As a heavy rainstorm cleared away from the rocky landscape, the hillsides came to life.
Birds sounded in the distance as a light wind blew through the falling leaves, creating a sense of expectancy that is so familiar and exciting to hunters.
The sounds of hooves pounding rock echoed below me and soon after an Armenian mouflon ewe came running out of a small cluster of trees. Behind her was a massive ram with heart-shaped horns that swept farther back than typical mouflon horns, but looked equally impressive.
The beautiful white saddle patch highlighted a formidable frame on what is one of the world’s smallest wild sheep. However, they lack nothing in the beauty and strength department.
Listen to the two-part series on the full breeding program at the FTW Ranch at the links below on Higher Calling Wildlife the podcast.
Part 1
This wasn’t in the Caucasus Mountains of the species’ native Azerbaijan, but at the FTW Ranch located near Barksdale, Texas in the southwestern corner of the Edwards Plateau.
Nestled at an elevation as high as 2,200 feet, this 12,000-acre ranch is stunningly beautiful and is widely known for its SAAM Hunter Training Program.
The FTW was founded in 1996 and according to owner Tim Fallon is dedicated to making hunters better, supporting our nation’s military, and preserving endangered species from around the world.
“Hunters have been at the forefront of conservation efforts all around the world,” Fallon said. “From the comeback of elk, bighorn sheep, and wild turkeys in America to restoring and conserving much of Africa’s great game herds, hunters have been leading the charge.”
So, instead of only offering standard exotic hunts at the FTW Ranch, Fallon said he wanted to “pay it forward.”
“There are species that are no longer huntable in their native lands because they are threatened or hunting is not allowed in those countries for various reasons. We wanted to create viable herds of these animals here in America and allow hunters an opportunity to pursue them, but most importantly make sure these species carry on.”
Chester Moore
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