This is a friend of mine who finally managed to trailer these two hmmm what to call them to honor their magnificence yet also acknowledge the danger and problems they were? well, steers is what they are so that is what I will call them.

The white is 9 years old and has only been penned twice before. The first time when he was a calf and branded, the second a few years ago in one of many attempts to get rid of him. Unfortunatley someone who did not follow directions fed too close to a fence and some idiot horses pushed on it trying to steal hay and he got out.

The black bald face. Oh how I am conflicted to see him go. He was branded in August of 1996. That was the year my mother died. He was a rare miscall by a cowboy's cowboy. (when branding with a crew and multiple brands, the guys roping the calves call out the correct brand based on the calf's mother to the crew working on the ground) I liked having him around for several reasons. I mean just look at him! Plus he was good for ribbing the caller from that branding.

That steer, I call him the Monster, is a bit of a legend around here. All the neighbors know him because a boundary fence was like stepping over a string on the ground (at least he is a steer and not a bull) He was actually pretty tame. You could almost hand feed him - he would come within 10 feet and eat hay off the ground. As long as you were out in the pasture. He would stand in the corral if you went to have a look at him, but if you made a move to close a gate he was gone. He could clear a 6 foot fence from a stand still. It was worth it just to watch him do it. Almost.

He is 14 years old and starting to slow down. He can't clear the heights so well anymore and herein is the big problem. He was still trying. He tore up a water lot maybe 10 times this last year. so this morning I got a call from the guy in the picture. (He has been helping gather some other wild stuff for me.) He says "I got a couple steers for ya, want to meet up on the hill with the hauling papers?" I said I would be right up, and then grumbled to myself "only 2 steers? at this rate we are never going to get them cleaned out, I want those rank old cows out of the west pasture, I only have two more sets of papers gripe piss moan".

So I come driving up and I see those two boys and did a whoop LOL and started clicking my cell camera. That is the blurry "thumbs up" one. Had to come back to the house and get the "better" camera (still a POS) - this is history. My helper was pretty high on catching them. I talked to him on the phone a little while ago and he said when they unloaded them at the sale, that was when he actually realised how freaking big they were. "Them two steers was looking OVER the 6 foot rails!" ha. Well he has the bragging rights to catching them now.

I am sad but it needs to be done. I am going to go to the sale on Thursday and get some more pix. If they don't get him bid up just for the fun of it I may buy him back. Anybody know of a taxidermist that will do his head?