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Meet Bruce, the smallest bull in Texas




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Mini Zebu bull Bruce stands at barely knee high to Stockdale rancher Juan Diaz, who is 6 feet tall. The tiny bull is fully grown and is only 27 inches tall, about half the height considered standard for miniature Zebus. ZANE EVANS/Wilson County News

Mini Zebu bull Bruce stands at barely knee high to Stockdale rancher Juan Diaz, who is 6 feet tall. The tiny bull is fully grown and is only 27 inches tall, about half the height considered standard for miniature Zebus. ZANE EVANS/Wilson County News

Some little ones are knee high to a grasshopper; Bruce, the smallest bull in Texas, is barely knee high to a grown man. Bruce is a 20-month-old mini Zebu bull, rescued from a flea market by Denise and Juan Diaz of Stockdale.

“When we found him, he was 3 days old and in bad shape,” Denise said. “We had to nurse him with a bottle. It was scary for the first few days.”

Bruce now lives a happy life in Brahma Country. He is recovering nicely at the Diaz home in Stockdale and enjoys family time with the five Diaz kids. Denise and Juan’s 15-month-old daughter, Egypt, takes joy rides on Bruce’s back.

“She’s learning how to ride a bull before learning how to ride a bike,” Denise said with a chuckle.

Adopting Bruce into the family inspired Denise and Juan to get back into raising and breeding bulls. Juan is a Wilson County rancher. Denise won grand champion four times, showing heifers and bulls while in the Spring Branch FFA during high school.

Through selective breeding, Denise and Juan aim to cultivate cattle that are smaller than the micro standard. Their goal is to introduce mini bulls as pets. Bruce seems to be a perfect prototype for such an endeavor.

“He is tame and playful,” Juan said. “He is even smaller than a micro bull and he is fully grown.”

Bruce has already been confirmed as the smallest bull in Texas, but awaits global recognition for the tiny title. Guinness World Records is due to pay Bruce a visit by the end of August, to possibly codify him as the world’s smallest bull.

Despite his fame, Bruce still enjoys playing with the Diaz family pets, including their dogs, chickens, and turkeys. When he is not staying at the Diaz abode, Bruce visits his miniature Zebu friends at the family’s ranch 12 miles outside of Floresville.

Texas proudly proclaims, “here, everything is bigger” — Bruce stoutly challenges that claim.

About miniature Zebu

Zebu cattle originate from the jungles of South Asia and possibly date back as far as 6000 B.C. Their size and hardiness make them adaptable and well-suited for hot climates; they are also resistant to both parasites and disease. A typical adult miniature Zebu does not exceed 42 inches. A telltale feature is the hump between their shoulders.

For more information, visit: www.imza.name/about-zebu.

Bigger in Texas

While Bruce is the smallest bull in Texas, the state excels in cattle superlatives.

The record holder of world’s longest spread of horns is Cowboy Tuff Chex, a Texas Longhorn who lives in Fayetteville. Guinness World Records confirmed in 2020 that the spread of his horns measures 8.6 feet from tip to tip, more than double the average for the breed. The bull has an estimated value of $500,000.

In 2019, Texas AgriLife Extension confirmed that Texas cultivates the largest cow population in the U.S., estimated at 12.5 million head. Beef cattle and calves are the state’s top agricultural commodity, generating more than $10 billion annually.

And it’s no surprise that the King Ranch in Texas is the largest cattle operation in the nation.

zevans@wcn-online.com