Billy Idol, a dark-red bull who lives on a sweeping 15-acre property called Clear Brook Farm, may not be a musician in a rock band, but he could still be a star.

His owner Frank de Bem, who recently purchased the animal from a breeder in Texas, says he believes the 28-inch full-grown bull is likely the smallest in the world.

De Bem submitted an application to the Guinness World Record about eight weeks ago, and in about six to 10 weeks he will be notified whether Billy Idol has cleared the first round.

Before he began the record-breaking process, de Bem was under the impression that the record for the smallest bull was set at around 30 inches.

“I thought, ‘I got it, hands down, easy,’” de Bem said about the odds of overthrowing the previous record holder.

But then he became aware that the title had already been overturned by a California-based owner who has a bull named Golden Boy that stands at 28.2 inches. At first, de Bem said he was a little nervous about the newly acquire information, which narrowed a once comfortable lead to two tenths of an inch.

“Now it’s really neck to neck,” de Bem said.

After he saw how close the race had become, he cleared a space and used a leveler to make sure the ground was even. From the flat surface, he measured Billy Idol from the back of a hump on his shoulder down one of his hooves. When all was said and done, de Bem said the bull came in at 28 inches flat.

“It’s going to be tight,” de Bem said, although he added Golden Boy was measured when he was 2 years old and Zebus don’t stop growing until they are 3 or 4 years old. Billy Idol is 4 and a half.

“So I am extra confident that Billy Idol is the smallest honest 28 inches in the world,” de Bem said after doing more research on the current record holder.

If Billy Idol clears the first round, three veterinarians will have to measure the animal to confirm its height. At that point, a judge will travel to the farm and measure the bull one last time in front of a crowd who will all act as witnesses.

A star

David Millison, who has bred Miniature Zebu on his property in Texas for 25 years, said he got into the business by accident.

“I had always wanted cattle, but they were so big and I didn’t have the land,” Millison said.

He went to look at goats one day and caught sight of a Miniature Zebu for the first time.

“I thought, ‘these are cool,’ they look like really small cows,” Millison said.

Without owning much land and with a desire to own cattle, the dwarfed version was a perfect alternative.

Millison started traveling from coast to coast looking at different Zebu, discovering what traits he liked and what he didn’t in the animals. He started teaching educational programs, judging cattle and became the president of the American Miniature Zebu Association.

On his own property he bred Zebu, and at one time, he had 125 on his property.

Four and a half years ago, Billy Idol was born.

“He was so little when he was born, he weighed right around 9 pounds. He was really tiny and very lively,” said Millison. “He wasn’t afraid of anybody or anything. He just kind of gets up in everybody’s face. He knows he’s a star.”

Millison said the remarkable thing about Billy Idol is that although he is incredibly small, he is still proportionate.

“I have been a judge for years and have gone all over the country,” Millison said. “Often times really small Zebu have a very unattractive head that is too big for their body. What made him [Billy Idol] really unique is that he maintained total breed character. He maintained the small size. His head, body and legs are all tiny.”

Millison is in the process of scaling back his breeding business, although he was never looking to sell Billy Idol.

Then he met de Bem, and said it was apparent from early on that the two were kindred spirits.

“He wanted to buy several animals and was really interested in them being small,” Millison said. “I told him, ‘you know I have a bull that I think you would really like.’ I didn’t want just anybody having him.”

He told de Bem that Billy Idol was likely the smallest bull in the world.

“At first he [de Bem] was ambivalent,” Millison said. “But then a light bulb went on and he was like ‘yeah I want him.’”

An arrangement was made and in November Millison hauled Billy Idol, and several other Minature Zebu cattle from his property in Texas up north to New Hampshire.

“When he first saw him, he [de Bem] was speechless,” Millison said. “My cows are really little.”

He said the hand off worked out well, and was glad de Bem, who plans on breeding the animals, ended up with the cattle.

Right now, de Bem is in the process of training Billy Idol to become more people friendly so when visitors come to the farm he will be on his best behavior. He also has rough plans to show the bull in town parades.

By that time, the little dark-red bull may hold a big title.

Abby Kessler can be reached at 924-7172, ext. 234 or akessler@ledgertranscript.com

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