Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2015 17:30:57 GMT
Posting this for judy
Notes Regarding Oxen
Qualifier
Pat Sorensen very generously invited me to address you on the subject of oxen. What I will provide here is based on my own experience with one team of oxen. I am not an expert on the subject but have had some experiences which may prove of interest and benefit to those of you who have or will have oxen. Probably the best recognized authority on the subject is Professor Drew Conroy. Drew’s book, Oxen A Teamsters Guide, is well worth the cost. It can be obtained from Rural Heritage, 281 Dean Ridge Lane, Gainesboro, TN 38562 for $25 plus $5 for shipping. I have no set agenda here. Whatever you would like to discuss is fine with me. Please feel free to ask any questions as we go along. Please feel free to contact me.
For convenience I have broken the subject down as follows:
Breeds, Sex, and Horns
Health
Early Feeding
Early Training
Yokes and Bows
Halters, Collars, Nose Rings, and Goads
Yoking Up and Hitching Up
More Advanced Training
Drags, Carts, and Wagons
Maintenance Feeding
Hoof Maintenance
Housing
Drover Safety
Insurance
The End
I have some displays for your examination:
Five Inch Yoke
Twelve Inch Yoke
Halters and Lead Ropes
Goads
Form for Plastic Bows
Yoke Pattern
Drew Conroy’s Book
Spanish Fork, UT
22 June 2002
Charles Welle
Notes Regarding Oxen
Breeds, Sex, and Horns
Our common interest is American Dexter cattle. It is likely that you will consider this breed before others when you select animals to train. You should be aware that Dexters have a reputation of being quick and alert, but less tractable than many other breeds. Like you, I am biased and would like to think that the less subdued, less pliant character is associated with greater intelligence. I have a heifer and a bull, both yearlings, and I have found them very quick to learn. However, to be honest, they do have a mind of their own. Over the years I have raised and handled several breeds. I am of the opinion that there is as much or more difference in temperament within breeds as between breeds. Holsteins are very popular as oxen and have a reputation of being docile and sweet natured as do the Brown Swiss. At the other extreme are the Dexters, Devons, and Chianinas. Probably the least manageable are the Longhorns. With these breeds the drover must keep his mind on his business. No daydreaming is allowed.
With regard to sex, cows, bulls and steers have been used as draft animals. Normally oxen are steers; however, historically bulls have been used as wheelers in the logging industry and in Europe cows have been used on small farms. For heavy farm work steers are no doubt the preferred animals. Steers grow to a much larger size than do cows and are more trustworthy than are bulls. My team of Holstein steers weighed 3000 pounds each. The near ox stood 73 inches at the shoulder and the off, 74 inches. Dexter steers at maturity would weigh about 900 to 1000 pounds and stand about 38 to 40 inches. Not surprisingly the Dexters, pound for pound, can out pull their bigger relatives. Generally bull calves are started as oxen and are castrated at five to six months of age. This is a compromise that ensures development of neck muscles and a good temperament. In New England, where ox pulling contests are popular, drovers have attempted to gain an advantage by postponing castration until the team is a year or more old. The result is a team that was described to me as “cranky” and not to be trusted. Incidentally, castration at five or six months requires a local anesthetic.
Although I have seen oxen that are polled or dehorned, certainly the norm is a good set of horns. Horns are the brakes. When oxen pull up hill the team lowers their heads and pushes against the bottom of the yoke. On level ground they raise their heads and push against the back of the yoke. Going down hill the team raises their heads even more to catch the yoke against their horns. Cattle know very well how to use their horns. After being bashed in the back of the head a couple of times, they learn to use their horns to effectively stop the load. Initially they may try to outrun the load but quickly realize that does not work. Cattle without horns are sometimes worked with britching but this has a serious problem. Basically, horses make “road apples” and the britching stays clean. Cattle make “cow pies” and the britching had better be washable. We all know that when cattle are excited or exercised, the result can be spectacular to say the least. It is well to remember this too when the length of the cart tongue is determined.
As an aside, horns are both sensitive and yet capable of very hard knocks. My old team like to have their horns rubbed. As part of grooming I would clean their horns and rub them with baby oil to make them shiny. Often one or the other would stand in front of me asking to have his horns rubbed. Yet these same horns could penetrate half-inch plywood with no problem whatsoever.
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Health
It is obvious that for an animal to engage in an activity that requires great physical effort, he must be in good health. A sick or malnourished animal simply cannot perform. It is sad to see pictures of skinny, stunted little steers in India and Africa. Further, training an ox is time consuming and it only makes sense to protect one’s investment by appropriate vaccination and immediate attention to any health problems. I keep an old composition book and ask the vet to enter the date and a brief description of what he administered. At the next visit he appreciates the reminder of the animal’s medical history.
On the other hand, our oxen are our pets and most of us tend to overindulge them with food and treats. Obese oxen are common and with the obesity comes the problem that kills most oxen, arthritis. I have seen oxen with hip joints swollen to the size of a basketball. The stifle joints are often swollen and very painfully inflamed. Eventually the ox becomes crippled and must be put down.
Early Feeding
You are breeding and raising Dexters; so I will not dwell on how to feed a calf beyond to say that a potential ox should have the benefit of good hay and calf starter. I admit to feeding my old team milk replacer longer than would have been required and to giving them the best alfalfa I could buy. They got rolled corn and barley with molasses until they were two. After that they continued to get good alfalfa and they ate plenty of it. Alfalfa is rich in calcium. Do not give the team a mineral/salt mix such as 12-12-12 that is intended for dairy cows. Too much calcium can cause urinary tract problems. Incidentally, I tried various other feeds including beet pulp, dried molasses, soybean meal, crimped oats, and so forth. We always came back to the rolled corn and barley with molasses. The boys liked molasses. As an aside, on the farm years ago we used a calf meal that was relatively finely ground. The best science now indicates that the calf thrives better on a coarse feed consisting of rolled grains and pellets. This coarser feed helps the rumen to begin to function.
There is some evidence that a calf that is bottle fed bonds to its master and accepts that person as the alpha animal. However, feeding and caring for an infant calf is time consuming. Not only must the calf be fed but it also must be cleaned. I obtained my team from Utah State University when they were a few days old. I brought home frozen colostrum and over several days switched them to Land O’ Lakes milk replacer. At least twice daily I cleaned them with old towels and a bucket of warm water. Even so, there were some problems with scouring. I tried several remedies including a mixture of beef bullion, Pepto-Bismol, and electrolytes; Gatorade; alfalfa and calf starter; and some bacterial preparations. Eventually their rumens started to work and the problem resolved itself.
