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Carolyn’s Story: another cow attack in the New Forest

The cow put its horns either side of me – and launched me onto the heath land.

What happened?

In February 2018, I was walking my dog in the New Forest, in Dibden Purlieu, near to the Heath roundabout.

I was walking along the path with my dog walking to heel, when I saw some cows quite a distance away from me. They were small, with really long horns, and looked like Highland Cattle. They were just quietly grazing, and I didn’t feel concerned.

One of the cows seemed to make eye contact with me, came towards me from quite a distance, and started running at me. I turned to go back the way I came to try to avoid it, but next thing it was right up behind me. Continue reading “Carolyn’s Story: another cow attack in the New Forest”

New Forest: cow tramples woman

Serious injuries and no laughing matter.

A few weeks ago, Della White and her husband Michael were walking their dogs near their home in the New Forest.

“We saw a white cow with horns and her calf,” her husband told reporters. “I called our two sheepdogs close and my wife put our other dog on a lead. Suddenly I heard my wife shout behind me.” Continue reading “New Forest: cow tramples woman”

Angry cow on the Wales Coast Path

I waved my arms and roared loudly as the cow bore down on us.

My girlfriend, my dog and I were walking along the Wales Coast Path, on the Llyn Peninsula, in June 2018. We passed through a turnstile to find a herd of cows with calves. We proceeded to pass quietly along the path with our dog, aged 8, who has walked in the country with us all his life and never bothers with cattle, horses or sheep.

Keeping an eye on the cattle, I noticed one of the mothers getting agitated and starting to make a noise. She was at least 10 metres away, and she started to stamp and run at myself and our dog. Continue reading “Angry cow on the Wales Coast Path”

Colin and his dog

These aggressive animals were way more than ‘just curious’.

It was May 2017, and we were walking near Morwenstow (on the Devon/Cornwall border). There were four of us, and we had our large Estrela Mountain Dog on a lead. We had left the South West Coast Path and were heading inland to Morwenstow village, following along a public right of way as marked on the Ordnance Survey map for the area.

Suddenly, over the horizon appeared about 15 head of young Friesians running at speed. Within seconds they had our dog (now slipped from the lead) at bay against a sheer cliff.

Thank goodness there were four of us, and by shouting and judicious use of walking poles we were able to clear a way to run the 800 metres or so along the field edge to the next stile. Unluckily the field tapered, and we were almost headed off at the very end by these very aggressive animals who could easily outrun us and our dog. They showed absolutely no fear.

We made it by seconds and narrowly avoided a very ugly incident as these animals were way more than ‘just curious’.

Even a year later we are super aware of any cattle on our side of the fence… and this has in all honesty greatly affected both our enjoyment of the countryside in general and of Cornwall in particular.

A note to the ‘authorities’ … quite apart from issues of justice and compensation, unless the threat from livestock can properly be brought under control you risk losing considerable tourist ££s as well.

I had always thought that dairy cattle were milder mannered than beef cattle but apparently every rule has its exceptions, and the ‘rules’ for dealing with these incidents are worse than useless.

 

Photo credit: the featured photo of an Estrela Mountain Dog was modified by COWS from an original by Pleple2000 on Wikimedia, and is shared under Creative Commons license CC BY-SA 3.0

A Successful Claim: compensation after a serious cattle attack.

Three years ago, Mrs CW was quietly crossing a field with her dog on a lead. A cow first knocked her down from behind, and then subjected her to a terrifying trampling attack.

Mrs CW sustained serious injuries – with multiple fractures – and spent time in intensive care, before starting to learn to walk again. Continue reading “A Successful Claim: compensation after a serious cattle attack.”

Advice for Farmers

Being killed by an animal is the second highest cause of death in farming.

This site is dedicated to walkers who have been injured by cattle, and we’ve received numerous reports of cattle attacks involving people rambling in the countryside. But, it is worth remembering that the group MOST at risk is not walkers, but farmworkers. Continue reading “Advice for Farmers”

Ruth’s story: broken nose and fractured ribs.

The cows repeatedly kicked me all over my body.

In 2008, I was walking with a friend. We were on a footpath crossing farmland in West Sussex, and we had three dogs walking quietly with us and all on leads.

There were cows in the field. I don’t know the breed, but they were mainly brown cows. They didn’t have young calves but there were some probably not yet fully grown. Continue reading “Ruth’s story: broken nose and fractured ribs.”

Near miss: Sue and her husband

Now, we are both very wary of entering a field with cows.

In 2010, my husband and I were in our late 50s and were walking along a footpath somewhere in Somerset. We came to a field containing cows, and my husband walked diagonally across the field ( I walked round the edge ).

A large cow started to follow him, and I urged my husband to hurry to the stile at the edge of the field, as I didn’t like the look of the cow. The cow then made as if to mount my husband, rearing up, just as he got to the stile. Luckily he escaped unharmed.

Cows are VERY big, and we found the incident very scary.

A second incident, at another time in north Devon, involved my husband being rushed at by a large number of young bullocks and totally surrounded. No harm was done, but this incident was also very scary.

My husband was raised in the country and worked on farms in his youth, so he wasn’t in the least bit scared of cows – as I was – until these incidents. Now, however, he’s completely changed his mind and we are both very wary of entering a field with cows in it. Unfortunately, this has impacted on any walks we may want to do in the countryside, as we always have to ask – “Will there be cows?” If “Yes” we think again or make sure we keep to the edges and can quickly climb over the fence!

I do feel very strongly that farmers whose land includes a public footpath should NOT have cows there, or should put up a walkway through the field, protected by an electric fence, for legitimate walkers to use.

 

Kathleen ran to rescue a trampled boy

The cow trampled down the grandmother, and was trying to kill the boy.

In May 2015, I was walking with my husband along a footpath through a field behind Redhurst Cottage, Wetton Mill, near Ashbourne, Derbyshire

We walked past a group of cows and met a small boy with his grandmother walking in the opposite direction. I heard the grandmother say, Continue reading “Kathleen ran to rescue a trampled boy”