The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country

Holy cow! Check out the size of Australia's biggest steer, Knickers

news.com.au
27 Nov, 2018 10:21 PMQuick Read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Check out the size of Australia's biggest steer, Knickers. / ABC

Knickers the steer is a bit on the shy side, but the bovine behemoth tends to stick out from the herd.

As you might have guessed, that is Knickers at the back of the photo — the black and white one with a couple of normal-sized cows sheltering under its belly.

Standing 194cm tall and weighing 1.4 tonnes, the seven-year-old Holstein Friesian is unofficially Australia's biggest steer.

While all that bulk makes it hard for Knickers to blend in, being heavier than a family sedan does have its advantages.

Third generation Myalup cattle farmer Geoff Pearson said Knickers' startling size had saved him a trip to the abattoir.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Myalup cattle farmer Geoff Pearson with Knickers on the Myalup farm.
Myalup cattle farmer Geoff Pearson with Knickers on the Myalup farm.

"It was too heavy. I wouldn't be able to put it through a processing facility," he said.

"So I think it will just live happily ever after."

Knickers is attracting plenty of media attention.
Knickers is attracting plenty of media attention.

Knickers cost his owners $400. They bought him as a "coach" — an animal that could take charge of the herd and show them the ropes of life on the farm.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

According to Guinness World Records, the tallest steer on the planet can be found in Italy — a 202cm Chianina ox named Bellino.

Discover more

Tulip growers fined for illegal water takes

27 Nov 09:15 PM

Cherries hit stands ahead of Christmas

27 Nov 09:45 PM

Pig craze takes off at Ag Show

27 Nov 10:15 PM

Champion breeder fleeces the competition

27 Nov 11:15 PM
Save
    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country
|Updated

Farmers give green light to Fonterra's sale of consumer business to Lactalis

29 Oct 10:55 PM
The Country

'Opportunistic criminals' target rural Taranaki properties

29 Oct 10:07 PM
The Country

How Northland’s artisan butchers are making sausages the new BBQ staple

29 Oct 10:00 PM

Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

Farmers give green light to Fonterra's sale of consumer business to Lactalis
The Country
|Updated

Farmers give green light to Fonterra's sale of consumer business to Lactalis

Mainland's sale will mean a $2 per share capital return for Fonterra's farmers.

29 Oct 10:55 PM
'Opportunistic criminals' target rural Taranaki properties
The Country

'Opportunistic criminals' target rural Taranaki properties

29 Oct 10:07 PM
How Northland’s artisan butchers are making sausages the new BBQ staple
The Country

How Northland’s artisan butchers are making sausages the new BBQ staple

29 Oct 10:00 PM


Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable
Sponsored

Poor sight leaving kids vulnerable

22 Sep 01:23 AM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP