CNN –
A wild ox that wandered onto the tracks at Penn Station in Newark, disrupting train service between New Jersey and New York City, will spend the rest of his days in a shelter where he will be named “Ricardo.”
The young Texas Longhorn drew attention Thursday morning when transportation officials announced there would be a delay of up to 45 minutes between Newark and New York City shared a picture by Ricardo, standing in the middle of the tracks.
A chaotic scene unfolded as police and other emergency responders tried to corral the bull, a witness told CNN affiliate News 12 New Jersey.
“They tried to corner the bull not once, but twice,” Cheryl H. told the station. “The second time, the bull charged at them, and they all scattered like cockroaches, afraid of the bull, of course.”
Ricardo was eventually tranquilized and taken to Skyland Animal Sanctuary and Rescue in Wantage, about 80 kilometers away.
Courtesy of Mike Stura
Ricardo, a Texas Longhorn steer, recovers after a long day.
The sanctuary’s founder and president, Mike Stura, told CNN the ox was about a year and a half old and weighed between 750 and 850 pounds.
After the sedation was removed, Ricardo seemed “much more alert and looked very good,” Stura said on CNN’s “Laura Coates Live” Friday evening.
“He’s doing a lot better than when I first met him,” Stura said. “He was calmed down. He was completely on his side, and that’s not good for her. Cattle can’t lie flat on their side like that.”
Ricardo has now sat up and is lying on his chest, but has not yet gotten up, said Stura. The ox also was given antibiotics to prevent pneumonia and will remain in quarantine until a veterinarian clears it to join other animals, he said in a previous interview.
Stura believes the ox escaped from a local slaughterhouse before ending up on the tracks.
An ox is a bull that has been castrated to be more docile, Stura explained.