I have to wonder about the balance of benefit to time. If one were to spend time with the cow and calf would the result be the same? My little heifer, Daisy, was raised by her mother with a lot of human contact, thanks to Pat and Neil, and today she is certainly attached to me. My little bull, Onslow, has a similar background and is friendly but has not been with me as long and does not seek me out, as does Daisy.
Early Training
The first training involves the calf becoming accustomed to your touch. He has to accept that he will be in close contact with you and it will be without any kicking or butting. The importance of this becomes apparent when you think about hooking up a draft chain. You will be bent over and close to his heels. You very definitely do not want a foot in the face. Next he must learn to lead. This is necessary for him to work but also establishes who is in charge. He may not want to walk along with you but eventually must accept that he will go where you wish to go and when you wish to go. He must stop when you wish to stop. Of course, a big part of this is trust. He will have to learn about frightening things such as manhole covers that rock and clang, lawn mowers, kids on bikes, strange dogs, cars, and a thousand others. Your voice and a little touch will reassure him that all is well. I have heard of oxen that were well trained but that refused to step onto asphalt or cross a painted stripe on the street. If you anticipate taking your team in parades, definitely train in the street. I actually take my calves to the edge of 1300 East in Sandy where we watch traffic go by. Perhaps the last of the early training is getting the two animals to move together. Probably most teams have one animal that moves faster or is more willing to pull. With my old team the near was always close to me and moving. The off liked to dawdle along and check every bush, trash can, and flower. He always liked to be just a half a step back and not really paying attention.
Yokes and Bows
The yoke and bows must fit the team. Yokes are measured by the distance between the inside of the bows; that is, by the thickness of the oxen’s necks. Properly fitted bows allow about the thickness of the drover’s hand between the bow and the steer’s neck. Properly fitted bows also slide inside the steer’s shoulders. The depth must be such that when the yoke tilts in a hard pull the bottom of the bow does not choke the steer. The best way that I know to judge this is to place the yoke and bows on the steers, try various yoke positions, and mark the correct depth with a pencil. When oxen were common, the makers of yokes used what amounts to a set of calipers to measure the animals’ necks. Lacking that I would suggest that the first bows be made of inexpensive plastic and that you follow a trial and error approach. As my old team grew I made five, six, seven, eight, ten, and twelve inch bows and the corresponding yokes.
To make a big yoke, the first step is preparing a blank, the big block of wood from which the yoke is to be shaped. I have investigated various woods comparing density vs. strength and elasticity. My solution is to use locally harvested pine. This is relatively strong for the weight. Historically, in Utah, cottonwood was used for yokes but it is no longer available. I buy 8 foot 2X12’s which we plane and glue up using waterproof glue to make a 12”X12”X 96” blank. The laminate is stronger than a single big block. If the wood is not totally dry, the block should be wrapped in a plastic sheet to control the loss of moisture and prevent cracking.
The second step is to make a paper pattern. I am using essentially the pattern developed by Dick Roosenberg at Tillers International with a few changes to reduce the weight of the beam and the amount of wood at the ends of the yoke. Tillers International, 5239 South 24th Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49002-2019 can supply full size patterns for yokes and Dick has always been extremely helpful in this regard. The pattern is glued to the blank making certain that the center lines match on the top and side views.
The third step is boring the holes for the staple and bows. Mr. Russ Ross of Riverhouse Design in West Jordan, Utah, an extraordinary woodwright, helps with this step and the next. We use a Fostner bit with an extension mounted in a heavy duty drill for the holes for the bows. The pattern positions the holes and we place two carpenter’s squares along side the bit extension to ensure the holes are true. As a cautionary note, pull the bit back frequently to remove the chips. If the chips bind these big bits (2 ¼”), the operator rotates!
The next step is to saw the yoke following the pattern outline, wrap tape around to hold the scrap pieces in place, rotate the yoke 90 degrees, and saw following the other aspect of the pattern. It takes three of us to perform this operation on a big band saw but, when finished, the result is something that looks roughly like a yoke. New surfaces have been exposed. Wrap the yoke in a plastic sheet.
I take this out under a shade tree along with a pair of saw horses, various planes, draw shaves, and sanders and complete the shaping by eye and touch. This is very time consuming and often takes the better part of a couple of days. The draw shave can do a lot of the early shaping and a good belt sander with an extra coarse belt is almost essential. A power plane works well on convex surfaces.
When I am satisfied with the shape, I stain the yoke with a commercially available stain and coat it with a mixture of paraffin, boiled linseed oil, and turpentine. This should be done immediately, again to control the rate at which moisture is lost.
The staple and ring are made by Mr. Gary Stewart of Draper, Utah. He uses 9/16 steel and forms them over mandrels that he has made for this purpose. The pattern was taken from two antique sets of staples and rings. Both sets are well worn and must have seen a lot of use. We thread the staple. I use a 5”X 8” X ¼” steel plate on the top side of the yoke to distribute the force. There is no need for any washers or plates on the bottom. Tillers International supplies the calabash ring. For historic authenticity I use square nuts on the staple. The draft chain can be sized according to the oxen. Be aware that not all chain of the same dimension has equal tensile strength. Generally one with a slip hook on one end and a grab hook on the other has advantages.
The bows are made to order by Mr. Kevin Riddle of Route 2 Box 37, Eagle Rock, Virginia 24085. If it is made of bent wood, oak in this instance, Kevin is ready to handle the task. Because he makes things to order it is well to contact him early in the project. He will want a pattern in some cases. I used bows with a simple “U” shape for my Holsteins but I am certain Kevin could make bows of whatever shape is needed. Position the yoke on the necks of the oxen, slip the bows in, and make a pencil mark where the bows and top of the yoke meet. Go up about ¾ of an inch or an inch and drill a pin hole in the inside arm of the bow. Go up another inch or so and drill another hole. The purpose is to allow for adjustment. The bow pins rest on leather or wooden washers. The pins have many designs. You will lose bow pins. Take an extra with you when you go very far from home. When you cut off the excess bow length, leave a little extra above the yoke. This provides a good place to wrap the draft chain when it is not being used as when you are going back for another load.
Small bows can be made of plastic electrical conduit. A form is sawed from scrap 2X6, 2X8, or whatever is appropriate and attached to a piece of plywood with grabber screws. The plastic is warmed until very flexible. Gloves are a good idea. The warm plastic is gently pulled around the form and cooled. This can be hastened with a wet rag. This conduit is cheap. Let plenty of extra length on the bows. You do not want to worry about a few inches one way or another while you are bending. The bows are cut off after being fitted to the yoke. If the gray color of the plastic does not fit your color scheme, it can be spray painted.
