Sitting Bull College, Bison/Tatanka Care and Culture ... › 2014 › 10 › ...Sitting Bull College, Bison/Tatanka Care and Culture Workshop printed Mobridge, SD, 2/21/08 2/19/2008

Sitting Bull College, Bison/Tatanka Care and Culture Workshop printed Mobridge, SD, 2/21/08 2/19/2008

Because of what I learned in Yellowstone, the

management focus of our Iowa herd had to be

entirely different than seen in today’s public and

private herds. Tall Grass Bison started in 1976 with 3

animals and now has 5 family groups and 400 bison

on 1000 acres.

This concept of social order herds can be applied to

all private and public herd managers. Economic and

philosophical considerations of both go hand-in-

hand.

To us, raising buffalo means a lot more than the buzz

and social contact folks get at the sale barn. Our

definition and application of “holistic” is decidedly

different than what others refer to.

Bob Jackson, Tall Grass Bison 1


It would have been counter productive for bison to be any other than environmentally compatible if they were to flourish as a species. Knowing that bison have the same extended social families as humans, allows us to become connected to life on our planet. But with knowledge comes conscience and this means we have no other choice than to be more respectful of the animals we eat. Also, it is a given that nature is most efficient and thus we cannot exclude any herd animals from being a part of nature’s efficiency. We can use this knowledge of social order, which is the key to nature’s efficiency, and apply it to private enterprise.



This can be applied to any livestock operation,

whether cattle, pigs or sheep.

Without language developing and without extended

family bonding these private herd dehorned cows are

about as lonely and untrusting as one can expect. It

is not a life any animal should have to endure.

With support systems in place and without the fear of

being left behind, getting a drink is a lot more orderly.



What one sees in Yellowstone, extensive animal use

without riparian damage, can be duplicated in private

herds infused with social structure.

A hike up Yellowstone’s Hayden Valley reveals

environmental compatibility, with large animals in

large numbers, at the water’s edge… without

degradation.

Whiteman is so blind! He thinks of bison as multiples

of individuals, not as extended family herds. In fact,

they have the same infrastructure requirements as

functioning corporations and cities. It was much less

destructive for indigenous people to remove a whole

family than cripple the efficiencies of multiple

families.



Herd animal management applies to ALL herd

animals. Note the space between the groups of

cattle. It is because these groups are families.

“Fear” is not the same thing as “wild” and “function” is

not dependent on this fear.

While there are very tangible economic benefits,

there are additional, more esoteric values to having

social order herds on the land. Just as there are

other than economic reasons for most of us that raise

bison rather than cattle.



Research was conducted on small mammal

populations in our pastures with buffalo grazing

compared to similar neighboring pastures that had

cattle. It was found that the population significantly

increased, double and triple, for the pastures with

buffalo. It might be partly due to the increased over-

wintering capability, as well as survivability of young.

Also, the species of mouse that predominated was

different. Bringing the bison back to the land is

perhaps returning the flora and fauna back to what

was historically there.

Prairie birds also benefit from the wool as nesting

material, similar to the wool increasing the ability of

the mice to keep young warm. The wool also gives

the birds purchase, as can be seen here with Brown-

headed cowbirds in Yellowstone. Birds can hang on

to the wool, unlike the slick coats of cattle.

We see the same thing on our farm. Here, a Starling

perches on the nose of one of our buffalo. You won’t

see this with cattle. They don’t have the wool for the

birds to grip. Also our buffalo have learned from each

other the benefits of this relationship with the birds.



These birds perform a valuable function. Rather than

rely on insecticides to reduce the fly population, we

take advantage of the birds. Flies can be a problem

in our herd, such as causing further damage to

already injured eyes.

The birds get a free meal and the bison get a free

insect grooming.

On occasion there can be more of a problem with

flies than the birds can handle. So we help them out

with Diatomaceous Earth (DE). This fine powder has

microscopic barbs that get into the breathing

apparatus of flies. It can also kill internal parasites if

eaten. Our buffalo, like this big bull, like to wallow in

it. However, the females and young ones tend not to

wallow as much as bulls. But because they are a

family and like to stay near each other, they can still

benefit from the cloud of DE dust these bulls create.



