Yaks
    Yaks are native to the Himalayan Mountains of Asia, so they thrive
in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  Yaks are well suited to high
altitudes, cold climates and harsh conditions.
  They have graceful horns and humped shoulders, with long shaggy
hair. Yaks can be used  for meat, dairy, fiber (felted & spun), leather
and they can pack about 300 pounds.
        
Yaks have a lower metabolism than cattle and they are smaller than
most breeds which allows them to survive on a percentage of the winter
feed most cattle require.
 Keeping yaks requires fencing and handling facilities similar to cattle.
 They do jump fences when stressed or in new places. No permits are
needed to own them, and they qualify for tax advantages and
agricultural status like other livestock.
 The only sound they make is a soft grunting. Hand raised yaks are
friendly and social, yaks born and raised without much human
interaction are more wild. Common sense should be used when working
around any large animal with large horns. Accidents can happen even
with the sweetest yaks.

`        They are protective mothers and
easily give birth to 25-35 pound calves
in 8 1/2 months.  Cows (females) weigh
between 500-800 pounds, while bulls
weigh 1200-1500 pounds.  They can be
expected to live 20-25 years.
     They are double-coated animals with a longer outer coat and a soft
downy undercoat, that when brushed out can easily be spun and is the
quality of fine cashmere.  Their long skirt, that nearly drags the
ground, can be braided like horse hair.  
 When they are happy or excited, they run and jump with their tails
held high over their backs.  They have several colors patterns: black
(Imperial), black and white (Royal) and Brown (Golden).  We prefer
black yaks since they are closer looking to their Asian cousins.    
Meet our
Windkist Ranch
Dennis & Elaine Kist
PO Box 250
Hartsel, CO 80449
(719) 839-5817
   The real magic of these wonderful treasures, is their meat.  We
never feed them corn, which would raise the saturated fat found in the
meat.  We never use steroids, growth hormones or antibiotics.  They
thrive and finish on our natural grass pastures. Numerous meat studies
have proven that grass fed and grass finished meat is the healthiest meat.
Yak carry their fat on the outside of their body as insulation, and it is
discarded at slaughter. Real yak meat has no visible marbling. It is a
deep, dark red, rich looking meat. Any fat or connective tissue, such as
in a roast, will not taste like beef.
      While the Internet has made purchasing many items, including
yak meat and fiber easy. It also demands that consumers be trusting of
the producer and supplier to deliver the product advertised, properly
labeled and priced.  We strive to produce the highest quality and
consistently pure yak meat and fiber. Yak products are no exception
when it comes to the old adage: Buyer Beware! Know you producer.
Know what they have in their pasture..Know who they buy meat from.
We have met most of our customers at Farmer's Markets, through this
site,or from visitors to our ranch store. We only sell locally and want to
know our customers. Everyone of you are invited to our ranch to shop
and visit.                                         See you soon.