The finished weight of a twelve inch yoke is about 60 or 65 pounds including the bows. It is 75 inches long and 10 inches wide over the steers’ necks. The beam is 5 inches by 5 1/2 inches at the ring.
As you can see, making a yoke can be a project involving several people and several skills. However, I have met some very nice folks and had some fun making yokes for my team.
Some of you may be interested in a yoke for a single ox. I have never made such a yoke but I believe one could do so by adapting the Tiller’s pattern. As you make the pattern remember that the left and right are mirror images. I would use laminated pine but Russ Ross uses a lot of alder in building cabinets and furniture. It is a good strong wood. I would suggest two eye bolts at each end. I would use about a 3/8 inch eye bolt and the type that has a closed eye. (A lot of eye bolts are just bent in a circle that will open with a hard pull.) One would be vertical and hook to the trace; one would be horizontal and hook to the britching. I am of the opinion that Nylon straps would be better than leather because the harness could be separated from the yoke and washed in a bucket of soapy water. I think the traces and harness should be attached to the eye bolts with snaps for this reason. The harness should have adjustable straps to allow for growth of the ox. If I were designing a harness, I think I would first try some variations using baling twine and then translate the best into Nylon. Mind you this is all guesswork but single oxen are harnessed and worked very successfully; so it can be done.
Halters, Collars, Nose Rings, and Goads
Cattle in a farm field can be worked without halters or lead ropes. Those in the street should have halters for liability reasons if for no other. There is a high probability that you will encounter aggressive dogs, smart aleck drivers, and people with firecrackers. Collars are a possible substitute for a halter with the understanding that a half hitch can be quickly applied to the ox’s nose if necessary. However, remember you will be trying to handle two large animals that are close to panicking. One fellow I know insists that oxen should have nose rings. To me that seems too much but it is an option. Whatever is used, the lead ropes should always be slack.
Historically oxen were often abused and goads were often made to be cruel. My goads are wooden. They are about three feet long and have a metal tip to prevent too much wear and tear. A copper pipe cap works well and is attractive. Understand that it is not productive to beat oxen with a goad. It is used to prod; that is, push against the ox. Nonetheless, there can be only one boss; so an occasional whack may be necessary. Whacks should not be a regular part of driving the team. Surprisingly it may well be that you will need the goad to slow the team. Oxen have a wonderful sense of direction and when they are heading home, the pace will pick up. Positioning the goad in front of the team and even tapping them on their noses can help control their enthusiasm. Of course, the goad will work well on those aggressive dogs. (Too bad it cannot be used on the dog owner.)
Yoking Up and Hitching Up
Drew Conroy uses quite a different procedure to yoke up than do I. He lays the yoke on the off steer’s neck and fastens the bow. Then he brings the near steer up and repeats the process. I made it a practice to place the bows upside down over the steers’ necks. That was a signal to the team that it was time for business. The team stood at a hitch rail with their halters and lead ropes on. I laid the yoke over the necks of both steers and then fastened the bows in place. The oxen well knew how much moving around they could do without dropping the yoke.
By the same token many drovers drive the team diagonally across the tongue of a cart or wagon. The near steps over the tongue that is then lifted to the yoke ring. I didn’t know this was the way it was to be done. I put the tongue on a Coke case, drove the team up front of the cart or wagon, backed them one on each side of the tongue, and lifted it to the ring. Essentially I hitched to the cart as one would hitch a tractor or truck to the load.
Now is when you can appreciate the lessons about butting because you will be working right between those big, long horns. I talked with a fellow named Wayne Brandt at the Rock Creek Station State Park in Nebraska. He was driving a team of longhorns. Hitching was an adventure to say the least. His oxen did not want anyone near their heads. Even gentle oxen can hurt you. A biting fly or a sudden noise can cause the ox to turn his head. The best advice I can give is to get real close to the ox. The end of his horn will not hit you if you are right by his ear.
I like to read and read everything I could find on oxen when I started. One book I read stated that the drover should carry a short stick and rap the steer on his horns if he swings his head around. This is absolutely the worst advice I have ever read. I would like to have watched while the author yoked up. I would bet that it was a real circus with the steers expecting to be hit every time he came close. You very definitely do not want the steers to be jumping around and shying away from you while you try to yoke them.
If you have occasion to hitch teams in tandem, do not simply hitch the draft chain of the leaders to the yoke ring of the wheelers. Doing so put tremendous downward pressure on the necks of the wheelers. Properly, the draft chain of the leaders should be hitched to the front axle of the wagon. When they pull up, the chain will be well below the yoke of the wheelers. A short chain from the wheelers’ yoke can be used to support the longer chain just to keep it in place on turns.
More Advanced Training
Oxen are driven by voice command. I have used “Up” to move forward, “Back” to move backward, “Whoa” to stop, “Gee” to turn right, “Haw” to turn left, “Gee (Haw) Around” to make a U-turn, “Over” to move to the street curb, and “Step” to step over a chain or rope. I also used some informal commands such as “Easy” to slow down and repeated “Up” to speed up. The boys learned some others that just happened. When I brought an armful of hay to their manger, I would say “Heads Up”. They soon learned to do just that, lift their noses out of the manger so I could refill it. My Dexter bull, Onslow, learned the command “Barn” is just a few days. At this command he goes into the barn and stands quietly at the manger waiting for his grain ration. I think he is pretty smart especially so when he wants his nose and not his tail pointing toward the grain bucket.
At first these commands were accompanied by tugs on the lead ropes and pushes with the goad. I normally walked at the shoulder of the near ox. “Haw” is easily taught because the team goes in a circle around the drover. “Gee” is harder to teach because the team must turn away from the drover. This is contrary to the idea of the team sticking with the drover. At first you have to speed up considerably to turn the team. “Whoa” can be taught by waving the goad in front of the team. Just be sure to give the team a chance to stop without the goad or you may find they watch for the signal rather than listen for the signal. Before the command ”Up” is given they team must be alerted. Call out their names. In my case these were Alpha and Bravo. Good names should be short and enough different that the ox knows it is his name. Once the team is moving the oxen should pay attention to the drover and their surroundings.
The team has to learn about going through gates. The team must stop short of the gate and stand quietly while the gate is opened. They must move through on command and stop while the gate is closed. My Holsteins and I used to play a little game. When we came home they would stop while I closed the gate and removed their lead ropes. On “OK” they would charge across the corral on a run and slide up to the hitch rail. There they stood until unyoked and their halters were removed. Then they would hang around expecting a bit of praise and petting.
