An Improba-bull Neighbor

Steer Being Raised in the City is a Neighborhood Celebrity as He Gets Ready for Livestock Show

Good News

Sometimes you just never know who your neighbors are… it might even be a celebrity like Johnny Cash! Well, Cash the steer that is. He just happens to live with the Michalke family of La Grange on their little over half an acre property in town.

“We have amazing neighbors and they say he doesn’t bother them,” said Katy Michalke. “In fact, they say they really like having him around. He only gets vocal if he’s hungry. Paige feeds him at 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., so the time change was an adjustment for him.”

Paige Michalke, 13, is raising Cash for 4-H and will show him at the Fayette County Junior Livestock Show later this week.

So how does one end up with a steer in town?

“It wasn’t planned,” said Michalke. “One day when Cash was little, Paige took one of the goat halters and haltered him, and started walking him around. We tried to find another location for him close to town when he was younger but we weren’t able to, so we decided to just keep him here. It is nice not having to drive anywhere each morning and evening, plus she can work with him anytime since he is right there. We know it isn’t traditional to have a steer in town, but the kids are making memories that will last a lifetime and that’s truly what it’s all about.”

Cash might be a steer but he has become a steer with an identity crisis. The family also has two dogs and they have become his best friends. “He seriously has identity issues and thinks he is a dog,” said Michalke. “He likes to hang out at the front fence with them and watch the cars go by in the morning. Occasionally he will moo if we bring the dogs inside and he does get lonely.”

“He is a sweet boy and he knows his name. He will lift his neck super high so you can give him a good neck scratch. Sometimes he will talk to me through the window in the morning when I am getting ready for work. He’s a mess and has a big personality for sure,” added Michalke.

And given his namesake, he indeed has become a neighborhood celebrity. “He was a hit on Halloween. The kids all came to the fence to pet him,” said Michalke. “He likes to hang out at the gate in the mornings when the busses go by, so the kids are used to seeing him and were excited to finally meet him.”

Along with his celebrity status, Cash does bring challenges. “We will likely have to resod some of our yard. The last big set of rains made the ground so soggy and he is so heavy, that his hooves would just sink into the ground and he made big holes,” said Michalke. “It is finally starting to dry out and level out. Paige also shovels his manure frequently. She puts it in a big molasses tub and we have a friend who picks it up and puts it in his garden.”

The family has enjoyed and learned from their time with Cash but they have decided to not get another steer after Cash. “While he has been really fun for me and those who follow his funny antics, he is a really expensive livestock project for Paige. His feed is expensive, he eats a lot of it and Paige pays for everything with her own money. She will show him and then he will be sold. While she loves him, he is her stock show project and her job for the last year. The money she makes showing him and selling him helps cover his feed bill and will be used for future animal projects as well as her savings for college,” said Michalke.

So what does the future hold for Cash as he walks the line later this month? “We have some dear friends who are considering purchasing him as a friend for their pet longhorn. I would love for him to live a long happy life where he gets lots of neck scratches,” said Michalke.