# Lateral Thinking Puzzles. Let's do it again! **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [October 23, 2019, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193 "2019-10-23T21:32:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 72
**Author:** ![LennieB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8dc957/32.png) [@LennieB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LennieB)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1421 "2020-01-03T16:03:05Z")
Were the brothers minors at the time? Was the brother in need of help for a situation to which the animal was irrelevant? Was the animal itself trying to help the brother? After Maurice took the photo, was the brother still in need of help? ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1422 "2020-01-03T16:50:48Z")
**Maurice’s six-legged brother was badly in need of help. But when Maurice found him, he shot him.** Was this a circus animal? An animal that performed on stage (like the Seigfried & Roy tigers)? ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1423 "2020-01-03T17:04:56Z")
> [@LennieB](#): > > Were the brothers minors at the time? **no, both adults** > > Was the brother in need of help for a situation to which the animal was irrelevant? **No- the animal was very relevant to the brother’s predicament.** > > Was the animal itself trying to help the brother? **no** > > After Maurice took the photo, was the brother still in need of help? **yes- and he did help him eventually.** xx ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1424 "2020-01-03T17:05:56Z")
> [@Personal](#): > > **Maurice’s six-legged brother was badly in need of help. But when Maurice found him, he shot him.** > > Was this a circus animal? > An animal that performed on stage (like the Seigfried & Roy tigers)? No to all- an extremely ordinary animal ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1425 "2020-01-03T17:14:14Z")
Was the brother stuck in the animal? ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1426 "2020-01-03T17:16:32Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > Was the brother stuck in the animal? Yes! ---
**Author:** ![LennieB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8dc957/32.png) [@LennieB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LennieB)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1427 "2020-01-03T17:18:44Z")
“Was the animal domesticated?..I think so, but it’s not super relevant Was the animal wild?..I don’t believe so in a zoo?..no an extremely ordinary animal larger than the brother… both adults famous? Not while it was alive, but it was after death… trivia famous” ```auto I am completely stumped! Is it a friendly deer? A cow? ``` ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1428 "2020-01-03T17:50:26Z")
> [@LennieB](#): > > I am completely stumped! > Is it a friendly deer? **no, although that would be adorable** > A cow? Okay, this is embarrassing, but apparently I’m not totally clear on my bovines and the distinctions between them. It was an ox, which apparently is sometimes just a cow used to pull stuff and sometimes an entirely different animal? So I’m going to say yes to cow. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1429 "2020-01-03T18:12:51Z")
“Ox” is always _Bos aurochs taurus_, the species eaten as beef and milked for dairy products. It may or may not be a different breed from the cows raised for beef or milk (who are also usually different breeds from each other), and it usually refers to one used as a beast of burden rather than for food, but it’s still the same species. ---
**Author:** ![LennieB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8dc957/32.png) [@LennieB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LennieB)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1430 "2020-01-03T19:29:34Z")
Is it a man saved from a well on the horns of an ox? > **[Creighton University :: Aesop's Fables: Man and Ox](https://www.creighton.edu/aesop/artifacts/cards/tradecards/nonstock/nstradecardseries/fairbankcanning/manandox/)** > > One of Fr Greg Carlson's passions is fables and what they teach us. He has spent much of his life collection them. This collection includes over 6000 books and 4000 objects (Aesop's Artifacts, the largest online collection of fable related objects)... ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1431 "2020-01-03T19:55:48Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > “Ox” is always _Bos aurochs taurus_, the species eaten as beef and milked for dairy products. It may or may not be a different breed from the cows raised for beef or milk (who are also usually different breeds from each other), and it usually refers to one used as a beast of burden rather than for food, but it’s still the same species. This thread is most educational. Thanks! And no- not a man saved from a well by an ox- it’s a true story and the ox was very dead at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1432 "2020-01-03T20:13:47Z")
Did the brother shoot Maurice? Or the ox? Was Maurice in the ox to protect himself? From the elements? ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2020, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1433 "2020-01-03T21:03:10Z")
> [@Personal](#): > > Did the brother shoot Maurice? > Or the ox? > Was Maurice in the ox to protect himself? > From the elements? I think we may be turned around here, but it was the brother who was inside the ox. So with that in mind: the brother did not shoot Maurice or the ox in this instance, but Maurice did shoot (with the camera) both his brother and the ox. The brother was not in the ox for protection, Maurice was (in this instance) not in the ox at all. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1434 "2020-01-04T05:36:43Z")
So the brothers were both moving the ox? And the stuck brother intentionally went inside the ox, or unintentionally? If intentionally, was it done to help move the ox? Was the picture humorous in that it showed the brothers feet and the ox’s feet making the ox look six legged? The only ox I know is fictional. Babe the Big Blue. Is Babe relevant? Did this happen in a country where preserved ox’s are more common sight than in the USA. Was it the year of the ox? Sorry for these disjointed questions but I am wondering what we have to know to consider this riddle solved. I have been trying to think outside of the ox… ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 10:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1435 "2020-01-04T10:20:41Z")
> [@Biotop](#): > > So the brothers were both moving the ox? **no, although there is another famous photo of one brother moving the ox** > > And the stuck brother intentionally went inside the ox, or unintentionally? **intentionally, which is something both brothers did regularly** > > If intentionally, was it done to help move the ox? **no** > > Was the picture humorous in that it showed the brothers feet and the ox’s feet making the ox look six legged? **yes- all six legs in the air** > > The only ox I know is fictional. Babe the Big Blue. Is Babe relevant? **no** > > Did this happen in a country where preserved ox’s are more common sight than in the USA. **No- this was a custom ox** > > Was it the year of the ox? **no** > > Sorry for these disjointed questions but I am wondering what we have to know to consider this riddle solved. I have been trying to think outside of the ox… 😛 ---
**Author:** ![LennieB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8dc957/32.png) [@LennieB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LennieB)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1436 "2020-01-04T14:29:06Z")
This was a real animal, alive at one point, that men actually put themselves inside of? Was it only the hide, the skin, that the men put themselves inside of? Because, frankly, these guys sound sick. I’m still trying to connect the idea of needing help. ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1437 "2020-01-04T14:58:25Z")
> [@LennieB](#): > > This was a real animal, alive at one point, that men actually put themselves inside of? **yes** > > Was it only the hide, the skin, that the men put themselves inside of? \*\*more than that, but the ox was hollowed out \*\* > > Because, frankly, these guys sound sick. **no funny business- the ox was a tool.** > > I’m still trying to connect the idea of needing help. I can post the photo- it won’t give much new information, but might be helpful in visualizing the predicament (plus you can reverse search it if you really want to and get the whole story) ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1438 "2020-01-04T15:53:29Z")
[the resulting photo](https://i.imgur.com/ZpaBYEm.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1439 "2020-01-04T16:18:11Z")
Was the ox a scarecrow-type thing, used to frighten off something? ---
**Author:** ![SurrenderDorothy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/surrenderdorothy/32/1221_2.png) [@SurrenderDorothy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SurrenderDorothy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2020, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193/1440 "2020-01-04T22:38:25Z")
> [@Personal](#): > > Was the ox a scarecrow-type thing, used to frighten off something? Actually pretty much the polar opposite! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=71) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lateral-thinking-puzzles-lets-do-it-again/842193.md?page=73)