Walking Coyote, a Pend d'Oreille Indian of Montana, saved four calves in 1873; E.G.. "Buffalo" Jones of Kansas captured a few; Charles Goodnight of the Texas panhandle saved some. The Indian wife of Scotty Phillips, of South Dakota, begged him to rescue some - which he did in 1901. He purchased the remains of a small herd belonging to Fred and Pete Dupree. Scotty's resulting successful breeding program eventually provided foundation stock for the Custer State Park herd and other well-known herds. From these tiny breeding centers, our buffalo count has grown to over 400,000 head throughout America and thousands more in Europe. Thanks mostly to private buffalo ranchers the species is now off the endangered list.

When raising buffalo, one must always remember that they are wild animals not domesticated cattle. They have a very strong herd instinct, are unpredictable and should never be kept as pets. Buffalo ranching is much like cattle ranching but handling equipment must be bigger and stronger.

Buffalo thrive, much like cattle, on grass and hay, but enjoy weeds and brush as well. They begin to breed about the age of 2 and drop their first calf at age 3. Gestation is a little over 9 months. Although buffalo cows have reported to calve past the age of forty, 25 to 35 years is considered to be their life span.

Buffalo require little health maintenance except a regular worming program and can adapt to nearly any climate and forage. These hardy, adaptable beasts thrive in many nontraditional areas. Today, they can be found throughout the United States from Florida to Alaska.