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"We're going nuts down here trying to figure out what's going on," farm owner Peter Head said. "This is going to put me out of business."
Beginning in October, the buffalo have been dying off sporadically - as many as six on some days. Of the original 110 animals, 55 have died, including 17 of 23 calves and many of the older animals, Head said.
"They just stand around like they have stomach cramps," Head said of the sick buffalo. "Like something's bothering them on the inside."
Head sent several carcasses to the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine for necrologies, or animal autopsies. Those reports came back inconclusive, showing only dehydration from diarrhea.
Head and his wife Deborah have run PDH Buffalo Farm on Route 41A since 2002.
They sell buffalo meat directly to consumers and also take visitors on "buffalo safaris" through the herd.
When the Cornell veterinarians examined the carcasses and found only dehydration, they told Head he could continue selling the meat, but he has stopped doing so as a precaution.
"I don't want to be selling buffalo meat when I don't know what's going on here," he said. "I don't want to take a chance on making anybody sick."
A Cornell veterinarian declined to comment, citing client confidentiality.
The dead animals are being composted on the farm with the help of a composting specialist from Cornell, Department of Environmental Conservation spokeswoman Diane Carlton said, adding that the DEC has no regulatory oversight on the case.
Head, who also works as a corrections officer, said the decimation of his herd will cost him his farm.
"This is probably going to put me in bankruptcy court," he said. "There's no way I can come back from losing this many, and I don't know how many more I'm going to lose."
The only insurance available for buffalo, Head said, is against lightning strikes.
Ron Podolak of the Cayuga County Soil and Water Conservation District said there is no indication that the problem is spreading to neighboring farms.
"In my career, I don't remember anything quite like this," Podolak said. "There's die-offs, but usually they can determine what it is right away and treat them. ... I just wish there was something more we could do to help Pete. This is a catastrophic loss for him."
Head also sent samples of the animals' drinking water to the conservation district on Tuesday and is waiting for results, he said. The buffalo are free-range and grass-fed with no antibiotics or steroids, according to the farm's website.
"My dream of being a success here has gone out the window," Head said. "I feel like a failure as a farmer. I just can't stop it."
of what's going on?