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Hunt bison on huge ranch in South Dakota |
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This South Dakota bison hunt takes place on a 60,000-acre ranch. It is a family-owned operation with 3,500 head of bisona coupe and about 200 to 300 mature bulls. The ranch is fenced into separate pastures ranging in size up to 10,000 acres. These bulls will qualify for Safari Club International's record book but will not qualify for the Boone and Crockett Club's records. Typically more than half of the bulls taken each year are big enough to qualify for SCI listing. The ranch offers three types of hunts. Trophy hunt: Each year a number of the herd bulls are separated from the main herd and are offered to people who wish to add a buffalo to their trophy collection. You are allowed to select an animal from this group and shoot it. There is a minimum caliber requirement of no less than .270 rifle. Anything above this will be acceptable. Black powder rifles are accepted with the right size caliber and expert marksmanship at 75 to 150 yards with the target being the size of a softball. Bows and/or crossbows are acceptable for this hunt with an additional fee. This hunt used to be less expensive because the ranch would retain the meat and resell it while you kept just the head, skull and hide, but the government has decided not to allow the resale of meat taken from hunter-harvested bison. So now you own the entire bison. Meat hunt: Our second type of hunt is a meat hunt. This is for a younger prime meat animal. It will either be a heifer or a young bull. You will get the entire animal: head, hide, and meat. The hide should make a nice rug. You may use a bow or crossbow on this hunt. Hanging carcass weight is typically 425 to 450 pounds for a cow. Combo hunt: Our third hunt is for a two-year old bull. We call this our combo hunt because you'll get both the meat and a trophy. The heads and horns are naturally smaller than a mature bull but still make impressive mounts that make a nice addition to a cabin or home, where they will create conversation. ou will get the entire animal: head, hide, and meat. You may use a bow and/or crossbow on this hunt. The hanging carcass weight is typically 500 pounds or more. We conduct our hunts from Oct. 1 until Jan. 1. Plan ahead because we take a limited number of animals per year. Hunters can fly into Pierre or Sioux Falls and rent a vehicle. Hunters should schedule to be on the ranch at 8 am Central Time the day of the hunt. After your hunt, the ranch provides a big lunch. Hunters are welcome to look over the operation and watch skinning or shop at one of the gift shops. |
Update, Aug. 29, 2012: Prices have been adjusted. All hunts now include the entire carcass. The government no longer allows the ranch to retain and resell the carcass. You may donate meat to Hunts.Net if you don't want it, and we will use it or donate it to the needy.
Meat and trophy handling Part of the price of the hunt is having the animal skinned, caped and quartered. There will be preparation form for you to fill out on the care of your hide and skull. We do not turn ears or clean lips, however, we can have this service done at an additional charge. We will either salt or freeze the hide and prepare it for shipment. The hunter is responsible for shipment of the hide and skull. It can be shipped by air freight, Federal Express, or you can take it home with you. The hunt will be completed in a day, but the hide may need more time if it is to be frozen or some other preparation. Taxidermy services are available upon request. If you are having it shipped to your taxidermist, please bring that information with you. Shipping charges are quite expensive. We can take the trophy to a taxidermist in town for an extra $100. The ranch is not responsible for your hide or skull after two days. The ranch will skin the animal and quarter it. If you want to butcher it yourself, you are welcome to use the ranch's slaughterhouse facilities at a price of $100. Most hunters choose to use a professional meat packing service to have the meat cut and wrapped. The ranch manager needs to know before your hunt whether you want a local butcher to prepare the meat so that arrangements can be made to have it processed in either Pierre or Oneida. If you want us to take the meat to the butcher, we charge an extra $100. You have a choice of using one in Pierre or one in Oneida about 30 miles farther. Prices are subject to change, but the meat packer in Oneida in was 75 cents a pound for regular cuts and 80 cents a pound if the meat was to be deboned. Meat packers charge for the hanging weight of the meat (sans skin, hooves and head), not the net weight. Meat cows yield about 400 pounds of hanging weight, while 2 1/2-old bulls yield about 500 pounds. Old bulls are substantially bigger. The packer in Pierre charges less (was 65 cents a pound) but adds a surcharge of $100 to $150 for rush orders. Since most hunters want the meat cut and wrapped and ready for the drive home within a couple of days, they usually want rush orders. We charge an extra $100 to transport the meat to the butcher. The price usually works out to be pretty well the same whether you use the packer in Pierre or the one in Oneida 30 miles farther. Usually the hunter gets his animal on the first day, and carcass arrives at the butcher shop later that day or early the next morning, and the packer will usually start cutting it up that day. It's best to let it freeze for a couple of days. Depending on the weather and the season, there are things that hunters can do to occupy themselves. We charge a couple of hundred dollars for a day of coyote hunting, prairie dog hunting if it's early enough in the season, or coyote hunting. You need a hunting license. |
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