Incident number: 1194
Response ID: 316,604,724
Date of incident: 02.09.25
Location: Public footpath between Hartforth and Gilling West North Yorkshire
Status: Between 3 and 5 people with dog on lead on PRoW
Kevin’s account
“We were on the footpath and saw a sign saying “Caution Cows with Calves Can be aggressive”
“We didn’t take the risk of being attacked the cows and calves were laid across a public footpath. There was no opportunity to skirt the field as the field was surrounded with barbed wire and an electric fence giving no opportunity to escape if we were attacked. We took an alternative route to avoid any confrontation”
Kevin adds “We were cautious but had to make a long detour to avoid the cattle. Cows and calves with a sign saying can be aggressive is a frightening statement to make to the public on a footpath between villages, in an area where a recent death in Richmond received significant publicity. Has the sign been put up to stop people crossing the field as a deterrent or as a way of avoiding any blame if something untoward does happen? “
Cattle Safety 