Another advantage to herd animals with family social order preferring to stay together is that they move and graze together. This lawn mower path creates an edge effect between tall and short grass. Any edge effects result in increased diversity. More insects, more birds, and more mammals can use the area. Also the disturbance that moving bison create is concentrated. So insects, birds, and mammals, instead of small eddies of disturbance, now have a flood to contend with the aftermath of the whole herd. This makes them vulnerable, which in turn means a good chance at a meal for a predator. So now raptors, swallows, and small carnivores are willing to follow the herd, giving them a shot at a food source not normally worth going after.

We have seen this in Yellowstone with coyotes

following elk and bison herds, as well as at our Iowa

farm. Historical accounts tell of 10,000 wolves

following the huge herds of buffalo on the Plains.

Most of these wolves were not all after bison

themselves rather the mice they disturbed.

One will only get this in herds with family social

order. Whether it is in Yellowstone…



or our herd in Iowa.

Herd animals with family social order can utilize more

plants than dysfunctional animals. Omnivores, such

as humans and bears, can eat flesh instinctively but

need training to eat vegetation. Herbivores, such as

bison and cattle can eat grass with no training, but

need instruction to select herbs. Thus, any herd

animals that are weaned or are part of herds without

social structure should more aptly be called

“Grassivores”.

Not only do they learn from each other what to eat

and when, they also are more able to experiment and

try new foods. They can use the family’s existing

knowledge and apply it to new foods that become

available to them. Would you want to be at a buffet

table with infinite choices, but only know how eat the

bread and water?



During the fall, it is hard to find locust pods because

our buffalo have learned to eat them, as can be seen

by the seeds in their cow pies. This can be a

valuable source of protein and fat in the fall when it is

needed. Some seeds even require passing through a

digestive system to become viable.

So even if native prairies were restored, a functional

herd is necessary to know how to use it. A

dysfunctional herd would only pick out the grass,

what they instinctively know to eat, and leave the

rest. Ultimately this animal has inadequate uptake of

nutrients. This translates into the nutrition from

mineral rich herbs not being available to us when we

eat these animals.

It should make no difference whether it is

Yellowstone’s “wild” herds or private producers

“domesticated” herds. Both can graze with the same

efficiency as long as we allow them to develop the

same herd structure as their ancestors.



With bison having extended families as the

cornerstone of their species success, to suddenly

take this away in the last 150 years means that most

of today’s public and private herds are composed of

dysfunctional individuals. Chronic stress is inherent

in all of these animals. Indigenous peoples’

preference for front quarters from nutritionally dense

mature animals is no longer an option with the tight

muscles (tough meat) associated with chronically

stressed animals.

While people know varied diet grazing means more

nutrition, it is not the only factor. We at Tall Grass

Bison also specifically choose mature animals for our

active customers. We are able to do so because our

family social order herd does not have the stress

common in other herds.

The USDA has it backwards. Why would we place

flavor so low on our scale of what is important,

especially when we realize flavor equals nutrition?

Perhaps the bias towards tenderness was created

because that was the only characteristic available

once the commercial ag industry dumbed down our

food to the point where it is tasteless.



However, we do not mean to imply one segment of a

herd is better than another. All age groups have

equal importance and uses. We market primarily to

prime aged active adults that need the energy and

power of aged meat from mature animals. However,

for the young and old, palatability may be more

critical than nutrition. Therefore, they prefer a

younger animal with more digestible tender meat.

The beauty of it is each segment of a functional

family group provides for each segment of the human

population.

Along with what the bison can do for the land and for

us, we feel we can give back to the land by being

good stewards. We are restoring the productivity and

fertility of the land lost through previous farming

practices. This includes adding a lot of organic

matter, in the form of hay, from other lands. One

could argue that we are mining our neighbor’s fields

to improve ours.

Each winter we unroll 700 – 800 big bales of hay.

Whenever possible, we look for prairie hay to feed

our buffalo. The deep roots of native prairie bring up

a lot of minerals. After adding organic material for 20

years on some of the pastures, our fields are the first

to green and the last to dry up each summer.



This is one of our pastures after the Spring thaw. The

buffalo have done their part in “processing” the hay

into fertilizer, waiting to go back into the soil.

