Apocalypse Paused: Scenes From Soviet-Era “Ghost Farms”
Photo essay about the “ghost farms” of the post-Soviet era. Continue reading Apocalypse Paused: Scenes From Soviet-Era “Ghost Farms”
Category: Kazakhstan
Ranching May Offer Soviet ‘Ghost Farms’ of Kazakhstan New Life
On the steppes of northern Kazakhstan, a collective farm town called Chilinka Sovkhoz crumbles, abandoned. The 250,000-acre farm was once home to over 60,000 livestock (mostly sheep, but also cattle and horses), and an embodiment of the USSR’s plan to feed the Soviet people with food grown on the Kazakh steppes. Today, Chilinka is one of many former collective farms that litter the countryside. Read more: … Continue reading Ranching May Offer Soviet ‘Ghost Farms’ of Kazakhstan New Life
Tazy: Speedy Dog of the Steppes in a Race Against Extinction
“Faster!” Zhylkybai Aga said. The driver increased the truck’s speed to 25 m.p.h. Zhylkybai leaned out the window andwhooped at his dog, named Akbakai, who loped alongside the vehicle. The lanky dog was hardly exerting himself. My first impression of Tazy, a Kazakh dog breed, was that it looked like a bag of bones. But now, in motion, it had transformed into a thing of beauty. Through the … Continue reading Tazy: Speedy Dog of the Steppes in a Race Against Extinction
The (Questionably) Honorable Kazakh Tradition of Livestock Theft
With 2,500 head of livestock, it can be hard to notice when a few go missing. Especially for Dauletgali Zhaitapov, whose business Kaz Horse Mugalzhar LTD operates on 75,000 acres of unfenced rangeland in northern Kazakhstan. During fall roundup, Zhaitapov realized his horse herd was 100 animals short. These weren’t just any horses; they were Mugalzhars, a Kazakh breed raised for meat and milk. The … Continue reading The (Questionably) Honorable Kazakh Tradition of Livestock Theft
Horsemen Respond to the Idea of Eating Horse Meat
Want something interesting to read? Check out how Western Horseman’s readers are responding to my recent National Geographic blog post “Kazakhstan: Where Horses are Revered and Eaten.” Continue reading Horsemen Respond to the Idea of Eating Horse Meat
Comrade Cowboys 