We published a post recently about being careful while planning new walking routes for fear of meeting cattle Ensuring Safety on a Walking Holiday: Cattle Management – Cattle Safety . This fear is not unusual, and is well founded, we have hundreds of reports where walkers have been frightened or hurt. Below are three recent reports where walkers have been scared or threatened by cattle. These walkers were not injured, but unfortunately we have many reports where people have been badly hurt. How a walker behaves does not seem to predict a particular outcome, as cattle seem to be unpredictable to us lesser mortals (there are those who say watch the head, look at the feet, avoid eye contact etc…. and they profess to be able to understand cattle behaviour – we are not cattle experts and should not be expected to be.) So in Cattle Safety eyes – all cows are a concern and an encounter with them is potentially dangerous.
Continue reading “Cows and walkers – no dogs, but walks spoiled”Author: Risborough Walker
Cyclist on bridleway threatened by cattle
Report number: 1244 Date: 15/5/26
Location: Greywell Hill Estate. Nr Odiham Hampshire. ///reverses.motel.ambitions
1 person no dog
Graham’s report: “I was following the bridleway on a bicycle. The cows were 50 yards away from me, I was moving away from them when they came running towards me. Aggressively charging me, pawing the ground with their hooves. I used my bike as a shield, and made occasional sharp noises to attempt to deter them as I retreated towards the gate I entered through. They continued to aggressively come towards me as a group, and stayed surrounding the gate after I was able to escape through it.”
Graham comments: “These cattle should not be allowed in a field that public have access to. Simple as that.”
Cattle block footpath
Report number: 1241 Date: 28/2/26
Location: Astwood Bank, Worcestershire, Footpath known locally as The Ridge. (Affords spectacular views across countryside with Malvern hills in the distance.) What3words: Report.foil.figure
Report: “On seeing us, a herd of about 10 cows started running towards us, fortunately we were close to a gate and managed to escape through it. They surrounded the gate. We waited for about 20 minutes then abandoned the walk. This is the second time this has happened [2025] in almost the same part of the footpath. We used to walk it regularly but are now too afraid to go there.”
Family attacked
Report number: 1240 Date 9/5/26 Location: Newlyns Farm field, Lodge Farm Odiham, Hampshire
Bec’s Report: “2 children (8y and 14y) along with their Aunt and dog entered field through kissing gate coming from the canal tow path into field. Aunt holds onto dog collar as the dog owner (my father 73) and myself are a few metres behind them. The first group (children, Aunt, dog) walk along footpath into field, myself and father enter field some seconds later approx 10-15 metres behind. By the time the first group reaches a bridge crossing the stream at the middle of the field one cow begins to bellow and the children become scared. Aunt and dog stop to wait for my father who has the dog lead as aunt is currently walking hunched over holding the dogs collar. I walk faster to catch up with my children, we walk together towards gate at opposite side of field quickly but not running. As we are walking away from my father, Aunt and dog we continue to hear bellowing of the cow and I see it is moving towards them. There are many cows and calves in the field, at least 20 I think, maybe more. Many cows are slowly advancing towards us but one particular big brown cow (the one who is bellowing) circles around and charges at my father who is now holding onto the dog collar and trying to put lead on.”
Dog walker knocked over and dog injured by cows
Report: 1239
Date: 12/5/26
Location:Birdswood Farm,145 Sleetmoor Lane, Somercotes, Derbyshire, DE55 1RE – public footpath that runs through the farm land leading to Leamoor Avenue
Report: “As I was walking along the public footpath with my two dogs on leads, the cows came towards us, pushed me over and then chased one of my dogs. I dropped the dogs leads as I fell, one of my dogs ran off out of the field and the other dog got chased and caught under the feet of the herd of cows. When I got up, I tried to get my dog to come back but the cows were still chasing him. My dog was clearly injured and managed to limp to me, we left the field immediately. My dog sustained significant injuries and is currently being treated at the vets. I have tried to contact the farmer but he has not answered my calls.”
Cattle known to be aggressive kept in field with a public footpath
Report: 1238
Date: 10/5/26
Location: Jurassic way. Watford. W3W hails.restrict.springing
Report: “We were walking to the right of the footpath, keeping to the fence to avoid the cattle. We had 2 dogs on short leads under close control. One cow made for us. Bellowed in way I’ve never heard a cow bellow before. Before I knew it the whole herd were running toward us bellowing and charging at one of our dogs. The owner of the dog dropped the lead and let the dog run away. We turned back the way we had come and made for the stile as fast as possible with the other dog still on a lead. The loose dog went through the fence and ran along it returning to us while we were still being chased by cows. The cows were still bellowing and stomping. The cattle eventually ceased chasing us at speed, just followed us at some pace until we made it back over the stile. We returned to the road and asked a local lady a way around. Telling her what happened she said the cows were known to attack walkers regardless of whether dogs were present or not. We followed the diversion she gave us during which another local passer-by made comment about her husband also being attacked by the cows. As we turned into the lower field we met a young lady that turned out to be the land owners daughter who gave us permission to cross in a different area and also confirmed the cows are known to be aggressive.”
Further comment “These cows need moving to a field without a public footpath. Or a fence cordoning cattle from the footpath.”
Popular walking route with unsafe cattle roaming across it
Report number:1234
Date: 4/5/26
Location: On the side of the river Arun just past Arundel castle
2 people with dog
Laura’s report: “We were walking on the footpath and the cows were quite a way to our right, to our left was the river. The cows started coming over, we went down towards the river but it was knee deep bog. The cattle kept following so I walked on ahead, so they would leave my partner and the dog along. I managed to get to and jump in a cattle pen, the cows surrounded that and were pushing it trying to get in. I ended up having to climb over the fence behind me which was adjacent to the railway and crawl through undergrowth to get away. I then distracted the cows while my partner and dog got away by climbing along the river bank, under a bridge and we then had to pass our dog across the fence to the railway line before skirting it and getting away. There was no other way. The cattle should have been fenced in, this is a very popular hiking route.”
