Bd. Rutley et al., MANAGEMENT, GAIN AND PRODUCTIVITY OF PEACE COUNTRY BISON (BISON-BISON), Canadian journal of animal science, 77(3), 1997, pp. 347-353
Three thousand three hundred twenty-nine (3329) bison from 16 Peace Co
untry bison herds were weighed between November 1992 and October 1994
to determine body weight, gain and to measure herd productivity. A sur
vey of management practices was used to develop three producer profile
s: 1) small herds (similar to 30 head), 130 ha and significant off-far
m responsibilities, 2) full-time - 110 breeding females on 1040 ha, an
d 3) large ranches - 450 breeding females on 2080 ha. Calf winter weig
ht was significantly (P < 0.0001) affected by HERD, YEAR and GENDER wi
th males (196 +/- 2.0 kg) significantly heavier (P < 0.0001) than fema
les (180 +/- 2.6 kg). Calves of both genders were heavier in 1993 than
in 1992. Producers reporting herd health problems also had calves wit
h lower (P < 0.0001) winter weights than herds reporting no health pro
blems (175 +/- 1.2 kg vs. 198 +/- 1.2 kg). Seasonal ADG ranged from -0
.08 kg d(-1) to 0.56 kg d(-1). A significant relationship existed betw
een winter ADG and subsequent summer ADG (Y = -0.50X + 0.71; P < 0.000
1). The results from this study of Peace Country bison are sufficient
to serve as industry benchmarks to which producers can compare their h
erds.