Cuteness serves steer well

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POCATELLO - Clyde, a year-old Jersey steer, loves bananas, comes when he's called and has even been known to join in a friendly game of baseball.

And Clyde just might be the luckiest bovine on the planet.

The calf was rescued from the ultimate fate of most Idaho beef cattle by a Jackson Hole, Wyo., woman who saw something special in his eyes.

Cecilia Heffernan, a floral designer, encountered the fawn-coloredsteer when her horse was being trained at C&N farms at Chubbuck. Clyde lived in the pasture next to the stable.

''He was standing at the fence and I stared at him and then started petting him,'' Heffernan said. ''Eventually, he was taking treats out of my hand.''

She looked forward to seeing the steer each time she came to Chubbuck to check on her horse's progress.

''I found out his name was Clyde and that made him even cuter,'' Heffernan said.

She started bringing him special gifts, like acorn squash and found out the calf was particularly fond of bananas.

''He would come running when I called him,'' she said.

Clyde's owners, Melissa Kulicke and her husband Merlin, bought the steer intending to fatten him up, butcher him and put him in the freezer. But she admits that she also became attached to Clyde.

''I told (Merlin) when he brought him home, 'Why did you have to bring home something so cute,''' Melissa said.

Their 11-year-old daughter, McKenzie, named the calf.

''We've named our cows before, but Clyde was different,'' Melissa said. ''He liked people.''

Clyde followed them around the yard and even joined in when the family played baseball.

''He was more like a big dog,'' Melissa Kulicke said.

Heffernan was devastated when she learned of Clyde's impending fate.

''In my own little animal world, I thought, 'This is great, somebody has a cow for a pet.'' she said. ''When someone told me he wouldn't be a pet after September, I just couldn't let that happen to Clyde.''

So Heffernan launched a campaign to rescue the steer. She sent e-mails to clients and friends in Jackson Hole and offered to replace Clyde or to buy him from the Kulickes.

''I talked to Merlin (Kulicke) about it and he kind of laughed,'' Heffernan said. ''He said, 'You sound like my wife.'''

But first, she had to find a place to keep the calf.

Heffernan managed to locate a family that vacations in the ski town who agreed to put the steer up in their pasture.

Last week, she transported Clyde to his new home. He now lives on several acres, along with two horses and a donkey.

''He has great views of the Tetons,'' Heffernan said. ''He acts like he's always been there.''

She visits Clyde every day and said the Idaho calf has become an attraction in the Cowboy state.

He was the star of ''Show and Tell'' at Pumpkin Patch Preschool in Jackson Hole Thursday.

''Clyde was wonderful. The kids loved him,'' said Kim Parker, the preschool teacher who hosted Clyde. ''He was a very popular guest.''

Heffernan said dozens of people stop by the pasture to pet the little steer each day.

Clyde will also be featured in an upcoming clothing magazine.

''I know everybody is laughing at me - the crazy flower lady who adopted a cow,'' Heffernan said. ''But I think there are special animals that are here to teach us something, rather than to be used for our benefit. You can look in his eyes and see that he has a soul.''

Melissa Kulicke said the family will continue to raise their own beef cattle, just not Jerseys.

By Debbie Bryce

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