Meet ‘Raja Babu’, the 1,400kg bull at Gabtoli cattle market

Born in a household of Parbatipur upazila in Dinajpur four years ago, Raja Babu was no ordinary calf. A bull of Holstein Friesian breed with distinctive black and white markings and elegance in his movements, it quickly earned the name ‘Raja’ (King). Gradually, everyone affectionately started calling him Raja Babu. 

Abdur Razzak and Mohammad Ashraful, two brothers from Hamidpur union of Parbatipur upazila, brought Raja Babu to Gabtoli animal market for sale as a sacrificial animal in the upcoming Eid-ul-Adha. With a six feet height and 10 feet length, Raja Babu weighs around 1,400 kilograms.

Speaking with The Business Standard, Abdur Razzak said around Tk800-1,000 is spent on Raja Babu’s daily meals.

“Raja is brought up by feeding natural and native foods. Mentionable foods include straw, grass, chickpeas, lentils, husks, maize flour, broken rice, mustard-cake, rice flour and molasses,” Razzak said.

Occasionally, Raja Babu is treated to various fruits, including raw bananas, carrots, and apples, he added.

Raja is very picky and does not eat vegetables, he further said.

Raja Babu’s dietary needs aren’t the only consideration. 

According to Razzak, Raja Babu cannot stand the heat at all. Three fans run 24 hours a day in his accommodation to keep him comfortable. 

Also, he needs something to lean on when he sleeps.

“People flocked to our house every day to see the huge bull. Four or five people usually needed to take the cow out of the house,” he added. 

“As it would be difficult to bring it to the market, we first tried to sell Raja from home. However, it was brought to Gabtoli market on Thursday as we couldn’t find customers,” Razzak said.

The asking price of the bull is Tk20 lakh. Although the two brothers are a bit disappointed as they have not yet found a buyer, they are not giving up hope.

In other markets of Dhaka including Gabtoli, such large size cows are seen occasionally. For example, a cow named Tufan weighing 1,137 kg was brought to the market at Tejgaon Polytechnic grounds. This cow also needs about a thousand taka worth of food every day.