Her calves will be readily salable as pets or breeding stock if her bloodlines are good. A 2,000-pound ox yields a heap of premium hair.Ī pet cow can be artificially inseminated, so you needn’t ever own (or visit) a bull. Spin it and knit the ultimate cushy, warm mittens. The soft, woolly undercoat curried from molting Galloway and Highland cattle is a fiber artist’s joy. Impressive? Yes!Ī petite Jersey, a Dexter, or a gentle miniature dairy cow can provide your family with better dairy products than money can buy, and unlike a plastic milk jug, Bossy makes a great pet, too.

Saddle and pulling steer events held at ITLA national and regional shows include an intricate trail event in which steers slop through water, weave through pylons, step over an assortment of obstacles and retain their composure while riders navigate a gate, don a crinkly slicker and unlatch and close a rural mailbox. According to the International Texas Longhorn Association (ITLA), there are 400-plus saddle-trained Longhorn steers in the United States. Have you ever thought of riding a bovine buddy? While the undisputed king of saddle cattle is the Texas Longhorn steer, any sensible, sizable, sturdily built cow or steer can be trained to ride. Tough bovine hooves rarely demand expensive shoeing, and an ox-drawn conveyance really turns heads.

The advantages? Trained cattle are less reactive than many horses it’s generally safe to loop the reins, hunker back and enjoy their leisurely pace. But an ox (a mature draft steer) can wear a modified horse harness or a sleek single yoke. Draft oxen are traditionally hitched in tandem, linked to one another and to the implement they’re hauling by means of a sturdy wooden neck yoke. What does one do with a pet cow? There are so many avenues to pursue.Ĭonsider driving. “What’ll you do with him?” ask visitors when I say he isn’t abattoir bound. House rabbits, Pygmy goats, pot-bellied pigs and now cattle: They’re pets, not supper. While farm folk traditionally equate cattle with animated hamburger, increasing legions of rural dwellers view livestock in a brand new light. He’s an ox-in-training and my best bovine pal. His name is Frazer, named for Scottish-Canadian explorer, Simon Frazer.

Raising a bull calf