Virtual fencing is still a new and developing technology, but for many ranchers, it has transformed how they raise livestock while protecting and rejuvenating native grasslands and wildlife that rely on intact and healthy working lands.

Join Quivira Coalition and World Wildlife Fund for a two-part webinar series on virtual fencing!

May 12: Join Andrew Jakes, a senior research scientist with the Wyoming Migration Initiative and Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, and rancher Leo Barthelmess to learn about the connections between sustainable wildlife habitats and virtual fencing ranch management.

May 19: Interested in virtual fencing but don’t know which technology makes the most sense for your operation? Ask questions and hear from a panel of ranchers on different technologies available and what might be a best fit for you.*

*Quivira Coalition and the Sustainable Ranching Initiative are not endorsing any specific technology. This is an educational opportunity to learn what technologies are available to consumers.

You’ll learn about how virtual fencing has been a major innovation for both conservation and flexible livestock management in the Northern Great Plains, and leave with practical, replicable action items for the lands you steward as a grazier.

 

About World Wildlife Fund’s Sustainable Ranching Initiative:

The Sustainable Ranching Initiative (SRI) was established in 2011 to develop long-term partnerships with ranchers, rural communities, and landowner-led organizations in the Northern Great Plains to benefit the grassland ecosystem. This sweeping landscape spans over 180 million acres across five U.S. states — Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska — and two Canadian provinces — Alberta and Saskatchewan. About twice the area of California, the Northern Great Plains is one of only four remaining relatively intact temperate grasslands in the world. In 2025, our program expanded and now seeks opportunities across the entire Great Plains — 700 million acres across Indigenous Nations, Canada, the United States, and Mexico.

SRI works with landowners, rancher-led local organizations, corporations, industry groups, non-governmental organizations, and government agencies to prevent grassland from being converted to cropland, increase adoption of regenerative grazing practices, support forward-thinking land managers, restore cropland or degraded lands back to native grasslands, and restore wetlands.

SRI’s Ranch Systems and Viability Planning network supports ranchers in the Northern Great Plains who want to improve their grazing management practices, increase education and skills related to ranch and grass management, monitor ecological changes over time, and network with other producers on similar paths. Currently, ranches must be in WWF’s SRI focal area of central and eastern Montana, western South Dakota, northeastern Wyoming, and the sandhills of Nebraska.

Through the Ranch Systems and Viability Planning network, WWF is not only supporting individual livestock producers but also supporting community resilience in rural areas by strengthening the grass-based economy.

Panelists:

Daniel Mushrush is a part of Mushrush Ranches, LLC is a multi-generation progressive grass based ranching operation located near Strong City, Kansas. They specialize in providing Red Angus and Red Angus influenced seedstock to the commercial cattle industry along with replacement females. They have been utilizing Halter virtual fencing since December 2024.

Tyrel Obrecht is a 5th generation rancher from Turner, Montana. His family runs black angus cow calf pairs and replacement females on a mixture of private, state, and BLM leases. Tyrel earned a degree in agricultural economics from MSU in 2013 and was a lender for four years before returning home to the ranch. He is interested in regenerative grazing on their property, winter grazing, and developing females in a low input environment. Along with his wife, Lindsey, Tyrel is raising the 6th generation, Addison and Bridger. When not ranching, Tyrel can be found woodworking, gardening, or spending time with his family.

Brandon Arpan is the co-owner and lead manager of The Box X Ranch in Alzada, Montana, alongside his wife, Samantha Arpan, and business partner, Jacob Proctor. He also co-owns and co-manages Arpan Grass with Samantha and his parents, Randy and Terry Arpan. Both operations utilize eShepherd virtual fencing to implement regenerative adaptive multi-paddock grazing within a holistic management framework. Brandon, Samantha, and Jacob balance ranch responsibilities with part-time work, while Randy and Terry are semi-retired. The adoption of eShepherd has been instrumental in enabling a profitable operation, improving landscape regeneration, enhancing wildlife and biodiversity, and supporting a higher quality of life.

Dave Olilla