About Straight Arrow Bison Ranch

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These animals, which had once roamed the country by the hundreds of thousands, had become nearly extinct a little more than 100 years ago. It was estimated that fewer than 100 bison remained when the government stepped in to protect the remaining ones. Parks such as Yellowstone became a refuge and a few farmers began to contain and protect them.

Why Bison?

How does an ordinary traditional hog, cattle, and corn farmer turn into a buffalo rancher and WHY? Here is a brief story of how Marty and Karen Bredthauer became the Straight Arrow Bison Ranch.

The Bredthauers suffered through the fram crisis of the early 1980's, enduring high interest rates, falling commodity prices and storms that took their toll on livestock. In 1992, they moved to our present location, 5 miles south of Broken Bow, Nebraska, on 320 acres of pasture, ready to make a new start. With Marty working at Becton Dickinson, they no longer depended on the farm to support their familiy, but did hope to get some supplemental income from it.

A family vacation in 1993 to Fort Robinson piqued their interest in buffalo. They took a tour of the herd and talked to the people who took care of them. They were glad to recommend some resources to help Marty and Karen learn more about the animals.

Over the next few months, their house began to accumulate such books as "The Bison Breeders Handbook" and "Bison World."

These were read not only by Marty and Karen, but also by their sons Troy, who was 13 at the time, and Lance who was 10. One of the first things theylearned is that, although they are commonly called buffalo, the correct name is bison.

They read about all the health benefits of the meat, lower fat, calories, and cholesterol than beef and most other meats.

It is also a good source for iron and zinc, two important nutrients. The literature assured them the demand for the meat far exceeded the supply so this was sure to be a profitable business.

These animals, which had once roamed the country by the hundreds of thousands, had become nearly extinct a little more than 100 years ago. It was estimated that fewer than 100 bison remained when the government stepped in to protect the remaining ones. Parks such as Yellowstone became a refuge and a few farmers began to contain and protect them. By 1992, there were an estimated 150,000 bison in North America. Current estimates are about 250,000 to 350,000 in North America.

Because the meat is the primary product, the Bredthauers ate it several times to see if they really liked it, and they did.

In addition to the meat there was also a demand for the skulls, hides, and other by-products. It sounded like the ideal business to get into so they took the plunge and they are so glad they did!