How we harvest bison.

 

Because bison are a herd animal by nature and they're not afraid of much, the universal truth, whether you're on 10,000 acres or 10 acres, is that finding and approaching a herd of a bison within rifle range in a vehicle is fairly simple.  But it takes strategy, patience, and marksmanship to single out the appropriate bison from the herd and obtain a good, safe shot at a reasonable distance (we should be able to get you within 150 yards, sometimes within 100).  We urge - if not require - our clients to take a rifle shot 2-3" behind the ear to put the animal down almost instantaneously.  This isn't as easy of a shot as the vast majority of people think.  You may likely be dealing with a variety of factors that impact your shooting, including cold, wind, movement, and traffic within the herd.  Precision and velocity are more important than the kick of your gun and the size of your bullet in these regards.  This approach yields the best possible meat on your dinner table and avoids an injured animal getting surrounded by the herd, which will actually attack and try to kill an injured bison.  This is a very bad situation that we try to avoid at all costs.  At the end of the day, our primary objective is to put the best possible meat in your freezer.

 

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Weapon selection.

 

Shot placement is far more important than power.  We strongly recommend, actually urge our clients to take a head/neck shot.  With a well-placed bullet 2-3" at the base of the ear, a bison can be killed instantaneously by an average deer or elk rifle.  We personally use .270s to take our own bison - - big and small.

 

The head / ear shot is not only the most humane way to take a bison, it also prevents waste and allows for an excellent bleed.  The end result is more meat and better meat for your table.  For our clients who insist on a body shot (and in bow hunting situations), a pretty good portion of a bison's vital organs are covered by their front shoulder (the heart is covered entirely). If the bison is standing straight and broadside, there is about a 6" window between the shoulder and gut to hit the lungs on a younger animal.  In this scenario, it is important that your bullet does not impact the opposing shoulder.  There isn't a very considerable margin of error because a shoulder shot destroys a lot of very good, valuable meat and in most instances won't even take the animal down.  A gut shot won't take them down either.  In either instance, the bison is likely to get excited and the rest of the herd will start to crowd and sometimes even attack the injured animal.  This is obviously a very bad scenario because there's a risk of the meat filling with adrenaline, becoming bruised, or being tainted by stomach contents.  A wounded animal also makes for a very difficult situation because when the other animals crowd it, there might not be a good, clear shot to take the wounded bison down.  

 

We've had clients who have hunted almost every animal known to man and they overwhelmingly say that the bison is among the toughest, most resilient animals they've ever seen.  So we really cant overstate that shot placement is the most important aspect of the hunt.  

 

For the best results, we encourage our clients to become comfortable hitting a 4" target at a minimum of 100 yards while standing or kneeling (with or without shooting sticks) in open and windy conditions.  Prone and sitting shots are few and far between out on the prairie, due to tall grasses, shrubs, rocks, and knolls.

 

 

What types of bison hunts are available?

 

We pride ourselves on providing the highest quality bison meat.  This is why our clients overwhelmingly prefer our prime meat hunts.  We frequently have customers who book a meat hunt on an annual basis because it's the only product they want to put on their table.  Several of our clients have told us that they have hunted bison with other outfitters, but our meat is unmatched.  We attribute this to our herd being 100% natural -- born and raised in their native habitat where you would have seen thousands of bison roaming 200 years ago.  Our bison are 100% grass fed on native prairie -- no grains, no hormones, no antibiotics, no needles of any sort.  This is the real deal.

 

Our bison hunts are for 18 to 22 months old bulls and heifers having a live weight of 600 to 800 pounds (depending on gender, age, and time of year).  Both bulls and heifers are available.  On average, our young bulls appear larger than the heifers, but choosing between the two is simply a matter of personal preference.  However, the heifers tend to carry more fat, less hair, hide, and bone, and will often yield a comparable amount of meat and sometimes even more than a similarly aged bull.  Both taste excellent when harvested appropriately.

 

Our clients will often choose a heifer if they are looking for a nice robe, or they will choose a bull if they want a shoulder mount or European mount.  The bulls will also produce nice robes later in the season.  Although these are young animals, make no mistake:  these bison are awfully impressive to look at!