Kathleen & Brian Bean
Owners When we purchased Lava Lake Ranch in 1999 we had two primary goals: to raise the most delicious, highest quality grass-fed lamb in the country and to protect and restore the rich native landscape on which our lambs roam and graze. Brian brought a background in business and a lifelong interest in botany and zoology; Kathleen brought experience in marketing and conservation. Whether we’re selling lamb at the local farmer’s market, planning a stream restoration project, riding into the mountains with our daughters to check on the sheep or meeting with neighboring ranchers, the work of running Lava Lake Ranch is always challenging and satisfying.

Pedro Loyola
Sheep Foreman Born high in the Peruvian Andes, Pedro has been overseeing sheep operations in Idaho's Pioneer Mountains for fifteen years. As Sheep Foreman, he is responsible for managing the movement of 6,000 ewes and their 8,000 lambs over 750,000 acres of rangeland from spring to fall. Steeped in old-fashioned animal husbandry know-how, Pedro takes pride in raising the healthiest, best tasting lambs in Idaho and doing so in an ecologically sensitive way.

Our ShepherdsAt Lava Lake we are fortunate to have a great crew of herders and camp tenders, most of whom have been working with sheep in these mountains for ten to twenty years. Managing a band of nearly 1,000 sheep in remote mountain and desert areas requires not only outstanding animal husbandry skills but dedication and good common sense. We believe our crew is the best in the business.

Mary Tess O'Sullivan
Manager of Conservation Science ProgramsTess oversees our ambitious science program, including the on-going refinement of a comprehensive conservation plan for the Ranch, coordinating with our government agency and non-profit partners, and developing habitat restoration projects. Tess divides her time between the desk work of analyzing ecosystem data and the field work of tramping along streams and over mountains, counting species and recording her observations.

Tim Bennett
Ranch Manager Tim Bennett, his wife Cheryl, and kids Bodie and Payson make Lava Lake Ranch their home. Tim, our Farm Manager, handles all the day to day operations at the Ranch. The Bennetts extend true Idaho hospitality to our many visitors throughout the year.

Border ColliesWe probably won't be entering any of these border collies in fancy sheep herding trials, but our dogs are an integral part of the operation. They sound the alarm when predators are nearby, help move the sheep in an orderly fashion over rugged terrain, and provide good company to the shepherds on long summer nights high in the Pioneer and Boulder Mountains.

Great Pyrenees Because Lava Lake Ranch is at the edge of one of the largest roadless areas in the Lower 48, we are part of an amazingly diverse and wild ecosystem - home to abundant wildlife species such as elk and pronghorn and some others that think our lamb is every bit as delicious as we do, including coyotes, mountain lion, black bear and wolves. Lava Lake is committed to managing our relationship with predators with proactive, non-lethal methods, and we rely on our Great Pyrenees guard dogs. At least two Great Pyrenees are assigned to each sheep band as they move through this wild landscape. Deeply bonded to the sheep, they are extremely effective at repelling predators.

HorsesA steady, surefooted horse is indispensable to a shepherd who must range over miles of rugged terrain when a sheep occasionally strays from her band. Typically named by our shepherds for their most obvious physical characteristic ("Blanco" for a white horse, "Old Mare" for, well, an old mare), our horses are valued and much loved members of our animal staff.