Over 300 years ago, Thai buffalo lived in the wild. As time passed, humans caught and domesticated them. The buffalo were tamed, trained and used for labour such as hauling wood, ploughing, and carrying things. Their meat also became part of the diet and this remains the case until the current day.
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Today, I am buffalo program will take you to meet the giant swamp buffalo at Baan Tik Thai Buffalo, in Thap Than District, Uthai Thani Province.
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This Buffalo's name is Rung Petch. It's a Swamp buffalo. It's eight years old and has a body which measures more that 5 feet 7 inches from the front leg to the front shoulder.
Currently, Rung Petch is the unconfirmed number 1 breeding bull in Thailand. Mr Tik, who bred Rung Petch, through a process of selective breeding of buffalo that were the largest in the herd took more than 45 years to yield the desired results. The results were dubbed the giant Buffalo of Thailand. A buffalo born from breeding within Mr Tik's herd has a tall and fast-growing body. Compared to other farms, Mr Tik's buffalo grow 2-3 times faster.
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Mr Tik uses a simple method to raise his Buffalo. Each morning at 7:00 the herd walk and graze on more than 40 acres of land where various types of grass grow naturally. At 9:00 the buffalo will return to the farm to sleep and ruminate (re-chew) the grass eaten and move it to the stomach. At 3:00 p.m they walk and graze in nature and commonly lie in the pond and roll in the mud to relieve the heat using the soil coating to protect their skin naturally. At 5:00 they return to sleep in their enclosure where Mr Tik has prepared straw and hay for them to eat during the night.
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Mr Tik's secret to success focuses on natural farming with breed selection from the pick of the herd keeping the best of their offspring for future breeding.
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The estimated price of a calf in the stall at Mr Tik’s farm depends on the sex, the male price starts from 30,000 USD or more whilst the cost of a female is twice as high. However, this varies according to the breeding line. If the appearance and characteristics of a buffalo calf stand out, the price can double or even treble upon agreement between the two parties.
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Mr Tik, who is 67 years old, lives in the countryside of Uthai Thani Province. With a longstanding career dedicated to raising buffaloes, he makes an excellent living through his genetically superior stock and breeding program. His annual income is the equivalent to that of 100 office workers. His minimum income is 290,000 USD per year from fewer than 20 buffaloes, and only one giant bull, Rung Petch,
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Unsurprisingly, Rung Petch’s semen is highly sought after throughout Thailand. His semen is the most expensive in the world, costing 1,300 USD per dose. Although this may seem expensive, the demand from buffalo herders in Thailand has never decreased.
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