the Miniature Zebu...but don’t Tell her that!

Hello, furry friend fans!
Ollie Pup here, and we have a special guest this month… Meet Mazel Mae Templeton! Mazel is a Miniature Zebu, which is a modern American breed of Zebuine Miniature Cattle.

Her parents, April Wideman and Carrie Drury researched the responsibilities of owning a miniature cow for quite a while before finding Mazel Mae. Owning one of these little beauties is a fifteen to twenty-year commitment, and they did not just on a whim decide to get a cow! 

“We have a dear friend in the Leiper’s Fork area that is leasing us acreage on his fifteen-acre farm,” says Carrie. “After preparing the space for our potential new family member, our plan was to get one and our friend to get one so that they would grow up together. After searching for nearly a year, April saw a picture and fell in love; it was the cow for her! Unfortunately, our friend has not found one that has spoken to him like Mazel did to April! We are actively searching for Mazel a playmate to join her at the farm.”

Carrie says that there are many rescue groups in our area that work diligently to provide love and care to farm animals that were purchased for the cuteness factor and then abandoned or neglected when they outgrew the fun stage. “We are committed to taking care of and providing for Mazel as if she were our own child,” she says. “We did not consider the fact that she would be so small when we got her, so we had to bring her to our home (we live in the city limits of Franklin) and were recently ‘outed’ for having her in our backyard. The City paid us a visit and were very kind to hear us out and provide us with an appropriate amount of time to place her at the farm. She leaves very soon, and it will be a sad day not to have her at our house, but she is only eight minutes down the road, and we will be there all the time!”

Mazel is still bottle-fed three times a day but is starting to graze a little on grass and orchard grass (hay), and she is learning to eat calf starter feed. April and Carrie say they have enjoyed every minute of having Mazel as part of their family. She adores her canine brother and sister, and they have remarkably taken her under their care and are so amazing with her. “She loves to spend time with us on our patio, plays in the yard with the dogs, and has a new visitor coming by almost daily to meet her,” Carrie says. “She sleeps in our mudroom. If she had her way, she would wish to stay in the other parts of the house with her siblings. She follows them everywhere. She is such a sweet creature and very smart. It’s  amazing to watch her develop. We are proud parents!"