Many Sylvan Lakers were likely doing double-takes upon seeing Kelly Landry ride her trusty steer Magnum through town.
Originally from Quebec, Landry moved to Alberta earlier this year with her steer Magnum, who is something of a celebrity in her home province. The Facebook page for the steer, "Magnum le boeuf," has nearly 1,000 likes on Facebook and was a fixture at several local events.
"I would always ride in town and in a parade," Landry recalled.
"After a while, some people called me asking for interviews and to come to other events with Magnum."
Since moving to Sylvan Lake, she has rode Magnum into town a couple times. Landry recently posted a video on TikTok highlighting one of their trips into town, which was capped with a stop at the Tim Hortons drive-thru. In the video, which has about 250,000 views, Magnum trots up to the menu screen and taps the order button with his nose. A surprised Tim Hortons worker films the duo as they walk up to the window to pick up their order — the video ends with Magnum feasting on some Timbits.
There are also photos of Magnum paying a visit to the town's Canadian Tire.
Landry, a contract hoof trimmer, understands riding a steer around town is an unusual sight for many.
"People are surprised to see it," said Landry.
"People will ask me questions — I've had some long chats. People have been wanting to take pictures with him."
Landry bought the holstein eight years ago, initially intending to harvest him for meat. Within a couple months, she changed her mind and the two have since formed a strong bond.
"Magnum was always following me. I waited a bit until he was OK to wear the saddle," said Landry.
"I continued until he was 10 months old, then I tried to put a bit of weight on him until he was two years old. Then at two, he did his first ride. We've kept doing it since."
