrating and scattering themselves across North America once again.
I flatly refuse to judge any producers marketing or management decisions based on economics. Hell, buffalo make decisions that way in nature, they go where the feed is.
I will however judge a group of people or persons decision to be close minded without researching the subject matter fully. This market is going to continue to exist and grow, with or without your blessing and you can bet that if a horseman is looking for bison calves, he or she will find them. If you really care about the species, you'll make sure that even if they can't have your calves, which I respect, they can access information to ensure their success as well as the well being of the calves they find. This brings me to my final point. I have spent time, energy and money being a friend to the bison rancher and the buffalo themselves. This resulted in what we do, being attacked by producers and associations with no credible experience level. But choose to turn their back on the animals that find themselves in the market. If we were to honestly and accurately compare the two groups of people, horseman and bison producers today and factor in all the horrific's involved. I would be much more willing to look at the state of the world and try to decide. who this magnificent creature needs to be saved from.
Sincerely Dedicated,
Tim & Rhonda Frasier
Texas Buffalo Exchange
Frasier Cutting Horses
PO Box 1231
Gainesville, TX 76241
www.frasiercuttinghorses.com
www.texasbuffaloexchange.com
PH 940-612-0192
FX 940-612-3313
