Six-Foot Steer Saved from Slaughterhouse, Deemed Too Big to Be Beef
Knickers is seven years old and weighs about 3,000 pounds.
Image: Channel 7’s Today Tonight via AP
Meet the man of the hour. His name is Knickers, he’s six-foot-four, over 3,000 pounds, and he walks on four legs.
That’s right, he’s not even a man but a steer—a castrated male cow—and he’s been making global headlines this week for being too big to become beef.
The Australian bovine chewed his way into the conversation when images recently circulated of him standing next to a herd of brown wagyu cattle. A white-and-black Holstein Friesian, Knickers stuck out like a sore thumb, because, like, you know, he’s twice as large.
According to the BBC, Knickers was purchased by owner Geoff Pearson to be a “coach,” which means he leads other cattle around to look for fresh grass to eat. When he was young, he was best buds with a Brahman named “Bra.” Their names went together like… bras and knickers.
Pearson attempted to auction Knickers off in October, but slaughterhouses said that he was too big, and would be a hazard to both machines and consumers, since his hung carcass would inevitably touch the ground, he told the Guardian.
Pearson is not sure why Knickers managed to grow to such a height, though believes it could simply have to do with the fact that he was allowed to age. Most cattle are turned into food at an age of two to three years.
In any event, this Elephant Man among cattle will not be dispatched for his muscle, and will instead be allowed to live out the rest of his life in the fields, striking fear in the hearts of little cows everywhere.
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