With State and federal funds dipping vats were built out on the prairie and Tick Fever Inspectors were appointed to see that all the cattle on the Mainland were herded to these vats to be dipped.
One of the many vats is located on the K-Bar Ranch here in Dickinson It is filled in with dirt over the many years, but you can still see the concrete sides of the deep vat and the concrete pad that served as a place for the cattle when they emerged on the exit side.
I have thought about the work force and man hours required to construct this operation. Materials had to be hauled from town by mules and wagons out on the prairie to construct the vats along with fencing materials for cattle pens. The vats were hand dug 6′ deep, sides and bottom formed up with lumber, steel rebar tiedin, mix the concrete by hand with hauled in water, then carried and poured into the forms. Next, they build huge holding pens for the cattle that were going to be dipped.
The cattle were run through a narrow chute to the vat, where they were forced to dive in. That end of the vat was deep enough to have the cow completely submerge in the treated water, angling up with cleated bottom so they could walk out. By completely submerging the cow, any ticks on that cow were killed with insecticide.
Thousands of cattle went through the eradication program, and slowly but surely the fever was eradicated leaving the old vats dormant for future generations to wonder what they were there for.
