Rural Heritage December 2025/January 2026

follow behind. To keep her oxen in peak condition she tries to work them two hours a day year-round. The oxen are two years old before Tracy enters them in their first pull. If she feels a team is ready, she will enter them in the ton class, but not all fairs have one, so most of her teams start in the 2,400 class. The classes are based on the combined weight of the team. The classes can range from 1,100 pounds to over 3,200 pounds. Other pullers put younger cattle in the 2,400 class, but Tracy has said those cattle don’t last past the age of five. She starts her cattle later, but most of her teams pull until the age of 10. With all things there are misconceptions. I’ve heard that all pullers beat their oxen, and the teams are unsafe outside of the pulling ring. Tracy and her family have changed that stereotype. Bailey Howard and her Belgian Blue team in a head yoke.

When Tracy was young, her father used to put her and her twin sister on the backs of his pulling team to ride as he exercised them. Her own daughters have been around oxen from the time they were toddlers, and the cattle are safe and respectful with them. Tracy believes that the most important aspect of working oxen is teaching them respect. She trains teams for other people and is now involved in her daughters’ 4-H club. Tracy said a common mistake is that people treat their oxen like dogs. The animals get comfortable pushing people with their heads, which is dangerous as they get bigger. They need to be taught early to respect people, and any aggressive behaviors should be corrected. That allows everyone to be safe and gives the animals a long working life.

December 2025/January 2026

75