Laura adds “I’ve also been chased by cows in a field close to my home in east Grinstead, my dog was on a lead and we entered the field quite a way away and intended to skirt round the edge and out, the cattle came charging at us. We only got away because there was a scaffold plank crossing from one field to the next, which slowed them down”
Family forced to swim to escape from dangerous cattle
Report number:1233
Date: 3/5/26
Location: Aller, near Langport, Somerset
Family group & dog
Libby’s report: “We were chased and pinned against the rivers edge by a whole group of cows who were kicking and jumping. They edged closer and closer until we were left with no option but to jump into the river and swim to the other side. My mum was a little further up trying to use a fence post to stop another group from pushing her into to river. After we jumped in they then charged over to her. I then had to jump back into the water to try and help her. Luckily the splash startled them enough to cause a distraction so my mum managed to get away. The whole incident was extremely frightening and traumatic for us all. Thank god we were able to swim is all I can say.”
Libby adds “At least have a sign up or to move the cows off of the public foot path.”
Experienced walkers frightened by agitated cows
Report number: 1232
Date: 25/4/26
Location: Between Overton and Erbistock (Wrexham). Approx What3Words = riverside.period.curtail
2 people no dog
Frances’s report: “We crossed a stile into the field and immediately noticed a herd of cows on the other side. They seemed to be minding their own business and facing the other direction so we continued to walk. We stayed close to the fence, as far away from them as possible. One cow noticed us and turned to look – as we both grew up in the countryside, we were not too worried as cows are naturally curious. We expected her to follow us for a bit then lose interest as normal. However, the cow started running towards us, followed by the rest of the herd, some of who were bucking and kicking. Now extremely frightened, we tried to find an escape – the only way out being over a barbed wire fence. We both jumped the fence to avoid the oncoming herd and my friend badly cut her shin on the barbed wire as she went over. Both of us were also badly scratched and stung by the undergrowth we landed in. The cows reached the fence (with us now on the other side) and would not lose interest so we continued along the other side of the fence. Once this path had run out, we had no choice but to re-enter the field. The cows had run away but were still kicking and bucking, so we were apprehensive to continue in the field. We ran across the field and jumped the fence on the opposite side to continue in safety.”
Frances adds “I would love to see a rule where footpaths have to be protected by fences through fields with livestock – for the animals’ benefit as well as the walker!”
Cattle charged at walkers – this could have been prevented by a simple fence
Incident number: 1229
Response ID 329,262,000 Date: 16/4/26
Location: Preston Bagot, Warwickshire. Grid reference 176644
2 people, no dog
Report: “Walking around the edge of a field the cows charged. I had to climb over a barbed wire fence while my husband ran around the corner of the field.
It would be great to see special fencing protecting public footpaths that are frequently used for cattle grazing.”
Minor injuries were sustained and the incident was reported to the police & the local authority who said they would log the incident and that it is important to report them.
Charged at by a cow in Derbyshire (Pattern of previously aggressive livestock behaviour in this area)
Incident number: 1228
Response ID 329,163,280
Date: 8/4/26 Location ///farm.prepare.character, Between Unstone Green and Dronfield,Derbyshire 2 People, with 2 dogs on lead
Incident Summary: “On 8th April 2026, while traversing the established public footpath southwest from Highgate Lane, our party (two adults and two canine companions on leads) encountered an aggressive bovine. The animal emerged from a previously restricted lane and initiated a direct, targeted approach toward us. Despite attempts to deter the animal through non-aggressive gesturing, it continued to pursue us at an increasing pace. During the retreat, a group of five to six calves was observed at ///structure.ports.snooze, suggesting the cow was exhibiting protective maternal aggression.”
“We successfully evacuated the field via the stile at Highgate Lane without physical injury, though the encounter posed a significant risk to our safety.”
Observations on Public Safety: “This is not an isolated event; there is a pattern of aggressive livestock behaviour at this specific location, frequently cited by other members of the walking community. Historically, the risk was mitigated by functional fencing and hedgerows that separated cattle from the public right of way. However, due to a lack of maintenance, these boundaries are no longer effective. It is our assessment that the current management of the land fails to meet necessary health and safety standards for public access, creating an avoidable danger to footpath users.”
“I think that landowners and livestock owners have a duty of care towards public footpaths and provide safe passage across grazing areas, and should be able to be reported more easily, when this falls short.”
Update: “I submitted a report to the Health and Safety Executive and have already received an email response from them. They have contacted the farmer and reminded them of their responsibilities. Which, I think, has resulted in some wonderful news to share since my last update. I am happy to report that the cows, calves, and the bull have all been moved to a large enclosed field which does not have any footpaths running through it—a great result!”
Ensuring Safety on a Walking Holiday: Cattle Management
We all have a right to walk safely along footpaths, and we can’t predict which cattle will be aggressive.
Walking holidays in the UK are great for several reasons:
- There are so many different areas to discover. Our countryside is beautiful and very diverse.
- We can get there without jumping on a plane – that makes me happy as I hate the palaver of flying, getting to the airport early, queuing through security, waiting with hundreds of others etc….. Also, I am trying to not take flights to keep my carbon footprint down.
- We have a fantastic network of public footpaths, and bridleways, across England and Wales, giving walkers access to some stunning locations.
- We know that spending our money locally helps our economy.