Oxen are a lot smarter than we sometimes give them credit. I habitually stopped at cross streets to check for traffic. Soon enough the team automatically stopped at intersections. I think that this shows the key to a well trained team is lots and lots of practice. The simple truth is that the team that is yoked and used every day is the better team.
Drags, Carts, and Wagons
To keep the yoke in place there should be some resistance. The first load moved can be a small car tire. Put an eyebolt through the tread and it can be dragged forever. It bounces over and around obstacles and doesn’t do much damage if a corner is cut short. Later the team must learn about cart tongues and to move their back legs away from the tongue on corners. A friend and I built a little training cart from the back half of a Toyota car. I put a laminated wooden tongue on it. I must have replaced that tongue a half dozen times before I replaced it with steel. The problem was that on the command “Gee (Haw) Around” the inside steer would stop and his brother would come around. If the inside steer did not move his back end out, the tongue would be snapped.
I also restored a covered wagon. This is fun for parades. One caution: Steel wheels make an awful lot of noise on paved streets. I hitched the team to this wagon and we made a few turns around the yard. Then we headed for the street. The team was convinced that the devil was behind them and took off. Fortunately they ran only about a block before they stopped. They never ran from the wagon again. Incidentally, fifth wheel wagons have a very big turning radius because the front wheels rub on the wagon box. A big team of oxen can slide the front wagon wheels sideways. It is difficult to convince the team not to respond to the wheels hitting the box by simply moving forward with more force.
Oxen like to use force as a remedy. When I was removing an old wooden fence, I wanted to break off the posts at ground level. I honestly think the team enjoyed snapping off those posts. They would go into the yoke and the post would break. Given this power it is interesting that they opened gate latches, lifted gates off their hinges, and turned door knobs. They never tried to break a fence down.
For Dexters I have built a little wagon with rubber tires, automotive style steering, modern bearings, and a three by five foot bed. This wagon has three tongues, a short one for when the wagon is used as an adult sized express wagon, a longer tongue for use with a tractor, and an even longer one for a team of oxen.
Maintenance Feeding
Once oxen are grown they do not need grain. Good quality hay, salt, and clean water is all they require. Even the hay may have to be rationed. My old team, when they were growing, consumed 133 pounds of hay every day. Once they were mature I had to reduce this to 100 pounds a day. They liked all sorts of vegetables. There was never such a thing as too much zucchini, too much sweet corn, too many sweet peppers, or too many pumpkins. Potatoes, carrots, apples, and pears were welcomed. About the only vegetables that were rejected were hot peppers and onions.
In winter the oxen will welcome warm water. It is my belief that they will drink more if the water is warm and that this is important to their good health. Old steers are prone to kidney stones. Plenty of water may help prevent this problem.
Hoof Maintenance
The hooves of oxen need regular attention. The problem is finding someone who is willing to trim oxen and who has a stock big enough to hold them. Oxen grow much larger than the cows these fellows normally trim. I am of the opinion that a Dexter could be trained to put his knee on a little stool and that the hoof could then be trimmed using a rasp. I am training Daisy to put her knee on a stool each time I clean her hooves. Onslow is also learning this little trick. Whether I will succeed in this is yet to be seen. The alternative is to build or buy a stock.
According to Drew Conroy the properly trimmed hoof has a 50 degree angle to the road. Clearly the hoof should be high at the heel and short at the toe. While trimming look carefully for evidence of a puncture wound. Oxen are tough but their feet can be damaged by sharp objects such as sticks and rocks. This is especially true when the team is driven on pavement. A small rock on hard pavement can cause a nasty bruise.
It is tempting to use power tools to trim the feet. All I can say is proceed very carefully. First, power grinders generate a lot of heat that can damage the hoof. Second, your hands and legs are going to be pretty close to the action. A power grinder can take off a lot of skin in a hurry. Personally, I am a big chicken who will spend the time to trim with hand tools.
Housing
Oxen are hardy but they appreciate a comfortable bed. They do not need a closed barn. But, a barn that protects them from the wind and rain or snow is good idea. For appearance the team should be clean and to keep them clean the barn must be clean. Mucking out twice a day is a good idea.
Another good idea is a big pile of wood shavings in the corral. This gives them a clean; relatively dry place to lie on nice days during the winter. I policed this shavings pile daily and the result was what was known as “chips and chips” as in cow chips and wood chips. Gardeners love this form of bovine exhaust.
Drover Safety
Oxen are big and the drover works very close to them. It just makes sense to wear safety shoes. Lead ropes can be tough on hands and a good pair of leather gloves makes sense too.
Even so you should anticipate a few bruises. Once I was fishing pine cones from under an electric fence. My ox, Alpha, came up to see what I was doing. Purely by accident I got up and turned right and he turned left. The back of his horn made a six inch bruise on my leg. Mostly it was my fault because I paid no attention to his being there next to me. Alpha and Bravo liked to stand one on each side of me. Having Bravo on my left and Alpha on my right and just inches away was normal. They were twins and generally hung around the place together. In fact, they stood at the manger and slept with Bravo on the left and Alpha on the right. This arrangement just seemed natural to them.
Insurance
We live is a litigious society. No matter how irrational the other person’s behavior, if someone is hurt the drover will be held responsible. I have observed people push toddlers toward a big ox, people approach an ox with bare feet, people who brought their horse too close with the idea that somehow this would make a cow pony of him, and on and on.
If you plan to take your team into the street and participate in parades check with your insurance agent about a rider to your homeowner’s policy.
The End
It has been said that one should not make a pet of a cow or, presumably, an ox. I am not exactly sure why but suppose that when an animal is a pet you trust them and you might get hurt. I certainly considered Alpha and Bravo to be pets, big pets but pets nonetheless. We had a certain working relationship.
When the team was retired, I knew that in the end they would have to be put down. The whole matter came to a conclusion when Bravo suddenly died. He ate his breakfast and was overtly healthy in the morning. In the afternoon I saw him lying down and heard him lowing in pain. I immediately called the vet who dropped everything to arrive in about twenty minutes. By then Bravo was dead. It was sad to see his brother attempt to get him back on his feet. Alpha just could not understand what had happened. The vet examined Alpha and said he should be sent to slaughter. These old boys had given too much to end that way. The next day Kuhni’s came out, shot him right there in the corral, and the twins went away together. This was not economically right but it was emotionally right.
