Guest guest Posted October 15, 1999 Report Share Posted October 15, 1999 I thought the devotees on these conferences would be interested to know that Drew Conroy, one of the world's foremost expert on ox training has a new book at the publishers: *Oxen - A Teamster's Guide* - 360 pages, $29.95 (includes shipping within the US) Which will shortly be available from: Doug Butler Enterprises PO Box 1390 LaPorte CO 80535 Phone: 1-800-728-3826 (within the US) 970-482-7518 (outside US) FAX: 970-493-7251 Doug Butler is a tiny, tiny publisher in Colorado which has neither e-mail or website, but they publish many books and videos about ox power and horse power, farrier's trade (how to trim hooves), etc. They are advertising the book as "the most complete and definitive book available today on training and working oxen," which I am sure it is. Some of this is geared toward competition at agricultural fairs, so not everything will be of interest to us, but Drew Conroy is such a seasoned expert, with extensive international experience on the subject, that this book is bound to have much of interest to all of us. [At the end of this post, I include excerpts from his article which I posted back in June.] Here's the table of contents: Foreword by Dick Roosenberg (Director of Tillers International ox power school, Kalamazoo, Michigan) Acknowledgements Introduction 1. Selecting the Ideal Team 2. Housing Your Oxen 3. Feeding Your Oxen 4. Principles of Training 5. Training Steers ["steers" is the New England term for oxen less than 2 years old] 6. Advanced Training 7. Training Mature Cattle 8. Yoke Styles 9. Making a Neck Yoke and Bows 10. Hitching Options 11. Oxen in Agriculture 12. Logging with Oxen 13. Working Oxen in Public 14. Competing with Oxen 15. Keeping Oxen Healthy 16. Hoof Care 17. The Problem Team 18. Oxen in History 19. International Development Glossary of Ox Terms Bibliography**** Resources**** Index Andrew "Drew" Conroy has trained and worked oxen since the age of 13. As a junior in college he wrote his first book, The Oxen Handbook. Drew and his oxen regularly compete at New England fairs and field days, ahve been featured in numerous magazine articles, and appeared in two films, *The Crucible* and *In Search of the Oregon Trail.* Drew is a frequent guest instructor at Tillters International and his advice is frequently sought by 4-H groups, museums, hobby ox trainers, and international audiences. His recent adventures with oxen have taken him to Africa four times, where his Ph.D degree has led him to work with the Massai of Tanzania collecting data on their adoption of oxen technology. Drew teaches Dairy Science at the Thompson School of Applied Science, University of New Hampshire, Durham. He is a prolific writer on the subject of oxen, and is a regular contributor to *Rural Heritage* magazine. Drew raises cattle and trains oxen at Oxwood Farm in Berwick, Maine, where he lives with his wife Janet and son Ross. "Few people, if any, on this planet have the knowledge and understanding of the subject of steers and oxen to compare with that of Drew Conroy. In this book his work in exploring the history of cattel as draft animals, their care and training, and the pure pleasure of learning to be a teamster is gathered into a valuable and enduring record. Anyone with the slightest interest in this important aspect of America's agricultural heritage will enjoy *Oxen - A Teamster's Guide." --Stephen H. Taylor, Commissioner, New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets & Foods Noma Petroff wrote: > Drew Conroy on Ox Reins > > Rural Heritage: The Evener 1999, vol 24, no. 2 p. 102 > > DRIVING OXEN WITH LINES > by Drew Conroy > > "I am interested in driving oxen from the wagon, as you would a horse," writes Leo Canuel of Somerset, Massachusetts. "I have seen it done with a nose ring, but I wonder if it can be done any other way?"... > > Why do you want to drive oxen with lines? If your goal is to have a hobby team that drives with lines, so be it. > > If you want to plow and drive the team while riding in a cart, my answer would be that half the ox teamsters in the world drive from a cart with one person and no lines. Are you not willing or able to train your animals as well as a 12-year-old boy in Tanzania plowing with six oxen? The key to his success may be his need to ox-plow an entire farm. The mount of time his animals spend in the yoke may be more substantial than > you are willing to give this endeavor. > > If you want to drive with lines because you think you will get better results, don't do it. I judge ox cart obstacle courses every summer and fall, and I have a feeling the results of using lines would fall short of the outstanding performances I regularly see. I have never seen a team with lines that was as well trained as teams I have seen without lines. Most teamsters who use lines spend a lot less time training their > oxen, and a lot more time restraining them physically, rather than psychologically. And, if you ever log with your oxen, you'll quickly see no advantage to having lines – I hate jumping out of the way of rolling logs. > > As you can see, I am not keen on driving oxen with lines, as doing so is not customary in New England. ***Oxen are not allowed to compete in our shows or fairs with any type of bridle, bit, or nose rings.*** [Emphasis added.] > > ...Using nose rings is my least favorite method. Although nose rings offer an effective method of control, animals that have their noses yanked on too much become head shy and hard headed. Nose rings are a severe method of restraining. The oxen I have seen with nose rings had little choice but to obey. > > In Uganda I saw a rope, instead of a ring, run through the nose. Many of the oxen there learn to lie down in the yoke to resist working, a result of having their noses yanked and of being rushed in the training. > > The reason a bull is controlled with a ring is because this system of restraint causes pain - not the best technique for working cattle. At an ox training workshop in Missouri in 1995, I saw oxen that had been trained to drive with nose rings. At first they seemed to go pretty well, but as the day wore on, they became tired and despite the desires of the teamsters, walked right through a fence while pulling a buckboard > wagon... > > > ************************************* > > Drew Conroy, author of the Oxen Handbook, is one of the America's leading experts in ox training. He teaches dairy science at the University of New Hampshire, and conducts ox training course at Tillers International, in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He also observes and trains African farmers in ox training as part of Tillers' outreach program. http://www.wmich.edu/tillers/ He is a regular contributor to *Rural Heritage.