Transplanted North Dakota Cattle Doing Well In Kazakhstan

Cows transplanted from North Dakota to Kazakhstan in the past two years appear to be doing well, despite the colder temperatures.

About 5,000 head of Angus and Hereford cattle from the US state have been shipped to the eastern European nation as the country sends cowboys to North Dakota to receive hands on training, reports CattleNetwork.com.

The exchange is meant to help rebuild Kasakhstan’s cattle herds, which fell from 35 million in the early 1990s to around 2 million today. The country is planning on flying another 3,000 North Dakota-bred cows in this fall. Along with sending their cowboys to the US, North Dakota ranch hands have been moving to the Kazakhstan to help out as well.

Dean Gorder, who is the executive director of the North Dakota Trade Office, added that about 12 Kazakh cowboys are set to visit North Dakota ranches in November to participate in an intensive crash course on how to tend cattle, notes Bloomberg BusinessWeek. Gorder added, “There is no classroom work. It’s hands-on working with cows.”

The majority of the former soviet nation’s cows were either sold or slaughter after the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union. Gorder will soon be visiting Kazakhstan to check on the cows that seem to be adjusting well. He added:

“The percentage of successful calving is very high and they’re very happy with the cattle.”

The only problem they have seen is the cattle not gaining as much weight as they would in North Dakota. Gorder explained:

“They are not gaining as much weight there but we are reminding (Kazakhstan officials) that cattle are what they eat. The food that they have in Kazakhstan does not have the nutritional value a typical rancher in North Dakota will feed his cattle.”

Along with importing cattle from South Dakota, Kazakhstan is also importing from Canada and Australia.