Cattle Wed in 2,000-Guest Thai Ceremony

You heard it first here, folks. Well, maybe not, but this has to have the bovine community all abuzz.

Farmer Amphol Wangboon was hesitant to give up his beloved Thong Khaow for marriage until he found her the perfect match and a dowry he couldn't refuse: truckloads of fresh grass, hay, maize and $2,400.

So Thong Khaow and her new mate, Thong Kham — a pair of rare dwarf Brahman cattle — were married Sunday morning in a traditional Thai ceremony featuring a banquet for more than 2,000 human guests in central Sa Kaew province.

The animals wore silk outfits and jasmine garlands. Other beasts, including goats, also attended the wedding.

Amphol said Thong Kham's owner, Krachang Kanokprasert, offered him the cash and the feed dowry as part of the wedding festivities.

"I wasn't going to sell her — she's a special find — but Krachang said he would take care of her and wanted the couple for a display in front of his restaurant," Amphol said. "If he takes good care of her, I don't mind giving her to him."

news.yahoo.com.../ap/20050712/ap_on_fe_st/cattle_marriage

Does anyone know what "Thong" means? I have a feeling it's some cow-related thing.

Anyway, um, yeah, about the weirdest thing I've heard since that giant fish a week or two ago. Personally, I prefer my cows without silk, and with a grill.