The closer pond seen in this photo is a settling pond,

high above the main pond. This ensures clean water

before going into the larger water shed below.

Harrowing helps the process of returning the

nutrients to the soil and allows the sun to reach the

tender new grass formerly covered by cow pies.



Bison keep nutrients on the land. They prefer resting

on hilltops, unlike cattle that stay lower in drainages

seeking shade. This means what the bison have

eaten lower down is deposited up above where it

does not wash away. If you will notice, there are

three forms of fertilizer in this picture. We have

already talked about two, bison and hay. The geese

too are part of the picture.

These geese come to our place to rest after an early

breakfast of corn in our neighbor’s fields. So just as

the bison process hay, the geese give us the

products of their meals of corn. We’ll take whatever

we can get.

They are of course attracted to the 35 farm ponds we

have. We keep our creeks running clear.

Unlike what we see in ponds across the country.



While our buffalo still go into the water, you do not

see the riparian damage so common in dysfunctional

herds.

Note the path on top of the dam with grass on either

side of it. If cattle or dysfunctional bison were using

this pasture, stress and pecking order would mean

degradation of the bank.



But we still have problems from farming practices by

previous owners. Our impoundments stop head cuts

such as this one.

It may not be “natural”, but these dams allow for plant

restoration below that duplicate non-gullying swales.



We provide alternative water sources for wintertime

needs.

Clean water and healthy riparian area attract those

birds that thrive on it. Add to that the grassland birds

coexisting with the buffalo. Biodiversity begets more

biodiversity.

Some regular visitors to the farm.

Benefits of Biodiversity Ecological - e.g insect pollination.

Resistance to catastrophe

Food and drink Intellectual value

Leisure, cultural and aesthetic value



Reasons We Burn Just as with natural and human-ignited fires in the

past, prescribed burning today accomplishes many

important ecological functions and landowner

objectives.

Increase Vegetative Diversity

Improve Wildlife and Grazing

Control Pest Problems

Being a working farm we also need to fence. So

rather than use toxic treated posts or steel posts, we

look to more sustainable options. We prefer Osage

Orange hedge posts that grow naturally on our farm

and can last 70-100 years in the ground.

We enjoy the fruits of our labors and feel good about

the land.



We enjoy sharing the farm with those that visit, such

as our customers …

Students from the Community colleges and State

Universities

Conservation groups such as the Iowa Naturalist

Society.



And media that want to document the innovative

methods we use and implement.

An interesting side note with the lower photo. While

the herd does not normally react to groups coming

out into the herd, the posture of the filmmaker was

unusual. The bull group seen in front of the

cameraman split off from the herd and came over to

check him out. They were filling their role of herd

protectors.

Indigenous peoples raised animals not for food

efficiency but rather to tide them over in times of

scarcity. Somehow “civilized” people became far

enough removed from nature they no longer could

compare natural and domestic food systems. And

without understanding herd social order, they had no

way to either duplicate “wild” herd efficiency or

incorporate this management philosophy into their

”domestic” herds.



Symptom management at its zenith.

If every herd animal species developed with social

order and depended on this for its very survival as a

species, then it means all herd animals lacking this

order has stress inherent within this animal.



None of our bison have ever been given a shot, nor

needed it. The only handling comes when we load

out satellite herds for sale. All butcher animals are

field slaughtered. Our bulls are selected by

matriarchal families so there is no expense of

trailering in outside breeding animals.

Our decision to no longer grain feed animals came

not so much from healthy meat concerns but more

from the fact that the grain we fed meant breakdown

of social structure.

“Dunbar stated that in the Indian country it was not

considered right to make free gifts to common

Indians, which encouraged begging and angered the

chiefs, whose authority rested mainly on their people

looking to them for occasional distributions of gifts.”

John Dunbar, Indian Agent 1844



Social herds mean fertile lands because the animals

of these herds recycle the nutrients of a lot more

species of plants. They also eat coarser vegetation

and browse which recycles the nutrients of these

plants faster. Because our herds move en mass to

high ground for rest, a higher percentage of nutrients

are “deposited” on the tops of hills.

