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Hat Top Ranch gives visitors a taste of wildlifeBy Susen Foster It was impossible to miss the mesa, in south central Oklahoma, that lends its historic name to Bob Howard's hunting ranch and deer breeding facility. The ten-gallon crown and spreading brim of Hat Top could be seen for miles. The rolling hills and oak laden valleys, that surround Hat Top, north of Highway 7 near Velma, Okla., are the perfect country for a hunting ranch; and the promise of abundant wildlife--on the ground, in the air, on and in the water--was no exaggeration. The spring-fed lake off the two bedroom lodge is bursting with bass, catfish, crappie and perch; it is a popular resting place for mallards, teal, Canadian geese and other high country waterfowl. The brush is flush with wild turkey, guineas and quail. The hillsides are home to hundreds of white tail deer, as well as many exotics such as Barbary sheep, Oryx and Nilgia antelope, Fallow and D'Bowski Sika deer. The ranch even has a breeding pair of the virtually extinct Pere David deer. "Bagging a trophy buck" may be primary on many guests' minds, but a few hours on the ranch gave us a new perspective on deer breeding as a viable income resource for struggling farmers and ranchers. Hunting enthusiast Bob Howard and ranch operations manager Wally Danos, under the auspices of HandD LLC, have created a wilderness experience dedicated to preserving trophy bloodlines and breeding a high quality deer herd. Convinced that genetics, nutrition and animal health are key, their nutritional supplement is already making a difference in the health and growth of the animals. And their company, HandD LLC, is working on a vaccine to eliminate epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) which is devastating white tail deer herds across the country. Danos showed us how to personalize the hunting experience. Along with gun hunts, Hat Top also offers guided bow and arrow hunts, as well as photography "safaris." Packages run from the simple to the sublime --and the price varies, accordingly. What struck us most was the heart of the people running this game facility. Wally and his wife Paulina, who are on the land day and night, show sincere concern for people and animals. They find no confusion between the act of hunting and the preservation of the species. People from across the globe bring their friends and families to stay at Hat Top Ranch. Each one of them takes home new insight into themselves and into the world around them. For more information on Hat Top Ranch, call 580-444-2595. 12/17/07 Date: 12/11/07
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