Incident number: 908
Response ID: 304,915,812
Date: 16.07.24
Location: Taw Marsh Belstone Devon
A group of us were Walking across the moor, on a Public Right of Way, and attempting to avoid the group of cows like we always do as we have a dog and then all of a sudden, the group of cows charged towards us. I let the dog off the lead as he was clearly not helping but the cows kept advancing towards us. One particular cow appeared to be the ring leader and kept advancing no matter what direction we took. It eventually charged at one of our party and threw him off his feet which resulted in him breaking two ribs. I ran towards the cows with a stick and they eventually backed off otherwise I fear my friend would have been trampled. These were very dangerous Ferral animals and there are NO signs warning of their potential danger on the moor.
When incidents like this are reported these cows need to be confined – clearly there was one ring leader and the rest followed but this WILL end in a very serious incident if not attended to. We are quite traumatised but consider ourselves VERY lucky.”
The first incident in this area that we are aware of occurred in October 2023 when a rogue cow attacked a walker on their own. https://www.okehampton-today.co.uk/opinion/letter-to-the-editor-public-safety-on-dartmoor-needs-to-be-considered-623316
Cattle Safety 