Field slaughter means a shot behind the ear



Difference is similar to soldiers being shot while at

war and the survivors, still believing they have ways

to react. Compare this to a concentration camp

where death is constant and everyone knows there is

no hope of escape.

Herds behind fences have to be handled differently

than animals in the wild.

The herd will push non-accepted animals to the

perimeter. Also scout bulls go to far ends of pastures.

An animal moving from a herd means the herd

accepts that animal being gone. They will not panic.



We always have three pickups and a loader tractor

ready.

If we shoot an animal that is in sight of the herd, we

position a pickup between the animal and herd. After

shooting, two trucks align themselves at an angle to

each other so that the loader tractor comes into the

opening to load it into the bed of one of the pickups.

Lime is spread on any blood. Once out of the field,

the animal is again hoisted and bled.

On our farm, many people have offered to pay for

just shooting a buffalo. Most want to see if their

muzzle loader, pistol or bow will do the job. When I

explain what it means to kill an animal, enthusiasm

wanes. I have yet to have any of these guys hang

around for a course in respect for what they propose

to kill



The story told to us was that the bull on the left was

killed in a subsequent “hunt”. The main herd bull, the

one on the right, soon after broke out of the pasture

and took three younger bulls to safety. They made it

12 miles. When the ranch manager tried to herd

them back, the big bull would not allow the younger

bulls to return. They ended up shooting their head

bull. For this bull to leave the main herd unprotected

meant he was desperate to keep the younger males

alive.

Bull groups isolate themselves from the hectic day care center activities of the matriarchal components. Thus, they move easily to different pastures well away from the main herd. We put these groups in holding pastures, then shoot them one at a time. All we have to do is use curiosity to separate one out from the others. We open a gate they have never been through. First one through wins the prize so to speak. Sounds kind of morbid but that’s how it works.

Indians Native American hunts focused on satellite groups. They killed the group as a whole, with surrounds, impoundments, and buffalo jumps. The varied ages of these satellite groups best met the nutritional needs of the tribe.

Construction of corrals is a major expense with bison

herds. If one understands bison’s need for individual

space, ranchers can construct something that is a lot

more humane and less stressful for these animals.

The cost of injuries, death or stress related weight

loss is minimized.

Sadly, very few facilities are designed with the same

logic to get people to move, under their control, to

where we want them.



Recipe for disaster. This corral is no different that

any public bison corral that I have seen. Bison are

forced ahead, which goes against their very nature.

Would we want to be pushed into an obvious dead

end alley?

The coming video shows a bunch of govt. morons

that say and listen to the correct “words” but carry out

a plan of action entirely different. As the video

progresses take a look at all those hot shot

wands…and one guy poking the front of an animal

with a sand wand while another person shocks the

rear end of the same animal. Of course, the design of

all government corrals necessitates the kind of shock

and awe treatment seen in this video.

This assortment of folks represents Montana Fish,

Wildlife & Parks, DOL, APHIS and the Yellowstone

“seasoned” bison corralling team. The one that says

we will be taking it slow is the head of Yellowstone’s

team.



No working corral should have more than five

animals in it at one time. Yellowstone tried to save

money by combining the sorting and working area.

There are no holding pens away from the “action” to

place the stressed animals seen in the pictures.

The abuse doesn’t stop with injuries and death inside

the walls of this corral. Bulls outside the corral end up

getting shot (not shown) because they chase the

guys on horses. The bulls stay around trying to

protect the matriarchal components and get

cantankerous when the guys try to chase them away.

The corral workers do not understand why the bulls

hang around. They just think the bulls are mean.



Notice the concerted effort of this bison family to stay

away from the sides of the bridge.

To duplicate the behaviors needs seen in

Yellowstone’s bison we give our animals 24 foot wide

alleys, 80 foot turn-arounds at each end and a 40

foot tub. In two days, we loaded 10 trailers with 100

animals in 2 ½ hours. No more than three to five

bison were moved from the sorting areas and

through the working corrals at any time. None had

previously been worked in corrals. There were no

injuries, such as gorings, peeled off hides, or broken

horns.

Not well shown but there are circle turn arounds at

each end of the working facilities. These turn

arounds are the key to TGB’s corrals. That and

psychological avenues of escape for the bison.



