Pneu-Dart Women in Ranching

Remote Delivery Device (RDD) Game Changer for Cattleman and Badlands Circuit Director

By Allie Bohus

Badlands Circuit Director Nicole Bice ranches full-time with her husband, PRCA Team Roping Header, Wyatt Bice. Together they run a three-generation commercial cow-calf operation in Western North Dakota. They ride for the brand, an Open A Bar V.

Bice (formerly Fritz) started rodeoing at the age of 9 and competed through the ranks of high school and collegiate rodeo (competing in all the women’s events offered). She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and a Master of Education degree from Dickinson State University. She met her husband while college rodeoing and they were married in 2019.

“We travel together and went up to Canada one summer and that was really fun. If we weren’t able to buddy together it would be very hard,” she said about the couple rodeoing together professionally.

When Nicole isn’t on the rodeo trail, she and Wyatt are home running cattle. Their typical year looks something like this: they start calving in early March, Bangs vaccinate heifers, Semen test bulls, brand calves, vaccinate cows/calves, and AI (artificially inseminate) heifers before turning the cows out with bulls for natural breeding. They begin gathering cattle in the fall and start pregging (pregnancy checking bred cows/heifers) before weaning and shipping (primarily steer calves). They retain a large majority of the heifer calves as replacements. They feed cattle during the winter months when the grass runs out and the snow is too deep to forage, and before long calving starts and the cycle begins again.

As with many large-scale ranching operations, doctoring cattle that are turned out (free-range cattle) can be a bit challenging to say the least. Geographical limitations, time, horsepower, and weather all come into play.

“Our cattle are way too spread out… We calve in a flat section [it’s] about 6 miles [from where we live], by the time you catch your horse and saddle [it just takes too much time]…” she said. The Bice’s have three (3) Pneu-Dart products that offer remote injection abilities. The amount of time the remote delivery devices (RDDs) save is hard to estimate. 

“I can’t imagine [running cattle] any other way. You go check mineral or water and you can dart 5-6 [animals] even just checking water,” Bice said. The remote delivery devices are designed for three main species of animals: cattle, cervid (deer, elk, moose, etc.), and wildlife. For the past 50 years, cattle producers working with their veterinarians have been able to remotely deliver medication to free range cattle at the onsite of infection. This is vitally important to improve the health of the animal.

The RDDs are also commonly used by cervid livestock producers as well as biologists, zookeepers and rangers. Ultimately without a RDD or projector (more commonly used with wildlife), it would not be safe (for the animal or human) or even possible to treat a sick or injured animal.  

Especially important for livestock producers, the RDDs are very effective at medicating or sedating an animal in a low stress manner.   

Bice has been using a RDD for about the last 10 years. Their intention behind making their first purchase was to “dart bulls because they are so ignorant,” she said. The RDDs are easily incorporated into Bice’s daily life on the ranch and afford her the confidence of treating a sick animal by herself efficiently.

Although Bice still uses horsepower on the ranch extensively, it is certainly much faster and easier to medicate or sedate an animal with the use of an RDD. Both she and her husband use their rodeo horses on the ranch and believe it is vital for their minds to remain sharp to be ranch horses.

“We ranch on our rodeo horses; I think it calms them down,” she said. The Badlands Circuit Director has used ranch life to get her barrel horses in shape, especially for the Circuit Finals. She enjoys being able to ranch full-time and rodeo as much as she is able to while also representing the contestant-side of the Badlands Circuit on the WPRA Board of Directors.

Pneu-Dart Women in Ranching

Remote Delivery Medication System Lifesaver for Prairie Circuit Director Gillespie

By Allie Bohus

When Prairie Circuit Director Cindy Gillespie isn’t busy running barrels professionally, she and Sam Minnick run Bar MX Cattle, small starter yard (feedlot) in Central Kansas. They receive 400lb. steer and heifer calves and keep them for 60-90 days.

When the cattle arrive off the trucks, the first thing she does is let them eat, drink and rest. Then within 48 hours they mass-treat and process. Ensuring new cattle are up to date on vaccinations is necessary to maintain herd health. The cattle are then moved to different grazing allotments dependent on the season.

About 4 years ago Gillespie purchased a Pneu-Dart remote delivery device (basically a ‘dart gun’). The Pneu-Dart has afforded Gillespie the ability to remotely deliver medication to free-range cattle at the first onset of infection. This is something that would be exceedingly more difficult without this piece of equipment. If cattle are turned out to pasture many miles from any sort of holding pen or working facility, (think: rocky ground, steep/mountainous/brushy terrain, etc.) it can be very difficult (if not impossible, speaking from experience) for horseman to effectively doctor a sick animal. Not to mention it’s harder on your horses and yourself.

The Pneu-Dart allows the stockman to deliver a remote injection to the animal quickly and effectively. Following an unfortunate experience involving a sudden outbreak of pinkeye where Gillespie didn’t have enough horsepower or time to get everything treated, she made the call. Without even thinking twice, she purchased a Pneu-Dart the very next day.

“This has been one of the best purchases we have ever made,” she said. “It has more than paid for itself.”

Gillespie had seen the Pneu-Dart advertised on TV and in magazines and it piqued her curiosity. There are certain aspects of ranch work that are more difficult when done by yourself.

“I can’t rope a heavy calf and trip it and tie it down by myself. And I am by myself a lot,” she said. “Everybody can shoot [a dart gun], but not everybody can ride and/or rope.”
Gillespie’s sister runs a cow/calf operation and is who helped solidify the decision to purchase a Pneu-Dart.

“My sister told me, ‘I know you do everything with horses, but this really would help,’ ” she said.

“I think the biggest benefit is not stressing the steers… [Pneu-Dart] is an investment, but if you stress that steer enough what have you gained by being cowboy.”
High levels of stress in cattle can have long-term negative effects which affect the bottom line. Having stress reduction practices in place are paramount to running a profitable operation.

It saves a lot of time on the ranch too. She enjoys being afforded the ability of being able to doctor sick cattle herself.

“Don’t even think about it, just get one,” is the advice Gillespie would tell others who are considering making a purchase. “We have let people borrow it to try it. I think if someone tries it, they are going to get it.”

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