| OUR BISON We began raising bison in 2002. We had been looking into getting beef cattle and saw an advertisement for bison while looking into cattle. It caught our interest and after a great deal of research, we decided that raising bison was what we wanted to pursue. We visited several other bison farms within Ontario, talked to other producers, watched videos, read literature, and of course searched the internet so we would be as prepared as possible. We started the herd with one bull and 10 mature cows that were already bred. In the first year, we had 10 calves, including one set of twins, of which we had to bottle raise one, you can read more about him further down the page. The herd has now grown to approximately 30 animals. |
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BISON MEAT Our bison ar raised predominantly for meat, although we will have some animals for sale as breeding stock in the near future. We generally have all of the same cuts of meat from bison as people are used to seeing from beef. We sell our meat from the farm, generally by boxes in denominations of and up, as well as quarters and sides of meat. We do have a retail price list for individual cuts, but the boxes generally contain about 10% more meat than is shown in the retail list. We can customize the boxes to include the cuts that you want. Bison meat is exceptionally low in fat, calories and cholesterol. It is high in Iron, Protein, and Omega 3 Fatty Acids. No artificial growth hormones or steroids are used, and antibiotics are not used unless absolutely necessary. The animals are raised on pasture and hay with minimal grain. The meat animals are finished with supplemented grain for the last few weeks just to get enough fat cover so that it grades well and stays more tender when cooked. All meat is processed in government inspected facilites. You can read more about the benefits of Bison meat by going to the Ontario Bison Association's web site. There is a link to the site in our Links page. We are also both actively involved on the Board of Directors of the Ontario Bison Association. LITTLE ORPHAN ANDY Andy is our bottle raised buffalo. We rescued him at less than 24 hours old after his mother abandoned him in favour of his twin brother. We were not certain he would survive, but with a bit of TLC, he has done very well. He was raised by us with goats and a donkey for company, so was never socialized with the other bison. He loves attention from people, goes for walks with his halter and lead on and has become kind of a farm mascot for us, as well as a treasured pet. We had no idea that a bison could be tamed to the extent that he has, and were especially surprised that he has become so personable and friendly. He still lives apart from the main herd, but has a girlfriend of his own species now, named Vera. Vera is not tame, but has taught Andy a little bit about being a buffalo. For safety reasons, we castrated Andy as a yearling, he is nearly 3 years old now, and while smaller than his peers, is very healthy and happy. He is certainly a hit with visitors to the farm who can't believe they are able to actually pet a buffalo! Email Me! Links to Other Sites |
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