NJ’s Beloved Runaway Bull Battles Infection: Ricardo Update

NEWARK, NJ — After making national news headlines for wandering onto the tracks of a busy train station in Newark, a beloved runaway steer dubbed “Ricardo the Bull” has another fight in front of him – this time from a serious infection.

In December, the now-famous bovine wandered onto the train tracks at Newark Penn Station in New Jersey. Ricardo’s foray into big city living temporarily shut down train service at the busy station, astounding shocked commuters as he galivanted down the tracks on Dec. 14. Read More: Bull Wanders Onto Tracks In Newark, Delays NJ Transit Trains (UPDATE)

It’s still unclear how the steer steered himself onto the tracks in the first place (or where he came from). Officials said he escaped somewhere near Newark Airport, and began making his way back there after his sojourn to the train station. However, some reports have since speculated that the animal escaped from a local slaughterhouse.

After rounding up the wayward steer, authorities placed a call to the Skylands Animal Sanctuary, a nonprofit Wantage-based rescue organization that has taken in other runaway bovines over the years. Dubbing the newfound steer “Ricardo,” the sanctuary gave him a new home – and a pathway to a better future.

The bizarre incident has captured the attention of many New Jersey commuters and animal lovers.

Soon after Ricardo blundered onto the tracks at Newark Penn, the agency began selling a stuffed animal in his likeness on their online store. The plushie – which retailed for $20 including shipping – is currently sold out “due to high demand.”

NJ Transit said that a portion of the proceeds will go directly to Skylands Animal Sanctuary & Rescue to help defray the cost of hosting Ricardo.

BATTLING AN INFECTION

Mike Stura of Skylands Animal Sanctuary has been providing updates on social media about Ricardo’s progress.

Since arriving at the rescue, the steer has been battling a nagging infection that he may have suffered during his journey to Newark Penn Station. He has since been moved to Cornell Large Animal Hospital, and is currently “doing better.”

Stura gave a recap of the situation earlier this week:

“[Ricardo] had what looked like a half dollar sized road rash on his leg when we met him. We drove him directly to the doctor, where they examined him and we agreed that he should get antibiotics. He got the antibiotics along with the vaccinations he needed and we took blood for all the tests he required to be cleared and eventually join other animals. He was put in an isolation area pending the results of those tests.”

“On Christmas Eve, we noticed that the tiny wound suddenly looked inflamed,” Stura recalled. “We immediately put him in the trailer and took him to Cornell Large Animal Hospital, where they determined he had an infection and began treating him for it.”

Several rounds of veterinary treatment came next, he continued:

“[Ricardo] was sedated and the area was debrided and cleaned. He has had many x-rays and ultrasounds. They put a hard cast on his leg to stop him from bending it because the wound was right at the joint on his hock and they wanted to help it heal by stopping it from bending. He is at the best large animal hospital on the planet. He continues to get the wound cleaned and receive the medicine he needs. He is doing better and the infection seems to be less and less.”

Ricardo’s potential release date? Whenever he is ready to come home – and his wound is completely healed, Stura says.

“We will not be putting him at risk of developing another infection to save money or so I can feel happy that he is here with us,” he wrote. “Ricardo’s health comes before anything else.”

FRIENDS, NOT FOOD

Stura has been encouraging people who are interested in Ricardo – and other animals like him – to rethink their own eating habits.

In addition to Ricardo, the rescue is home to several other bovines who reportedly escaped brushes with a slaughterhouse. And each one of them is a good example of why vegetarianism or veganism may be up your alley, Stura maintains.

“Everybody was rooting for him when they saw him running down the tracks, as we often do,” Stura said in one of his latest video updates on Ricardo. “I’ve literally gotten thousands of phone calls and emails and texts from people saying they want to help him, do this … and that’s fantastic. But I’m gonna tell you something: he is no different from the millions and millions of other animals that go to slaughter every year in this country.”

“Every one of them is as much an individual as he is,” urged Stura, who said he hasn’t had a “piece of dead animal” in his mouth since 1995.

“We don’t have to eat animals, we don’t have to use things from them … it's 2023, we don’t need it,” he said.

“The world would have really been missing out had Ricardo been murdered,” he added in a recent post.

• See Related: Adore-A-Bull: NJ Train Station's Famed Steer Isn't Food, Rescuer Urges

Ironically – just a few days before Ricardo made his appearance at Newark Penn Station – People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) put up a series of digital messages at the busy train station featuring chickens, turkeys, cows, pigs and other animals, making pleas to view animals as fellow beings, not as food.

“I’m ME, not MEAT,” the digital ads proclaimed. “See the individual. Go vegan.”

• See Related: Vegans In Newark: PETA At Penn Station, Celebrity Chef Visits School

BULLFIGHTING: ‘EMPATHY FOR THE BULL’

Stura isn’t the only one saying that there are some important lessons that Ricardo’s foray into Newark Penn can teach New Jersey.

Last week, students, educators and administrators at Columbia High School in Maplewood held a special reception for “Empathy For The Bull” – a student art exhibition inspired by Ricardo.

After hearing that the steer had reportedly escaped from a slaughterhouse, teacher Curtis Grayson and his students turned a class lesson on Spanish culture into a chance to condemn the controversial practice of bullfighting.

The resulting art exhibit – which was done in cooperation with the school’s World Languages Department – includes works that attempt to inspire empathy for animals like Ricardo.

One piece has a border that repeats the number 35,000 – the amount of bulls that are killed during bullfights in Spain every year. Many spectators at the events are American tourists, advocates say.

Another student artwork depicts a bullfighting scene with the roles reversed: the bull is dressed as a matador, wielding a sword and a red cape, standing ready to fight a man.

Yet another work of art includes “Ferdinand,” the animated bovine who prefers smelling flowers to bullfighting.

“Originally, the bull was one of many aspects of Spanish culture the students could draw inspiration from to create their pieces,” Grayson said. “But when we heard the news about the runaway bull in Newark, the bull became the focus of most of the students.”

“It’s understandable when you think about it,” he added. “The bull is formidable and strong, but the bull is also vulnerable. I think that is how the students started feeling empathy, rather than fear, toward the animal.”

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com. Learn more about advertising on Patch here. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site. Don’t forget to visit the Patch Newark Facebook page.