* > http://www.ruralheritage.com/ > > Raised in New England, he is accustomed to seeing some of the most expert ox teamsters in the world, even on a junior level. At our local Topsham Fair, I have seen a 16 year old girl get her team of oxen to walk sideways for about 20 feet, without even touching them. She used only voice commands in a calm tone of voice. That was in addition to many other required maneuvers such as having oxen turn right and left and back up > into a small space. The children are not allowed to use a rope of any kind on their teams. They must control them with voice commands and a small stick only. > > your servant, > > Hare Krsna dasi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 15, 1999 Report Share Posted October 15, 1999 "COM: Syamasundara (das) (Bhaktivedanta Manor - UK)" wrote: hkdd: Before I say anything else, I just want to acknowledge that Syamasundara prabhu is one of the most devoted ox men in ISKCON. Although I prefer to avoid giving oxen the pain of guiding them by the nose, I still consider Syamasundara prabhu to be one of the most competent devotees in ISKCON on the matter of cow care and even working the oxen. That said, I nevertheless take issue with a couple of specifics: > [Text 2703837 from COM] > > If devotees can find the process of using oxen easier by nasal harnessing > rather than the longer process of voice commands then we should be > enthusiasticaly encouraging and supporting them. We do not want to > discourage any body who is utilising the oxen. I have seen 8 year old girls, even one 6 year old girl driving the oxen with no lead rope and no nose rings -- just a small stick. If driving them with nose rings is easier, why don't I see little girls driving oxen with nose rings? If a little girl can do it, why can't a grown man? > In the numerous pictures I have seen within our society's publications > ploughing has always been a two man job when the method is voice commands, > whereas it has been shown as a one man job when nasal harnessing has been > used. This demonstrates that in practice (within our society) the nasal > harnessing method is much more practical and efficient. An extra person > being used for ploughing an acre will cost an additional 7hrs x hourly > rate.In other words if you are getting paid $5 per hour for ploughing then > it will cost you an additional $35 because you have an extra person leading > the oxen with a rope and lash. But, surely you must have missed the Fall 1995 issue of Hare Krsna Rural Life, the cover of which was illustrated by a pen-and-ink drawing of Isvara Puri prabhu plowing under the spring snow (poor-man's fertilizer) at Gita- nagari *single-handedly* with a team of 6 oxen. You must also have missed the cover of the 3.1 issue of the ISKCON Farm News, which showed a picture of Vaisnava prabhu tilling with a team of oxen, again *single-handedly.* And, I will be surprised if I don't see more pictures of single men (or women) working the oxen from Drew Conroy's collection of photos of Africans and Michiganders working with the oxen. You refer to "the extra person leading the oxen with a rope and lash." You are correct in your assessment that the teamster is handicapped if he must use both hands to take care of the rope and lash. But a teamster who needs to use a lead-rope has not trained his oxen well. Consider the following excerpt from Paramananda prabhu, ISKCON's Minister of Agriculture during the 1980s: ***************** I would recommend the use of a training ring in all cases, to make things easier, but it is not always necessary. You should always use a confined area with no foreign objects in it, but it could a less formal arrangement than building a special training ring. It could be inside a hay barn with everything cleaned out. It should have no foreign objects, nothing on which the animal could injure himself if he ran or became frightened, and it must have no outlet where he could escape. Otherwise, if he is not in a confined area, then you have to have a rope on him all the time, which is very restricting. In his working condition he won't have a rope on him, so to train him like that -- always having to hold him by a rope -- is conditioning him to a bad habit. -- Ox Power - Ki Jaya! An Ox Power Handbook ***************** > Syamasundara dasa > > Ps please excuse the harshness of the e mail process. Remember 60% of > communication is non verbal. E mail is perhaps not even that My dear Beta, no offense taken by me, and I hope that you will not find my note sounding too harsh either. Despite our disagreement on small points, we are in agreement on the main point, the importance of protecting Krsna's cows, and again, I appreciate that you are one of Srila Prabhupada's most dedicated followers in this respect. your servant, Hare Krsna dasi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 16, 1999 Report Share Posted October 16, 1999 Dear Hare Krishna (dd) Thank you for pointing out some of my misperseptions The 6 year old girls and the grown men. Yes embarrasing it is. Perhaps our budding ox persons cannot give the time to train a team to the same specification as the 6 year old girl. Whow what an extreme example. It is hard not to see the ox world through my own experiences, as you are sharing with us about yours. I have experienced that nasal harnessing makes ox pwer very easy for anybody to take up. Not only is it the only method used at Bhaktivedanta Manor but I have seen how easy it was for the hungarian farm to take it up. Some years ago the then Temple President of the hungarian farm came to Bhaktivedanta Manor and wanted to know how to work his oxen. The farm had just started and needed to know how to do everything. He merely watched me drive the oxen to collect some hay, didn't even drive the oxen himself. I just told him how to do it. As a consequence he went back to hungary and was able to work his oxen. They are deeply commited to working their oxen since then (Incidently we don't hear much about them probably because they generally all speak Hungarian, and also their GBC Sivarama Maharaja doesn't broadcast it). From my point of view that was completely amazing, and strengthened by resolve in the complete practicalness of the nasal harnessing system. The method does not seam as visual as the young 6 year old girl model but it is certainly effective. I am very interested to hear that there are examples of one man and his team ploughing using only voice commands in the northern hemisphere. I did receive that particular copy of the HKRL although it is not at hand now. Thankyou for your ladylike response Ys syamasundara dasa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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