This Is A Public Service Announcement

We learned something fascinating this week end. Hold you breath, folks, this is going to rock your world. Did you know that oxen are not a particular breed of animal?? No! They can be any old cow, or steer rather. Any breed of cattle can be trained as oxen. First, you have to start with a bull. Then, you take and turn him into a steer with the careful placement of a tiny green rubber band, or by using your preferred method. Sadly, I have written about this subject twice already, here and here. You then take your steer and train it to work. The steer is trained to pull with a yoke and obey verbal commands. When the steer reaches the age of five, and can fulfill the requirements of ox-dom, he can be classified as an ox. Technically, you could raise a Jersey cow or a Holstein to be an ox, but of course people choose the breeds that are the strongest. I forgot already what breed these are, but they were the biggest farm animals I have ever seen. The pictures do not do them justice. The oxen's names were Brooks and Dunn, and weighed 2300 and 2500 pounds each. Now that you know this helpful, handy information about oxen, make sure to throw that in your next cocktail party conversation. Ha, ha! :)

Here are more pictures of our weekend; did I mention we went to the Grange Fair?

Checking out the tractors and the army vehicles

Tyler checking out the sheep; Looking at the cows from a distance; Funny sign placement; The tallest cow we've even seen

(Totally Unrelated Photos): The cutest one year old on the planet!!