I was just enjoying a wonderful meal of buffalo burger, and thought I'd share with all of you a typical weekend of making meat at my folks' ranch.

He had 4 20 month old heifers that he wanted to slaughter, so I made my way up there for a weekend at the end of January. One of my good friends met me there to help us out and take one of the heifers home for himself.

Here is a picture looking out their dining room window, at the buffalo coming in for a drink...



This was the temp the first day...not bad but a little chilly in the wind...



Here are a couple more pics the second day, after it cleared up...first is "Buddy" a 6 yo ex-bottle fed calf that will eat from your hand...my Dad is putting the garden hose in the old bathtub...



The rest coming in for a drink too...



This is looking back at my folks' place....



In the past we have normally done the slaughtering in the field. This time the heifers that we wanted to slaughter were in the corral system where they could be finished with grain. Here is how we tranported the live heifers (one at a time) from the corral to the field where we did the slaughtering...



We used my 220 Swift to shoot them with, while they were in the trailer. The 220 Swift would drop them like they were struck by lightening, then we'd quickly pull them out to the edge of the trailer and slit the throat to bleed them out...



Then we'd drag them the rest of the way out of the trailer and start skinning...



To assist in the skinning, we lift them with the tractor....



Once skinned, we dump the guts while hanging...real slick and clean.



Then, over to the cabin to split and quarter them.



We used a Sawzall to split them down the spine...works like a hot knife through butter. A cordless one would be awesome for moose camp!





Then split between the third and fourth rib, and load 'em in the truck for the butcher.

4 in 2 days is a bit of work, but just as in hunting, there is a certain satisfaction in taking the responsibility for putting meat in your own freezer.

Cheers,
Canuck

Canuck is that up near the ( not sure of the spelling) Brurel Prairie Road?

Once approached a trailer with a young one inside,it was mean as hell.Does the meat taste as good as beef?

Not far as the crow flies. Its actually due north of Beryl Prairie, off of the Farrell Creek Road.

Cheers,
Canuck

quote:

Once approached a trailer with a young one inside,it was mean as hell.

A few bison are tame, or semi-tame, but none have been domesticated! They are pretty wild in the trailer. The trailer has a gate in the middle, so when we got that closed and the buffalo isolated to the front of the trailer, we'd just walk in the back and shoot them in the head over top of the gate. Gets your heart rate up!

Cheers,
Canuck

quote:

Originally posted by Canuck:
Not far as the crow flies. Its actually due north of Beryl Prairie, off of the Farrell Creek Road.

Cheers,
Canuck

Nice area. Did some doe hunting on the Beryl, and buck hunting across the dam.

Bill Field does them the same way on the Stewart Lk road.(Groundbirch) Ex and he did 2 long yearlings using those methods and a generator in the field in about an hour.
The countryside looks a lot the same too.
A very interesting read Canuck, thank you. Derf

Thanks for the pics, that's basically how we do our moose. Only we don't have the front end loader to help.

Thanks for sharing

the chef

I use a 24volt Bosch cordless sawsall when elk/moose hunting. Usually burn up 2-3 batteries quartering like you did on the Buff.
Works great

Shootaway,
Bison is great meat to eat. Higher in protien and lower in cholestral (sp). Most people cannot tell the difference in taste between bison and beef but those of us that were raised on it can tell each to the other.

Looks like a great way to spend a weekend at the folks always nice to have the rite equiment to do the job>Re the sawsall saw the portable rechargeable type work wonders around the moose camp save a ton of time and do a super clean +easy job of cutting up moose into 1/4 even know of a few northern boys who pack them on there quads for cutting trees off the trail nice and quiet just make sure you have extra batterys

Yo, Canuck .. we just did about the same thing with 7 buffalo cows east of Medicine Hat on Monday .. Only we gutted them on the ground and used a bobcat to lift them in the air for skinning .. There were 9 of us there and no one thought of lifting them first and gutting and skinning .. Buffalo are delicious and those little guys would be the best !!!

Canuck

I am looking to increase our 'local supply" of products that we sell in the resturant.

Presently, one of the items we serve is Bison BUrgers. I am not sur of thier origion, they could be alberta or???

Is there any interst in direct meat from your ranch for vsarious cuts?

Thanks canuck32.Is that a lion you have in your picture?

quote:

Originally posted by Canuck32:
Shootaway,
Bison is great meat to eat. Higher in protien and lower in cholestral (sp). Most people cannot tell the difference in taste between bison and beef but those of us that were raised on it can tell each to the other.

quote:

Originally posted by Gatehouse:
Canuck

I am looking to increase our 'local supply" of products that we sell in the resturant.

Presently, one of the items we serve is Bison BUrgers. I am not sur of thier origion, they could be alberta or???

Is there any interst in direct meat from your ranch for vsarious cuts?

Gates,

My folks sell meat direct all the time. By the quarter or half (direct from slaughterhouse on reefer truck) or by the cut (fresh frozen, via Greyhound). They sell to restaurants on the coast, Vancouver Island and a couple places in the Yukon (Dawson City and Whitehorse), and a few places in-between.

All the meat that gets sold is professionally slaughtered and gov't (federal) inspected (ie. not the slaughtering method above...that's just for personal consumption).

I am sure they'd be very interested in talking to you. Their business is Hunkerdown Ranch/Peace Country Buffalo Products. You can reach 'em at 250-783-5754. Tell 'em I sent you.

Cheers,
Canuck

quote:

Originally posted by scruffy:
Yo, Canuck .. we just did about the same thing with 7 buffalo cows east of Medicine Hat on Monday .. Only we gutted them on the ground and used a bobcat to lift them in the air for skinning .. There were 9 of us there and no one thought of lifting them first and gutting and skinning .. Buffalo are delicious and those little guys would be the best !!!

Don't worry Scruff...we had quite a few under our belt before we figured out the MUCH easier (and cleaner) way! You do so many that way hunting that it doesn't dawn on you to take advantage of the equipment at your disposal on the farm! (well, the skinning we got right away, but the gutting AFTER skinning, while it is hanging took a while!)

Bison meat is #1. Since I am a lousy hunter, its all I've been eating since about '97!

Cheers,
Canuck

Got some bison tenderloin on th eway, it shoudl be here today, thanks...

Hey Gates, thanks for the PM. Glad you liked the meat! I passed on the message to Lin and my Pa. I am sure they look forward to hearing from you again.

Cheers,
Canuck