Chaos With My Horse & Im Stuck In Work!!!

UnaB

UnaB

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Ok, firstly i will say im seriously annoyed right now so please excuse the rant!!!!

(Bit of background - I rent about 4 acres from a local farmer (who's wife i know very well, she bought a puppy from me!!) and have done for about 2 years, save 6 months when i took them out for the fields to be refenced. A couple of months ago 3 enormous cows turned up with no explanation as to where they had come from, just dumped in my fields eating all my hay!! Turns out the farmer had sub-let my fields without telling me, or his wife! Needless to say i was very annoyed. Anyway......)

Lets start off with last nights events.. I'd noticed at the beginning of the week when i rode Una that 2 of the 3 cows had escaped their field into the fields behind - not my problem, presumably their owner is checking them and they werent going to come to any trouble in there. Anyway, it seems he didnt bother checking them til last night because all the cows were back where they should be, but someone had turned Una's electric fencing off to get through her field into the cows little field and obviously forgotten to turn it back on and she had got out of her field. Not a huge issue right? She couldnt get anywhere afterall... Well, it isnt an issue unless she starts eating the bag or barley and sugar beet pellets that is stored with the hay!!!! Thank GOD she seemed more interested in the barley than the sugar beet, she didnt seem to have eaten much of that but i still ended up checking her every hour until about 2am last night :rolleyes: She is fine, just a little wild from all the barley!

Anyway, i just recieved a text from Charlie's sharer and it seems like its been chaos there!! Apparently the baby cow had got out onto the road and was running wild. Now, bearing in mind that Una is scared to death of cows, and this is something that YO is fully aware of and i have told him that the cows must not be in the same field as her, do we think it would be sensible to put the baby cow back into its own field through that fields gate? Admittedly its a bit of a nightmare to open but not that bad. OR, should we be putting the scared baby cow into its field through the terrified (and very large!!) horses field that they fully know is very very scared of cows? Which is the option they went for?? Anyone?? Of couse, YO dragged the cow through Una's field....!!!!!!! Not before opening Una's gate and nearly letting her out onto the road apparently as they led the cow in - thank god Charlie's sharer was there holding onto Una or she may well have bolted onto the road, then god knows what would happen. If she'd run right instead of left she'd have ended up in a dual carriageway :eek:

So anyway, from what i can make out the baby cow is now in Una's field while she is charging around, scared and most likely fuelled by a 25kg bag of very heating barley :rolleyes: Tried ringing sharer to find out exactly what the situation was as im in work and only came back from my lunch half an hour ago :rolleyes: Cant get through to her though, so i've rung the YO to find out exactly what on earth is going on with my horse!! Spoke to the wife and she assured me Una is in her field and she was pretty sure cow was back in its field, but she is going out to check. She will be ringing the cows owner to request he move them ASAP as there is clearly not enough grass for them... Talk about shutting the door after (almost literally!!!) the horse has bolted, but still, at least she is seeing it from my point of view...

Sorry if i seem to be ranting over something so insignificant, im just angry that my horse would be put at risk because of some cows that shouldnt be on my bloody fields anyway!!!
 
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Ok from what I understand you rent the fields and farmer has rent them to someone else as well?? Well that's not on for starters, you've paid for all the fields so he shouldn't of done that!!
 
Yes, i did a thread about that when they moved in. Very, very annoyed about that but they just kept going on about how the owner had nowhere else to put them etc etc - he shouldnt have bought them if he had nowhere to put them!!!

Its one thing to sub let the fields, but its another thing to have those animals seriously endanger MY horses!!
 
Oh, I remember the thread - the one about the Yaks with Antlers :D :D

Sorry, nothing constructive to add, just hope it all gets sorted out soon and your poor horse can get back to her routine.
 
you sound amazingly calm!!! I would be seriously cross. Those cows need to go, apart from anything they will have eaten all your grass and crapped everywhere and you will have to clear it. unless they offer to harrow field. And they are putting your horse at risk. hmmm, hope wife rings you soon to say all ok cows going tonight and you can have 2 months rent free for all the hassle it cost.
 
Yes, the mangy antlered cow/yaks - bloody dangerous things! And so bad tempered. Was only a few months ago Una managed to impale herself on a branch in the field, the last thing i need is her impaled on an antler!! Worries me to death having those things there!!

I may sound calm but im definately not lol!! just venting because i cant get hold of sharer to find out exactly what happened and YOs wife hasnt called back. I have a serious grass shortage right now due to the dry weather we have had (thank god we've had a few days of rain!!) so im having to feed my horses hard food to make up for that, which is an extra expense i wouldnt have had without the cows there. The owner seems completely inconsiderate, has even refused to replace my hay that his yaks ate!!
 
