 Ralphie IV was born in April 1997 on the Flying D Ranch in Gallatin Gateway , Montana , a part of Turner Ranches , the largest buffalo ranching operation in the United States . Named “ Rowdy ” by ranch hands , she was separated from her mother when she was about a month old and was literally found in the jaws of a coyote with bite marks around her neck . She survived the attack and was bottle @-@ fed by the ranch hands for four months . She was released back to the herd , but would not bond with them . She was then donated to Colorado as a yearling in the early spring of 1998 . Johnnie Parker , who trained and housed both Ralphie II and III , brought her back to Colorado from Montana and supervised all of her early training . 
