Are cows becoming more aggressive?

Incident number: 1261

Response ID: 329,818,362

Date of incident: 15.06.26

Location: Fields near Tackley in Oxfordshire heading towards the canal path

Status: Group of walkers (3-5) with no dogs on PROW

Liz’s story

“We entered a field with about 50 cows (A group of heifers)  at the far end of the field. They rushed over to us and when we tried to walk away along a fence , they tried a pincer movement to force us against a barbed wire fence. Whichever way we went they aggressively ran towards us.

We are all experienced walkers. No one ran. In the end we walked across flapping our arms and shouting and they formed a semicircle around us following us all the way.

We were badly shaken but unhurt”

Liz adds “In the last few years we have noticed more and more aggressive cows . I believe this is a breed problem. Friesians never bothered walkers in the past”