The ox comes to the yoke at the call of his feeder.
The ox comes to the yoke at the call of his feeder.
Meaning in plain English
An established relationship can make a call more persuasive. The ox responding to its feeder links provision and cooperation, without making help a purchase of obedience or turning people into dependent animals.
Example
A coordinator who consistently supports volunteers asks for help with a new task and gives them a real choice about taking it on.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The ox comes to the yoke at the call of the person who feeds it. As a human comparison, a request may receive a more willing response within a relationship where care and reliability have already been shown. That connection is different from demanding compliance because something was provided. The image does not justify controlling a person who depends on help, and it is not a universal claim about animal behaviour. Ask whether cooperation is welcome and freely agreed, rather than assuming that provision entitles the giver to command.
When to use it
Use it to consider how an established relationship affects a request for cooperation.
Keep in mind
Help must not become leverage for obedience; dependence does not remove another person’s freedom to refuse.
Edsverb editorial interpretation · agent reviewed · 2026-10-05. This explains the saying; it does not establish its historical origin.
- Source
- A Polyglot of Foreign Proverbs (1857)
Printed page 197; Spanish section, paragraph 4105; source wording: Al llamado de quien le piensa viene el buey á la melena.
Read the original context ↗ - Attribution confidence
- traditional · historical anthology
Preserved as printed; independently unverified. - Historical coordinate
- Undated
No reliable date supplied by the collection. - Rights & edition
- Public domain (United States)
Translations and rights may differ elsewhere.
Provenance and licences ↗