B&L Longhorn Ranch
Member
I mentioned owning a buffalo in a previous post and wanted to establish a new post strictly for buffalo...
We raise high-end Longhorn Cattle who share the pasture with our lone Buffalo heifer +/- 13 mos old. My wife & I had wanted a buffalo simply due to the fact they once roamed free on the land here 200 years ago and their majestic beauty. Though warned by many concerning fences, we purchased our little heifer who mixed in perfectly with our cattle. My wife named her "Ashoini" (sho-nee) which means beautiful in American Native language. I will state, she is rambunctious but no more so than other cattle her age. (Cutting wood last week around the pond and saw her get a running start and hit one heifer, who was drinking, in the rear-end knocking her in the pond.) She is ALWAYS full of energy, trying to "play" with her other buddies, and "grunting" (which is the sound they make which was also a surprise to me), she does keep us laughing but likewise I don't mean to insinuate she's troublesome in the least.
As for Fences... EVERYONE told me to be prepared for fence work. We have the standard 5-strand barbwire and nothing bad to report. (A few people around have either a few or a herd with old fences. Close to our place there is a small ranch with +/- 15 Buffalo (many full grown) with some of the worst looking fences in the area, yet they remain in the pasture.
As for Breeding... We definitely plan to allow our Longhorn bull to breed with her. (1) That first male offspring will be "steered" just so I can see how his horns will develop. A Buffalo bred with a Longhorn bull; that has to be interesting! (2) All others; I told the wife when we bought her that her off-spring ("beefalo") would be freezer bound; longhorn beef is very lean and buffalo meat is also quite tasty meaning I expect some really good beef. In time though, I would like to breed her via AI with actual Buffalo semen and hope for another little heifer.
HIGHLY recommend a buffalo to all as a pasture buddy; she is absolutely gorgeous, nostalgic, reminiscent of our fore-fathers.
We raise high-end Longhorn Cattle who share the pasture with our lone Buffalo heifer +/- 13 mos old. My wife & I had wanted a buffalo simply due to the fact they once roamed free on the land here 200 years ago and their majestic beauty. Though warned by many concerning fences, we purchased our little heifer who mixed in perfectly with our cattle. My wife named her "Ashoini" (sho-nee) which means beautiful in American Native language. I will state, she is rambunctious but no more so than other cattle her age. (Cutting wood last week around the pond and saw her get a running start and hit one heifer, who was drinking, in the rear-end knocking her in the pond.) She is ALWAYS full of energy, trying to "play" with her other buddies, and "grunting" (which is the sound they make which was also a surprise to me), she does keep us laughing but likewise I don't mean to insinuate she's troublesome in the least.
As for Fences... EVERYONE told me to be prepared for fence work. We have the standard 5-strand barbwire and nothing bad to report. (A few people around have either a few or a herd with old fences. Close to our place there is a small ranch with +/- 15 Buffalo (many full grown) with some of the worst looking fences in the area, yet they remain in the pasture.
As for Breeding... We definitely plan to allow our Longhorn bull to breed with her. (1) That first male offspring will be "steered" just so I can see how his horns will develop. A Buffalo bred with a Longhorn bull; that has to be interesting! (2) All others; I told the wife when we bought her that her off-spring ("beefalo") would be freezer bound; longhorn beef is very lean and buffalo meat is also quite tasty meaning I expect some really good beef. In time though, I would like to breed her via AI with actual Buffalo semen and hope for another little heifer.
HIGHLY recommend a buffalo to all as a pasture buddy; she is absolutely gorgeous, nostalgic, reminiscent of our fore-fathers.