Today is the day that this year’s pheasants will be released into the wild. Butch drives us out to the location of the brooders where we meet Ric and his band of merry men.
Cousin Ric champions a yearly project to raise pheasant chicks and release them on the land owned by members of the family. Somewhat similar to Ducks Unlimited, the organization that conserves waterfowl habitats, the project is funded by pheasant hunters who wish to maintain a natural balance. Today is the day that this year’s pheasants will be released into the wild. Butch drives us out to the location of the brooders where we meet Ric and his band of merry men. Each brooder has 60-70 pheasants which were purchased as chicks about seven weeks ago. They’ve been kept warm, fed, and watered and have grown significantly. The heater, water tank and sunscreen over the top of the brooder is removed and then the tops opened. Some pheasants fly out right away. Others crawl to the top before realizing they can fly (or walk) away. Then there’s a few that need to be prodded to leave. Hopefully most will survive in the wild, breed, and be seen again by the hunters in October in a year or two.
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Cousin Paul ranched over 200 Nakota horses on their land in Litton. When we arrived in Bismarck Paul asked William what he would like to do during our stay. William quickly responded “Let’s go see the horses”. This is the day! We meet up with Mom, Aunt Jan, Barb and Paul a little after noon and pile into Paul’s four-door pickup truck. On the one hour drive down to the ranch we hear stories about the area, the history of the horses and the people and organization which owns the horses on the ranch. The Nakota’s were almost extinct in the early 20th century, but the creation of Theodore Roosevelt National Park provided an environment for a few surviving bands to breed and expand the population. The park sold off some of the horses beginning in the mid-1980’s to manage the size of the herd. The primary owner of the horses on the ranch is Frank Kuntz, and a filmmaker will be in town in a week to begin production of a documentary on him and the Nakota horses. Paul, Barb and their family will also be included the film. Wow - film stars in the family. When we think of North Dakota we often think of flat, open land. The views at the ranch are of open land, but definitely not flat. This is reinforced as we bounce around in the truck while Paul drives us out to the pasture where the horses are currently grazing. We are able to get very close to the horses, even having these wild animals nuzzle up to our hands. They are beautiful! We are so happy that are able to experience them.
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AuthorHi. I'm Anne. I wander around the world with William. Enjoy Some of our Favorite Links below
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