Buffalo harvest experience of a lifetime

By Alexandra Noad - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on March 27, 2025.

For time immemorial Blackfoot people relied on buffalo (bison) for all of their basic needs and to this day the buffalo continue to be a centre piece in Blackfoot culture.
Tim Bruised Head, from the Kainai Nation, hosts buffalo harvests for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to better understand Blackfoot culture. He hosted his 38th buffalo harvest for the Iiniikokan Shelter and Recovery Centre in Siksika on Tuesday.
I had the amazing opportunity to attend this incredible event and while I have gutted fish in my younger years, harvesting a buffalo was a very different experience, and not just because of the size of the animal.
When I arrived, it was as if I had arrived at a family function, and even though I had only met one other person, I was welcomed with opened arms.
Through the process I could feel the respect the participants had for the animal. From the beginning to the end, everything was done with purpose and with care.
As buffalo are sacred animals in Blackfoot culture, an honour song was sung to the buffalo before it was killed. Once it was killed there was a pipe ceremony between Bruised Head and the other Elders present as they believe the animal sacrifice itself to them.
Then the fun part of harvesting the animal began. It took four men to drag the incredibly large animal closer to the fire as it was a very chilly morning.
The process began by carefully cutting through the underside of the animal to remove the organs. I even got my hands dirty by helping separate the organs from the hide. It was a very interesting sensation to put my hand into the animal and still feel the warmth of it.
With removing the organs, one has to be extremely cautious with the bladder; if it’s cut into, it will ruin the meat on the bones.

The organs provide many nutrients such as iron, magnesium and B Vitamins, so many people enjoy eating those parts.
Each organ was separated using utility knives. Buffalo, similar to cows, have four stomachs and the two that are most favoured are “the honeycomb,” named for its honeycomb texture inside and one known as “the Bible,” scientifically known as the omasum, named for the many folds that resemble pages of a book.
Fat from the small intestine was gathered and can be used for cooking purposes. The small intestine can be dried and used as a cord material often used in bow and arrows.
Another significant part of the buffalo was the kidney, which was eaten raw by some of the participants, I personally could not bring myself to eat it, but David Sun Walk, from the Siksika Nation, says it was an awesome experience.
When I arrived, I was forewarned about the smell of the organs being cut into, but I would compare it to driving through Welling: if you can handle cow manure, it’s not that bad.
Once the organs were harvested, it was time to remove the hide and the meat from the bones.
Removing the hide was a tedious process that involved small cuts along the bone to separate the hide from the meat. It took about an hour to remove all of the fur from the meat.
As they were removing meat from the bone, Elders would explain what each part was used for. For example, the ribs were often used in head dresses.
The meat was cut into roasts that could be ground up and mixed with pork to create hamburger.
I was amazed to see the respect that was given to the animal and the feeling of community that was felt.
Each part of the animal had a purpose and Bruised Head says utilizing as much as they can is their way of honouring the sacrifice it made.
“We utilize as much as we because we’re honouring that animal because that animal gave its life for us to feed our families, our kids, to shelter us, see with buffalo that was our hardware store, our grocery store, our pharmacy, our shelter and so forth.”
He adds that in the spiritual aspect of things Blackfoot people do things with purpose and meaning behind it.
It was also Sun Walk’s first buffalo harvest and he says it helped him have a deeper understanding and connection for his culture knowing this is what his ancestors would do to feed their families.
“Getting in there and getting your hands dirty is a whole different experience from just seeing it on a video and hearing it in books or school,” says Sun Walk. “It’s very intimate its very wholesome and just kind of really getting to feel how it is to be a Blackfoot man.”
Bruised Head agrees that the hands-on experience is very impactful for anyone who participates.
“You can watch programs on how to do certain things, but when you bring it down in the field and it’s actually hands-on, it stays with that person more because (they’re) connecting an experience to that emotion.”
He believes that non-Indigenous people can and should experience a buffalo harvest, and by doing so will help break the stigma and racism Indigenous people continue to face.
“When non-natives come to these special deals like this, it helps bridge that gap so they can understand who we are as a people, where we come from, why we do the things we do.”
He adds that by understanding who the Blackfoot people are, non-Indigenous people can help teach others about Indigenous cultures.
Bruised Head says he plans on hosting another harvest outside of Lethbridge, near Thunderchief, next month.
The lessons learned and feelings felt during the buffalo harvest are something I will carry with me for the rest of my life.

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