Note the turn arounds at each end. Thus one can

bring animals in from either end and the buffalo then

can work their way back through the facility on their

own accord. They feel they are in control and make

the choices we want them to.

The shorter the confining tunnel, the less anxiety the

corralled animals will have. There always has to be

an “out” (cavern) built in for them for a corral to be

successful. Think of the movies where the chased

person runs down an alley only to find a wall at the

other end. He runs back looking for an unlocked

door. Then there appears an open doorway. Relief is

in the mind of the fleeing person, the same as in the

mind of a buffalo. The only thing is our corral has a

trap (40’ diameter tub) past this door.

Why not make this 24 feet wide? There would be a

lot more flexibility of use. And when used as an

alleyway, bison would still use only the middle three

feet. Like the bridge sequence in Yellowstone,

however, bison feel they have the space to allow the

freedom of travel. No herd would freely go through a

4 foot wide alley. Why do we want to employ more

people to force animals ahead when the bison can

move on their own accord?



It is just a bunch of bigger and smaller boxes and

circles placed in such a way as to give an animal

decision making control over his or her life.

One can take animals either way with these 19 foot

gates. And the double sliding doors at either end

allow for the flexibility of holding animals in one side

while moving animals through the other. The two

load out doors and two load out chutes beyond (with

gates between the alleyways) means any animal that

goes down or is turned the wrong way can be let into

the other alleyway and then put back through the

system…all without stopping load out of other

animals.

By the time the animals get to the squeeze, they

think the working chute area is just another door to

another cavern.



To understand bison we need to understand the

emotions and fears of humans. For bison, wanting to

go back to safety is no different than humans wanting

to retreat to familiar surroundings. Notice no scrape

marks on the walls or gates. This is because they

never stray from the middle three feet of “alleyway”.

The guy on the far end opens the turn around tub

gate and the animals run to the gate they just came

through. They then see the opening to the tub (two 6-

foot wide doors) and jog on in. They never look up to

see a human until in the tub. If we work them from

the opposite end, the small gate (seen closed next to

the large gate) is opened. The gate’s mate is open

on the other side and the two guys are ready to close

the 2 sliding doors to the tub after the animals pass

through the short swing gate.

This is part of Yellowstone’s $300,000 pride and

glory. The acute corner seen here has killed and

maimed many buffalo. Yellowstone uses this pen,

seen in the foreground, as a holding area.



TGB’s lead in from the sorting pens (not shown) are

32’ wide. Each holding pen has a pond in it. Thus the

big bulls, after being worked in warm weather, run to

these ponds and put their rear ends in. It cools them

down and keeps them from going sterile. I have seen

six bulls at one time in the ponds, all facing out like

the spokes of a wheel, with water up to their tails on

their backside and their front legs on the shore.

We sort out the family groups for sale in these

holding pens. We put hay in each and over two days

we periodically open and close gates to the four

pens. Members of one family stuck on the wrong side

go one way while members of another family waiting

on the other side of the gate cross on the way to their

family.

Compare this to Yellowstone’s vet work (see video

below)



This video is of Yellowstone’s squeeze chute

activities. Note:

• Too confining an area vet has to work in

• Blood draw from neck instead of tail

• Nose tongs secured above instead of to side

(causes rear end to drop)

• Lack of squeezing in on animal’s sides

• Vet reach inside the squeeze is very dangerous as

shown

And not one cow pattie dropped (stress related)



If they were dressed in suits, would we still be taking

their picture? Whether it is humans or animals, our

prejudices keep us from understanding our fears,

personal space, and survival instincts are the same.

The lower herd may have beautiful surroundings but

it is a herd only skin deep. The one in the top photo

is multigenerational and full of vitality. Why have a

shell of a herd when they can offer us so much

more? A functional herd has everything that it needs

to take care of itself. If we let them, they can even

offer us something in return. A view into a life style

that we have lost in our drive to become “civilized”.




Documents

Sitting Bull College, Bison/Tatanka Care and Culture ... › 2014 › 10 › ...Sitting Bull College, Bison/Tatanka Care and Culture Workshop printed Mobridge, SD, 2/21/08 2/19/2008