Gentle giant bull politely begs for treats

This is Gus. He's a big bull with a big appetite, and he loves bread most of all. What's surprising about him is that he's a fully intact male bull who wighs 2,000 pounds, but he's as friendly and gentle as a pet dog. By nature, bulls are usually grumpy, aggressive and not to be trusted. It's never wise to turn your back on one or to put yourself in a position where you could be injured. They have enough power and strength to do a lot of damage in a very short time if they chose to.Show more

But Gus is an exceptional bull. He was raised on a farm where he had a lot of interaction with people right from birth.

Gus developed an appetite for grains of all sorts, especially bread. This is not unusual for cattle, and Cornell University even did an extensive study to determine the effects of feeding cattle bread and other baked goods. The result was that the animals did very well on a diet that was very high in bread. Gus' taste is not that unusual. What is unusual is the way he will approach someone for a slice of doughy goodness. He literally begs like a dog would beg for a slice of sirloin.

Chris is meeting Gus for the first time. The farmer who owns Gus is fine with him having visitors, and with him being hand fed. Chris has been given some instructions on how to approach this enormous animal, and Chris, a biology student, has extensive experience with animals of all kinds. Armed with a loaf of multigrain bread, Chris is all set to make a new friend.

Predictably, Gus saw the opportunity for a treat and started a fast walk toward Chris. It's one thing to warn somebody that he's a very big boy and another thing to see it for yourself. Chris laughed nervously as Gus closed the gap and opened his cavernous mouth. A tongue, longer than seems possible, shot out and wrapped around the slice of bread like a large hand. The slice of bread completely disappeared and seemed to be gone with three quick chews.

In this video, we see Chris shoveling bread into Gus as fast as he can. In comparison, these slices of bread would be like a cracker for us, and an entire loaf is a reasonable serving for Gus. Although Gus is enjoying the breed immensely, he doesn't get pushy. He sniffs at Chris and at the bag and he politely waits to be hand fed each slice. He even allows Chris to pat his head throughout the encounter, as if he is a large puppy.

Gus likes people and he's friendly enough, but he's quick to return to the herd to graze with the other cows when he sees that the treats are gone.