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Long-reach excavator beside a pond, with cattails and silt from the cleanout piled along the bank
Western SD & Northeast Wyoming

Stock Pond & Dugout Cleanout

Stock ponds and dugouts fill in. Every runoff carries silt off the pasture, cattle wade the edges, and cattails close in from the banks. A pond that held water through August ten years ago goes dry in July, warms up, grows algae and turns into a mud hole cattle get stuck in.

Cleaning it out restores the depth that keeps water through a dry summer and stays open longer in winter. We do it with a Cat 324E with a 60-foot long-reach front, working from the bank or the dam crest so the machine never has to drive onto the soft bottom.

Stock ponds and dugouts

  • Stock ponds (stock dams) sit behind an earth dam across a draw. We clean the silt out of the basin, rebuild a dam crest that’s settled or been trampled, and clear the spillway so a big rain goes around the dam, not over it.
  • Dugouts are dug into flat ground with no dam, catching runoff or groundwater. They fill in from the edges and the inlet. The long reach lets us dig the middle back down from the bank without tracking up the sides.

How a cleanout goes

  1. We look at it with you. We need to see the pond, the access in, where the machine can sit on firm ground, and where you want the spoil.
  2. We call in locates. Buried lines on ranches are rarer than in town but not unheard of, especially near water lines and power to a well.
  3. We dig from the bank. The machine works its way around the pond, pulling silt to the edge and loading or placing it as we go.
  4. We place the spoil. We spread it, build it into the dam or stockpile it to dry, whichever you choose.
  5. We shape the edges. A sloped edge lets cattle drink without wading in and breaking the bank down.

Where we work

Ranches across Western South Dakota, from the Black Hills foothills out to the prairie around Sturgis and Hot Springs, and in Northeast Wyoming around Sundance, Moorcroft, Newcastle and Gillette.

If the dam itself has washed out, seeps or needs a new spillway, see dam repair and cleanout. To build a new pond, see pond construction. For water lines, tanks and other ranch work, see farm and ranch improvements.

Common questions

When is the best time to clean out a stock pond?
When the water is low or gone, usually late summer, fall or a dry year. The silt is drier, it's easier to place, and the machine can reach the bottom. If the pond has to be ready before cattle go out in spring, call us in the fall.
Do you need to drain the pond first?
No. The long-reach machine works from the bank or the dam and reaches into standing water. Less water means a faster job and drier spoil, but a full pond isn't a reason to wait.
What happens to the silt you dig out?
It goes where you want it. Most often it's spread on the uplands, used to build up a low dam crest, or stockpiled to dry and spread later. Pond silt is usually good soil, so it's worth putting somewhere useful.
Do I need a permit to clean out a stock pond?
Cleaning out an existing pond to its original size usually doesn't need one. Building a new dam, raising a dam or making a pond bigger can need a water right or permit, from the DANR Water Rights Program in South Dakota or the State Engineer's Office in Wyoming. Check with them first, and we'll work to whatever they approve.
Can cost-share help pay for it?
Sometimes. The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) funds some livestock water and grazing projects through programs like EQIP. Ask your local NRCS field office before the work starts, because they usually need to approve a project before it's built.

Learn more about Long Reach Excavation

Ready to break ground?

Every site is different. We'll walk it with you and give you a straight answer, with a clear scope and an honest estimate.

Request a quote(605) 600-6045