Buffalo Girl

Jan

Buffalo gals, won't you come out tonight?
Come out tonight, Come out tonight?
Buffalo gals, won't you come out tonight,
And dance by the light of the moon.—
Lyrics by John Hodges, 1844

Bison CowWe were installing cross-fencing in our pastures one weekend, and the day had gotten warm enough that I shed my jacket, leaving it on the grass in the pasture. We were well down the hill when I glanced back to see the bison sniffing the coat. Bison are curious, so I didn't think much of it. When I picked up the jacket on my way back to the house, I was astonished to discover the dirty streaks all over it. Bison apparently have a lot of mucous, which gets spread around when they sniff things.

Interestingly, I think leaving that jacket where they could sniff it made them a lot more comfortable with me.

This past weekend, we decided to move the bison to another pasture. This decision came naturally—the bison were all gathered by the gate. Clearly, they were ready to seek new pastures. We decided to move them to the far south pasture, which seems to be their favorite. I opened the gate to that pasture, then made my way back to the pasture they were in.

I opened that gate, figuring that, as is their habit, they'd graze along the fence line until they got to the pasture we wanted them to be in. Sure enough, the herd leaders came through the gate. They were obviously ready to go. But then they just stopped and stared at me. I turned my back to them to signify I meant them no harm, but they didn't move.

I was beginning to get chilled, it being a cloudy day with a brisk breeze. I told the buffies—I talk to them a lot—that they needed to get a move on because I was not dressed properly to be standing out there waiting on them. They continued to stand there, unmoving, watching me.

I gave up. I figured they'd get to the other pasture eventually. I decided to go inside and get a heavier jacket on. As I walked to the gate, they all began following me. It was then I realized that I had become part of the herd. When I moved, they decided it was time to go.

I confess to being a bit disgruntled. C'mon guys! Do I really look like a buffalo cow?!



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