Notes Regarding Oxen
Qualifier
Pat Sorensen very generously invited me to address you on the subject of oxen. What I will provide here is based on my own experience with one team of oxen. I am not an expert on the subject but have had some experiences which may prove of interest and benefit to those of you who have or will have oxen. Probably the best recognized authority on the subject is Professor Drew Conroy. Drew’s book, Oxen A Teamsters Guide, is well worth the cost. It can be obtained from Rural Heritage, 281 Dean Ridge Lane, Gainesboro, TN 38562 for $25 plus $5 for shipping. I have no set agenda here. Whatever you would like to discuss is fine with me. Please feel free to ask any questions as we go along. Please feel free to contact me.
For convenience I have broken the subject down as follows:
Breeds, Sex, and Horns
Health
Early Feeding
Early Training
Yokes and Bows
Halters, Collars, Nose Rings, and Goads
Yoking Up and Hitching Up
More Advanced Training
Drags, Carts, and Wagons
Maintenance Feeding
Hoof Maintenance
Housing
Drover Safety
Insurance
The End
I have some displays for your examination:
Five Inch Yoke
Twelve Inch Yoke
Halters and Lead Ropes
Goads
Form for Plastic Bows
Yoke Pattern
Drew Conroy’s Book
Spanish Fork, UT
22 June 2002
Charles Welle
Notes Regarding Oxen
Breeds, Sex, and Horns
Our common interest is American Dexter cattle. It is likely that you will consider this breed before others when you select animals to train. You should be aware that Dexters have a reputation of being quick and alert, but less tractable than many other breeds. Like you, I am biased and would like to think that the less subdued, less pliant character is associated with greater intelligence. I have a heifer and a bull, both yearlings, and I have found them very quick to learn. However, to be honest, they do have a mind of their own. Over the years I have raised and handled several breeds. I am of the opinion that there is as much or more difference in temperament within breeds as between breeds. Holsteins are very popular as oxen and have a reputation of being docile and sweet natured as do the Brown Swiss. At the other extreme are the Dexters, Devons, and Chianinas. Probably the least manageable are the Longhorns. With these breeds the drover must keep his mind on his business. No daydreaming is allowed.
With regard to sex, cows, bulls and steers have been used as draft animals. Normally oxen are steers; however, historically bulls have been used as wheelers in the logging industry and in Europe cows have been used on small farms. For heavy farm work steers are no doubt the preferred animals. Steers grow to a much larger size than do cows and are more trustworthy than are bulls. My team of Holstein steers weighed 3000 pounds each. The near ox stood 73 inches at the shoulder and the off, 74 inches. Dexter steers at maturity would weigh about 900 to 1000 pounds and stand about 38 to 40 inches. Not surprisingly the Dexters, pound for pound, can out pull their bigger relatives. Generally bull calves are started as oxen and are castrated at five to six months of age. This is a compromise that ensures development of neck muscles and a good temperament. In New England, where ox pulling contests are popular, drovers have attempted to gain an advantage by postponing castration until the team is a year or more old. The result is a team that was described to me as “cranky” and not to be trusted. Incidentally, castration at five or six months requires a local anesthetic.
Although I have seen oxen that are polled or dehorned, certainly the norm is a good set of horns. Horns are the brakes. When oxen pull up hill the team lowers their heads and pushes against the bottom of the yoke. On level ground they raise their heads and push against the back of the yoke. Going down hill the team raises their heads even more to catch the yoke against their horns. Cattle know very well how to use their horns. After being bashed in the back of the head a couple of times, they learn to use their horns to effectively stop the load. Initially they may try to outrun the load but quickly realize that does not work. Cattle without horns are sometimes worked with britching but this has a serious problem. Basically, horses make “road apples” and the britching stays clean. Cattle make “cow pies” and the britching had better be washable. We all know that when cattle are excited or exercised, the result can be spectacular to say the least. It is well to remember this too when the length of the cart tongue is determined.
As an aside, horns are both sensitive and yet capable of very hard knocks. My old team like to have their horns rubbed. As part of grooming I would clean their horns and rub them with baby oil to make them shiny. Often one or the other would stand in front of me asking to have his horns rubbed. Yet these same horns could penetrate half-inch plywood with no problem whatsoever.
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Health
It is obvious that for an animal to engage in an activity that requires great physical effort, he must be in good health. A sick or malnourished animal simply cannot perform. It is sad to see pictures of skinny, stunted little steers in India and Africa. Further, training an ox is time consuming and it only makes sense to protect one’s investment by appropriate vaccination and immediate attention to any health problems. I keep an old composition book and ask the vet to enter the date and a brief description of what he administered. At the next visit he appreciates the reminder of the animal’s medical history.
On the other hand, our oxen are our pets and most of us tend to overindulge them with food and treats. Obese oxen are common and with the obesity comes the problem that kills most oxen, arthritis. I have seen oxen with hip joints swollen to the size of a basketball. The stifle joints are often swollen and very painfully inflamed. Eventually the ox becomes crippled and must be put down.
Early Feeding
You are breeding and raising Dexters; so I will not dwell on how to feed a calf beyond to say that a potential ox should have the benefit of good hay and calf starter. I admit to feeding my old team milk replacer longer than would have been required and to giving them the best alfalfa I could buy. They got rolled corn and barley with molasses until they were two. After that they continued to get good alfalfa and they ate plenty of it. Alfalfa is rich in calcium. Do not give the team a mineral/salt mix such as 12-12-12 that is intended for dairy cows. Too much calcium can cause urinary tract problems. Incidentally, I tried various other feeds including beet pulp, dried molasses, soybean meal, crimped oats, and so forth. We always came back to the rolled corn and barley with molasses. The boys liked molasses. As an aside, on the farm years ago we used a calf meal that was relatively finely ground. The best science now indicates that the calf thrives better on a coarse feed consisting of rolled grains and pellets. This coarser feed helps the rumen to begin to function.
There is some evidence that a calf that is bottle fed bonds to its master and accepts that person as the alpha animal. However, feeding and caring for an infant calf is time consuming. Not only must the calf be fed but it also must be cleaned. I obtained my team from Utah State University when they were a few days old. I brought home frozen colostrum and over several days switched them to Land O’ Lakes milk replacer. At least twice daily I cleaned them with old towels and a bucket of warm water. Even so, there were some problems with scouring. I tried several remedies including a mixture of beef bullion, Pepto-Bismol, and electrolytes; Gatorade; alfalfa and calf starter; and some bacterial preparations. Eventually their rumens started to work and the problem resolved itself.
