Knickers the steer is the current obsession of the internet. The steer — which is basically a neutered bull — stands a whopping 6 feet 4 inches from hoof to shoulder and towers above other cows when he stands in an Australian field with them. His owner admits that the sudden surge of attention is inexplicable.

“I didn’t expect it to go as far as it has. I’ve been called every 10 minutes since four o’clock this morning,” Geoff Pearson told The Guardian. Knickers was first bought as a “coach” – a steer that leads other cattle – at the age of about 12 months. “He was always a standout steer from the others, a bit bigger than the rest,” Pearson was quoted as saying by the BBC.

Pearson told AP that Knickers was too heavy to go to the slaughterhouse. “We have a high turnover of cattle, and he was lucky enough to stay behind,” Pearson said. Australian media say Knickers is believed to be the tallest steer in the country and weighs about 1.4 tons. Instead of becoming steaks and burgers, 7-year-old Knickers will get to live out his life in Pearson’s fields in Lake Preston, southwest of Perth.