Cindy Hamilton wrote:

> On Tuesday, January 9, 2018 at 3:18:27 PM UTC-5, dsi1 wrote:
> > On Tuesday, January 9, 2018 at 10:09:21 AM UTC-10, Sheldon wrote:
> > >
> > > In the US what's sold as oxtail is actually cow tail.
> >
> > I know. My dad told me that when I was a kid. When was the last
> > time you saw oxen in the United States? I guess they have some in
> > Texas. Perhaps there are some where Paul Bunyan lives. I just know
> > that one of ya'alls going to be insisting oxen are all over the
> > place in America. It's what yoose guys do.
>
> An ox is an adult male bovine trained as a draft animal. They often
> are castrated. (Thank you, Wikipedia.)
>
> Given the lack of demand for wagon or plow pulling, it's not
> surprising we have few oxen.
>
> Cindy Hamilton

If you keep to the simple definition, it's basically a beef bull or cow
that's been trained to work. Some purists require they be one of 2 Bos
breeds to truely count. REality, the 'Ox tail' in our markets is just
the tail of a cow or a bull turned into meat. That prized piece is
sold for far more than such a bony part would normally go for because
it makes such a lovely broth!