I have to wonder about the balance of benefit to time. If one were to spend time with the cow and calf would the result be the same? My little heifer, Daisy, was raised by her mother with a lot of human contact, thanks to Pat and Neil, and today she is certainly attached to me. My little bull, Onslow, has a similar background and is friendly but has not been with me as long and does not seek me out, as does Daisy.
Early Training
The first training involves the calf becoming accustomed to your touch. He has to accept that he will be in close contact with you and it will be without any kicking or butting. The importance of this becomes apparent when you think about hooking up a draft chain. You will be bent over and close to his heels. You very definitely do not want a foot in the face. Next he must learn to lead. This is necessary for him to work but also establishes who is in charge. He may not want to walk along with you but eventually must accept that he will go where you wish to go and when you wish to go. He must stop when you wish to stop. Of course, a big part of this is trust. He will have to learn about frightening things such as manhole covers that rock and clang, lawn mowers, kids on bikes, strange dogs, cars, and a thousand others. Your voice and a little touch will reassure him that all is well. I have heard of oxen that were well trained but that refused to step onto asphalt or cross a painted stripe on the street. If you anticipate taking your team in parades, definitely train in the street. I actually take my calves to the edge of 1300 East in Sandy where we watch traffic go by. Perhaps the last of the early training is getting the two animals to move together. Probably most teams have one animal that moves faster or is more willing to pull. With my old team the near was always close to me and moving. The off liked to dawdle along and check every bush, trash can, and flower. He always liked to be just a half a step back and not really paying attention.
Yokes and Bows
The yoke and bows must fit the team. Yokes are measured by the distance between the inside of the bows; that is, by the thickness of the oxen’s necks. Properly fitted bows allow about the thickness of the drover’s hand between the bow and the steer’s neck. Properly fitted bows also slide inside the steer’s shoulders. The depth must be such that when the yoke tilts in a hard pull the bottom of the bow does not choke the steer. The best way that I know to judge this is to place the yoke and bows on the steers, try various yoke positions, and mark the correct depth with a pencil. When oxen were common, the makers of yokes used what amounts to a set of calipers to measure the animals’ necks. Lacking that I would suggest that the first bows be made of inexpensive plastic and that you follow a trial and error approach. As my old team grew I made five, six, seven, eight, ten, and twelve inch bows and the corresponding yokes.
To make a big yoke, the first step is preparing a blank, the big block of wood from which the yoke is to be shaped. I have investigated various woods comparing density vs. strength and elasticity. My solution is to use locally harvested pine. This is relatively strong for the weight. Historically, in Utah, cottonwood was used for yokes but it is no longer available. I buy 8 foot 2X12’s which we plane and glue up using waterproof glue to make a 12”X12”X 96” blank. The laminate is stronger than a single big block. If the wood is not totally dry, the block should be wrapped in a plastic sheet to control the loss of moisture and prevent cracking.
The second step is to make a paper pattern. I am using essentially the pattern developed by Dick Roosenberg at Tillers International with a few changes to reduce the weight of the beam and the amount of wood at the ends of the yoke. Tillers International, 5239 South 24th Street, Kalamazoo, MI 49002-2019 can supply full size patterns for yokes and Dick has always been extremely helpful in this regard. The pattern is glued to the blank making certain that the center lines match on the top and side views.
The third step is boring the holes for the staple and bows. Mr. Russ Ross of Riverhouse Design in West Jordan, Utah, an extraordinary woodwright, helps with this step and the next. We use a Fostner bit with an extension mounted in a heavy duty drill for the holes for the bows. The pattern positions the holes and we place two carpenter’s squares along side the bit extension to ensure the holes are true. As a cautionary note, pull the bit back frequently to remove the chips. If the chips bind these big bits (2 ¼”), the operator rotates!
The next step is to saw the yoke following the pattern outline, wrap tape around to hold the scrap pieces in place, rotate the yoke 90 degrees, and saw following the other aspect of the pattern. It takes three of us to perform this operation on a big band saw but, when finished, the result is something that looks roughly like a yoke. New surfaces have been exposed. Wrap the yoke in a plastic sheet.
I take this out under a shade tree along with a pair of saw horses, various planes, draw shaves, and sanders and complete the shaping by eye and touch. This is very time consuming and often takes the better part of a couple of days. The draw shave can do a lot of the early shaping and a good belt sander with an extra coarse belt is almost essential. A power plane works well on convex surfaces.
When I am satisfied with the shape, I stain the yoke with a commercially available stain and coat it with a mixture of paraffin, boiled linseed oil, and turpentine. This should be done immediately, again to control the rate at which moisture is lost.
The staple and ring are made by Mr. Gary Stewart of Draper, Utah. He uses 9/16 steel and forms them over mandrels that he has made for this purpose. The pattern was taken from two antique sets of staples and rings. Both sets are well worn and must have seen a lot of use. We thread the staple. I use a 5”X 8” X ¼” steel plate on the top side of the yoke to distribute the force. There is no need for any washers or plates on the bottom. Tillers International supplies the calabash ring. For historic authenticity I use square nuts on the staple. The draft chain can be sized according to the oxen. Be aware that not all chain of the same dimension has equal tensile strength. Generally one with a slip hook on one end and a grab hook on the other has advantages.
The bows are made to order by Mr. Kevin Riddle of Route 2 Box 37, Eagle Rock, Virginia 24085. If it is made of bent wood, oak in this instance, Kevin is ready to handle the task. Because he makes things to order it is well to contact him early in the project. He will want a pattern in some cases. I used bows with a simple “U” shape for my Holsteins but I am certain Kevin could make bows of whatever shape is needed. Position the yoke on the necks of the oxen, slip the bows in, and make a pencil mark where the bows and top of the yoke meet. Go up about ¾ of an inch or an inch and drill a pin hole in the inside arm of the bow. Go up another inch or so and drill another hole. The purpose is to allow for adjustment. The bow pins rest on leather or wooden washers. The pins have many designs. You will lose bow pins. Take an extra with you when you go very far from home. When you cut off the excess bow length, leave a little extra above the yoke. This provides a good place to wrap the draft chain when it is not being used as when you are going back for another load.
Small bows can be made of plastic electrical conduit. A form is sawed from scrap 2X6, 2X8, or whatever is appropriate and attached to a piece of plywood with grabber screws. The plastic is warmed until very flexible. Gloves are a good idea. The warm plastic is gently pulled around the form and cooled. This can be hastened with a wet rag. This conduit is cheap. Let plenty of extra length on the bows. You do not want to worry about a few inches one way or another while you are bending. The bows are cut off after being fitted to the yoke. If the gray color of the plastic does not fit your color scheme, it can be spray painted.
The finished weight of a twelve inch yoke is about 60 or 65 pounds including the bows. It is 75 inches long and 10 inches wide over the steers’ necks. The beam is 5 inches by 5 1/2 inches at the ring.
As you can see, making a yoke can be a project involving several people and several skills. However, I have met some very nice folks and had some fun making yokes for my team.
Some of you may be interested in a yoke for a single ox. I have never made such a yoke but I believe one could do so by adapting the Tiller’s pattern. As you make the pattern remember that the left and right are mirror images. I would use laminated pine but Russ Ross uses a lot of alder in building cabinets and furniture. It is a good strong wood. I would suggest two eye bolts at each end. I would use about a 3/8 inch eye bolt and the type that has a closed eye. (A lot of eye bolts are just bent in a circle that will open with a hard pull.) One would be vertical and hook to the trace; one would be horizontal and hook to the britching. I am of the opinion that Nylon straps would be better than leather because the harness could be separated from the yoke and washed in a bucket of soapy water. I think the traces and harness should be attached to the eye bolts with snaps for this reason. The harness should have adjustable straps to allow for growth of the ox. If I were designing a harness, I think I would first try some variations using baling twine and then translate the best into Nylon. Mind you this is all guesswork but single oxen are harnessed and worked very successfully; so it can be done.
Halters, Collars, Nose Rings, and Goads
Cattle in a farm field can be worked without halters or lead ropes. Those in the street should have halters for liability reasons if for no other. There is a high probability that you will encounter aggressive dogs, smart aleck drivers, and people with firecrackers. Collars are a possible substitute for a halter with the understanding that a half hitch can be quickly applied to the ox’s nose if necessary. However, remember you will be trying to handle two large animals that are close to panicking. One fellow I know insists that oxen should have nose rings. To me that seems too much but it is an option. Whatever is used, the lead ropes should always be slack.
Historically oxen were often abused and goads were often made to be cruel. My goads are wooden. They are about three feet long and have a metal tip to prevent too much wear and tear. A copper pipe cap works well and is attractive. Understand that it is not productive to beat oxen with a goad. It is used to prod; that is, push against the ox. Nonetheless, there can be only one boss; so an occasional whack may be necessary. Whacks should not be a regular part of driving the team. Surprisingly it may well be that you will need the goad to slow the team. Oxen have a wonderful sense of direction and when they are heading home, the pace will pick up. Positioning the goad in front of the team and even tapping them on their noses can help control their enthusiasm. Of course, the goad will work well on those aggressive dogs. (Too bad it cannot be used on the dog owner.)
Yoking Up and Hitching Up
Drew Conroy uses quite a different procedure to yoke up than do I. He lays the yoke on the off steer’s neck and fastens the bow. Then he brings the near steer up and repeats the process. I made it a practice to place the bows upside down over the steers’ necks. That was a signal to the team that it was time for business. The team stood at a hitch rail with their halters and lead ropes on. I laid the yoke over the necks of both steers and then fastened the bows in place. The oxen well knew how much moving around they could do without dropping the yoke.
By the same token many drovers drive the team diagonally across the tongue of a cart or wagon. The near steps over the tongue that is then lifted to the yoke ring. I didn’t know this was the way it was to be done. I put the tongue on a Coke case, drove the team up front of the cart or wagon, backed them one on each side of the tongue, and lifted it to the ring. Essentially I hitched to the cart as one would hitch a tractor or truck to the load.
Now is when you can appreciate the lessons about butting because you will be working right between those big, long horns. I talked with a fellow named Wayne Brandt at the Rock Creek Station State Park in Nebraska. He was driving a team of longhorns. Hitching was an adventure to say the least. His oxen did not want anyone near their heads. Even gentle oxen can hurt you. A biting fly or a sudden noise can cause the ox to turn his head. The best advice I can give is to get real close to the ox. The end of his horn will not hit you if you are right by his ear.
I like to read and read everything I could find on oxen when I started. One book I read stated that the drover should carry a short stick and rap the steer on his horns if he swings his head around. This is absolutely the worst advice I have ever read. I would like to have watched while the author yoked up. I would bet that it was a real circus with the steers expecting to be hit every time he came close. You very definitely do not want the steers to be jumping around and shying away from you while you try to yoke them.
If you have occasion to hitch teams in tandem, do not simply hitch the draft chain of the leaders to the yoke ring of the wheelers. Doing so put tremendous downward pressure on the necks of the wheelers. Properly, the draft chain of the leaders should be hitched to the front axle of the wagon. When they pull up, the chain will be well below the yoke of the wheelers. A short chain from the wheelers’ yoke can be used to support the longer chain just to keep it in place on turns.
More Advanced Training
Oxen are driven by voice command. I have used “Up” to move forward, “Back” to move backward, “Whoa” to stop, “Gee” to turn right, “Haw” to turn left, “Gee (Haw) Around” to make a U-turn, “Over” to move to the street curb, and “Step” to step over a chain or rope. I also used some informal commands such as “Easy” to slow down and repeated “Up” to speed up. The boys learned some others that just happened. When I brought an armful of hay to their manger, I would say “Heads Up”. They soon learned to do just that, lift their noses out of the manger so I could refill it. My Dexter bull, Onslow, learned the command “Barn” is just a few days. At this command he goes into the barn and stands quietly at the manger waiting for his grain ration. I think he is pretty smart especially so when he wants his nose and not his tail pointing toward the grain bucket.
At first these commands were accompanied by tugs on the lead ropes and pushes with the goad. I normally walked at the shoulder of the near ox. “Haw” is easily taught because the team goes in a circle around the drover. “Gee” is harder to teach because the team must turn away from the drover. This is contrary to the idea of the team sticking with the drover. At first you have to speed up considerably to turn the team. “Whoa” can be taught by waving the goad in front of the team. Just be sure to give the team a chance to stop without the goad or you may find they watch for the signal rather than listen for the signal. Before the command ”Up” is given they team must be alerted. Call out their names. In my case these were Alpha and Bravo. Good names should be short and enough different that the ox knows it is his name. Once the team is moving the oxen should pay attention to the drover and their surroundings.
The team has to learn about going through gates. The team must stop short of the gate and stand quietly while the gate is opened. They must move through on command and stop while the gate is closed. My Holsteins and I used to play a little game. When we came home they would stop while I closed the gate and removed their lead ropes. On “OK” they would charge across the corral on a run and slide up to the hitch rail. There they stood until unyoked and their halters were removed. Then they would hang around expecting a bit of praise and petting.
