[becorson]

there are others with more experience than me but i’ll start the discussion by replying to your questions. I have trained 3 single oxen over the years and have talked with several people who have also trained singles. it seems that a single calf does indeed get attached to his human handlers but sometimes this is not an advantage: without someone Larger and sTronger than him around, it may be harder for him to learn to be submissive. not that it can’t be done, but just something to keep in mind. i think the termperament of the individual calf has a big effect, too, as much as how many animals are around.
I have never succeeded (yet) in training an ox to follow a furrow and have always had to resort to two-person plowing: one person drives the ox (or oxen) and concentrates on keeping them straight… and the other person handles the plow. having said that, i think others have succeeded in teaching oxen to do just about anything, including plow straight, with enough time and practice.
in any case, you need to start with a furrow that is already straight and spend time driving the animal along the furrow, getting him used to walking at the edge, without pulling the plow. i think the more time you could spend doing this step, the better.
once the animal is used to walking along the edge of a furrow pulling something like a large tire, it would be time to start plowing but you would want to use a small plow and nice well conditioned soil. You wouldn’t want the first plowing attempt to be in a hard, stony field. at least that would be my recommendation.
I have never used a nose ring on any of my cattle but i do use a rope around the base of the horns, or a rope halter. the best ox-man i know personally (Worth McClure in Lancaster co Pa) said that he used bits on some of his teams back in the 40s..
. he didn’t recommend a nose-ring because he said it made cattle “head shy”… once you have punctured the ox’s nose to put a ring it, worth said, the ox will never forget that you hurt him. as i see it, the advantage of a bit is that it is less painful and is also reversible.
as far as harness, i have used wooden neck yokes on my cattle, and also two different types of neck-collars. with either a neck yoke or a neck collar on a single ox, its useful to have some kind of breeching or britchen to help stabilize the collar and keep it from falling forward.
i have never used a head yoke which i think is illustrated in your picture ? but maybe someone else will comment on that.

[becorson]

Maybe i can get Rob to bring his team from Howell Farm? ……

[becorson]

Hi Patrick,
it’s not over yet…. it’s the end of this month. hope you can attend!

[becorson]

thanks for the reply, Carl. I did check with Howie and unfortunately he is not able to come.
the farm show complex is in harrisburg pa. it’s relatively easy to get to, less than 1 mile off of I-81…. but i can understand how folks wouldn’t want to undertake a road trip with cattle in the wintertime…

[becorson]

Ja i finde Deutsch ziemlich schwer, aber Englisch ist auch nicht leicht, weil es so unregelmässig ist! die Studenten hier im USA haben gewöhnlich das Gelegenheit, eine Sprache zu studieren, aber es ist nicht ein Bedürfnis. Die Merhzahl studieren Spanisch, ich glaube.

In the US and England most people say “whoa” or “ho” to stop a horse or ox but in Norway they make a sound like a trill ” ptrtrtrt ” how do Germans tell a horse to stop?

[becorson]

i follow another online forum about keeping a family cow… it is hosted by Proboards and they have adds that are not very obtrusive. i have even found a few interesting items for sale!
but the idea of contributing as we can afford is also good. “from each according to his ability; to each according to his need.” i am willing to pledge!

[becorson]

Ich habe Deutch in der Schule gelernt. Es ist eine schöne Sprache!
In Germany, do you ever use voice commands to turn horses to left or right? In English, teamsters can use the word “gee” to tell the animal to turn right, and “haw” to turn left. I have always wanted to know if similar commands are used in other languages…

[becorson]

Just wanted to chime in and say that for in depth and hands on instruction you couldn’t do better than to visit Jason’s farm in Virginia and learn from him. Jason has more than a life-time of experience with horses (several generations’ worth) and he’s also a dedicated teacher of humans. In my experience this combination of horse-skill and a desire and ability to share knowledge is quite rare .

Olaf Nyby is a good horseman too. He’s a Norwegian driving instructor and horse trainer who has been coming to the US about twice a year for a decade or more. Over here he mostly gives clinics to the carriage- driving crowd, but in Norway he works with all kinds of horses, including logging horses and the tough little cold blooded trotting horses they race in Norway and Sweden. You can find out more about him and contact him via his web site at http://www.olafnyby.net

[becorson]

An old teamster from North Carolina told me to use medium sand paper and lightly sand the horns to get right of flakes. i tried it and it seemed to work.

[becorson]

congratulations on a job well done and a wonderful community effort, Plowboy.
Here’s to community building! seems to me that this forum is a good tool for that.

[becorson]

neat pictures. it’s always interesting to me how many ways there are to work animals. I agree that the animals look well content.
i don’t know much about donkeys and mules…. would it be true to say that their necks are generally not as cresty and arched as the average horse? i am thinking that it seems like a yoke works best on animals with a slim neck and prominent withers .
since mongolian / chinese ponies tend to have cresty necks and low withers, maybe that was a driving force that led the chinese people to develop the neck collar: (i.e., because the yoke didn’t work well for their horses). ? just philosophizing here…..

[becorson]

@jenjudkins 2791 wrote:

Hey, welcome, but man, 19 is not an old horse, let alone ‘ancient’, lol. I have a 27 yo still in work and he wouldn’t have it any other way. Jennifer.

no, i know 19 is not old for a horse. one of my mares is at least 19 and she is still very ready to go all day:). The ancient senior citizen at 19 is my ox, Rex. if i knew how to attach a picture of him, i would and you would see what i mean!

[becorson]

Ralf, you are right that horse-drawn equipment is relatively easy to find in Pa. there are many Amish and Mennonite shops that make and repair it, including custom piece work as you describe. the price is usally quite reasonable, even for custom work, at least i think so. so if there is something you need, let me know and i will see if i can find it for you!
like you, i am hoping to see some pictures from the horse powered field days .
best wishes,
Barbara

[becorson]

i liked the pictures. it sure does look like you did a good job ! nice team, what kind are they?
I have plowed a little and would like to learn more. i’ll have to get the Farmer Brown video that was suggested.

[becorson]

That is a great article. very well written! I hope you will write something about the Plowing workshop that was held at Howell Farm earlier this month.

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