Oxen are a lot smarter than we sometimes give them credit. I habitually stopped at cross streets to check for traffic. Soon enough the team automatically stopped at intersections. I think that this shows the key to a well trained team is lots and lots of practice. The simple truth is that the team that is yoked and used every day is the better team.
Drags, Carts, and Wagons
To keep the yoke in place there should be some resistance. The first load moved can be a small car tire. Put an eyebolt through the tread and it can be dragged forever. It bounces over and around obstacles and doesn’t do much damage if a corner is cut short. Later the team must learn about cart tongues and to move their back legs away from the tongue on corners. A friend and I built a little training cart from the back half of a Toyota car. I put a laminated wooden tongue on it. I must have replaced that tongue a half dozen times before I replaced it with steel. The problem was that on the command “Gee (Haw) Around” the inside steer would stop and his brother would come around. If the inside steer did not move his back end out, the tongue would be snapped.
I also restored a covered wagon. This is fun for parades. One caution: Steel wheels make an awful lot of noise on paved streets. I hitched the team to this wagon and we made a few turns around the yard. Then we headed for the street. The team was convinced that the devil was behind them and took off. Fortunately they ran only about a block before they stopped. They never ran from the wagon again. Incidentally, fifth wheel wagons have a very big turning radius because the front wheels rub on the wagon box. A big team of oxen can slide the front wagon wheels sideways. It is difficult to convince the team not to respond to the wheels hitting the box by simply moving forward with more force.
Oxen like to use force as a remedy. When I was removing an old wooden fence, I wanted to break off the posts at ground level. I honestly think the team enjoyed snapping off those posts. They would go into the yoke and the post would break. Given this power it is interesting that they opened gate latches, lifted gates off their hinges, and turned door knobs. They never tried to break a fence down.
For Dexters I have built a little wagon with rubber tires, automotive style steering, modern bearings, and a three by five foot bed. This wagon has three tongues, a short one for when the wagon is used as an adult sized express wagon, a longer tongue for use with a tractor, and an even longer one for a team of oxen.
Maintenance Feeding
Once oxen are grown they do not need grain. Good quality hay, salt, and clean water is all they require. Even the hay may have to be rationed. My old team, when they were growing, consumed 133 pounds of hay every day. Once they were mature I had to reduce this to 100 pounds a day. They liked all sorts of vegetables. There was never such a thing as too much zucchini, too much sweet corn, too many sweet peppers, or too many pumpkins. Potatoes, carrots, apples, and pears were welcomed. About the only vegetables that were rejected were hot peppers and onions.
In winter the oxen will welcome warm water. It is my belief that they will drink more if the water is warm and that this is important to their good health. Old steers are prone to kidney stones. Plenty of water may help prevent this problem.
Hoof Maintenance
The hooves of oxen need regular attention. The problem is finding someone who is willing to trim oxen and who has a stock big enough to hold them. Oxen grow much larger than the cows these fellows normally trim. I am of the opinion that a Dexter could be trained to put his knee on a little stool and that the hoof could then be trimmed using a rasp. I am training Daisy to put her knee on a stool each time I clean her hooves. Onslow is also learning this little trick. Whether I will succeed in this is yet to be seen. The alternative is to build or buy a stock.
According to Drew Conroy the properly trimmed hoof has a 50 degree angle to the road. Clearly the hoof should be high at the heel and short at the toe. While trimming look carefully for evidence of a puncture wound. Oxen are tough but their feet can be damaged by sharp objects such as sticks and rocks. This is especially true when the team is driven on pavement. A small rock on hard pavement can cause a nasty bruise.
It is tempting to use power tools to trim the feet. All I can say is proceed very carefully. First, power grinders generate a lot of heat that can damage the hoof. Second, your hands and legs are going to be pretty close to the action. A power grinder can take off a lot of skin in a hurry. Personally, I am a big chicken who will spend the time to trim with hand tools.
Housing
Oxen are hardy but they appreciate a comfortable bed. They do not need a closed barn. But, a barn that protects them from the wind and rain or snow is good idea. For appearance the team should be clean and to keep them clean the barn must be clean. Mucking out twice a day is a good idea.
Another good idea is a big pile of wood shavings in the corral. This gives them a clean; relatively dry place to lie on nice days during the winter. I policed this shavings pile daily and the result was what was known as “chips and chips” as in cow chips and wood chips. Gardeners love this form of bovine exhaust.
Drover Safety
Oxen are big and the drover works very close to them. It just makes sense to wear safety shoes. Lead ropes can be tough on hands and a good pair of leather gloves makes sense too.
Even so you should anticipate a few bruises. Once I was fishing pine cones from under an electric fence. My ox, Alpha, came up to see what I was doing. Purely by accident I got up and turned right and he turned left. The back of his horn made a six inch bruise on my leg. Mostly it was my fault because I paid no attention to his being there next to me. Alpha and Bravo liked to stand one on each side of me. Having Bravo on my left and Alpha on my right and just inches away was normal. They were twins and generally hung around the place together. In fact, they stood at the manger and slept with Bravo on the left and Alpha on the right. This arrangement just seemed natural to them.
Insurance
We live is a litigious society. No matter how irrational the other person’s behavior, if someone is hurt the drover will be held responsible. I have observed people push toddlers toward a big ox, people approach an ox with bare feet, people who brought their horse too close with the idea that somehow this would make a cow pony of him, and on and on.
If you plan to take your team into the street and participate in parades check with your insurance agent about a rider to your homeowner’s policy.
The End
It has been said that one should not make a pet of a cow or, presumably, an ox. I am not exactly sure why but suppose that when an animal is a pet you trust them and you might get hurt. I certainly considered Alpha and Bravo to be pets, big pets but pets nonetheless. We had a certain working relationship.
When the team was retired, I knew that in the end they would have to be put down. The whole matter came to a conclusion when Bravo suddenly died. He ate his breakfast and was overtly healthy in the morning. In the afternoon I saw him lying down and heard him lowing in pain. I immediately called the vet who dropped everything to arrive in about twenty minutes. By then Bravo was dead. It was sad to see his brother attempt to get him back on his feet. Alpha just could not understand what had happened. The vet examined Alpha and said he should be sent to slaughter. These old boys had given too much to end that way. The next day Kuhni’s came out, shot him right there in the corral, and the twins went away together. This was not economically right but it was emotionally right.