If your horse{s} have been sharing with cows for a couple of months now - then I can't understand how they're still terrified of them??? Horses and cows generally get on well. And mixed grazing is a real bonus.

Anyway - clearly the fencing isn't up to much otherwise the cows wouldn't have escaped.

I'd also be speaking to my boss, and leaving work to clear up the mess.
 
Why don't you find somewhere else, I wouldn't want to keep mine there. I wouldn't have thought that there would be enough keep for them in the winter either.

What's the story with the cattle? Have they lost their grazing? Do you know who they belong to? Perhaps you should have a word with their owner yourself.
 
ldlp111 said:
Please explain why does it not work like that?:confused:
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Farmers often rent *space* which doesnt always mean you have the whole field to yourself however some farmers do rent *whole fields* so OP would have to check on her agreement with the farmer to see which one she is.
 
jaypeebee said:
Farmers often rent *space* which doesnt always mean you have the whole field to yourself however some farmers do rent *whole fields* so OP would have to check on her agreement with the farmer to see which one she is.
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Ah I see thank you for clearing that up :)
I was commenting as if the OP paid to rent whole field :)
 
amymay said:
If your horse{s} have been sharing with cows for a couple of months now - then I can't understand how they're still terrified of them??? Horses and cows generally get on well. And mixed grazing is a real bonus.

Anyway - clearly the fencing isn't up to much otherwise the cows wouldn't have escaped.

I'd also be speaking to my boss, and leaving work to clear up the mess.
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If only it were that easy :rolleyes: Land to rent for horses is incredibly hard to come across, finding some 10 mins walk from my house with water, shelter and 3/4 of it with brand new post and rail fence is too good to let go ;)

My horses have not been sharing the fields with the cows, i wouldnt put them at risk. The 3 cows are mum, dad and baby and they are incredibly protective of the baby. My mare has always been terrified of cows, i dont know why but she had improved considerably having the cows nearby, but one in her field when she was already rather heated from the barley has obviously made her incredibly upset. But thats not really the issue, the issue is putting my horse at risk for no good reason.

Unfortunately my boss is in a cave somewhere in China, and i have been assured horse is in its field.... hmmm... I dont think its my mess to clean up, if the guys cows are escaping, that is his mess! He needs to sort the fencing out, not me!
 
That sounds utterly chaotic. I would move, I would also want payment for the hay the cows ate, and potentially a refund on the money paid to the farmer since you are no longer renting the field exclusively - (I'd also keep my feed in secure metal bins tbh).
 
jaypeebee said:
Farmers often rent *space* which doesnt always mean you have the whole field to yourself however some farmers do rent *whole fields* so OP would have to check on her agreement with the farmer to see which one she is.
Click to expand...

I rent all of the fields. Thats why i was so annoyed at the mystery cows turning up ;) Apparently he did it as a favour cos this guy was desperate, but it is still not on to move them in without telling me, and now this is just the final straw.
 
siennamum said:
That sounds utterly chaotic. I would move, I would also want payment for the hay the cows ate, and potentially a refund on the money paid to the farmer since you are no longer renting the field exclusively - (I'd also keep my feed in secure metal bins tbh).
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Like i said, not so easy to just move! And the feed is in secure metal bins. She had completely trashed them to get to the food!! Naughty pony.
 
UnaB said:
I rent all of the fields. Thats why i was so annoyed at the mystery cows turning up ;) Apparently he did it as a favour cos this guy was desperate, but it is still not on to move them in without telling me, and now this is just the final straw.
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It sounds like a good situation (apart from the cows appearing from nowhere) so I wouldnt be too hasty to leave. Just make sure you have cleared up who goes where and that there will be no overnight guests visiting again.
 
ldlp111 said:
Please explain why does it not work like that?:confused:
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Generally farmers rent out grazing as opposed to individual fields. So they will move you around the farm as they choose, rather than you having a field that is 'yours'.

I keep mine on a small farm which is no longer a working farm. I have to put mine where YO chooses, but I can request certain fields (mine are in a paddock on restricted ATM).

Although she would never put other horses out with mine, she will put cattle and sheep in with them without having to let me know - it's never been a problem and I've had horses there for eight years.

It's great in the winter, as soon as a field gets cut up or lacking in grass, we can move to another, couldn't do that if you only rented one individual field.
 
jaypeebee said:
It sounds like a good situation (apart from the cows appearing from nowhere) so I wouldnt be too hasty to leave. Just make sure you have cleared up who goes where and that there will be no overnight guests visiting again.
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Thats exactly what im thinking, if i can stick it out until the cows go then all will be great as i loved it there last year, it was brilliant. YOs wife is furious about the cows and they keep asking the owner when he thinks he will be moving them but he sounds like a complete idiot taking advantage of them, just keeps telling them he's looking. Im concerned they could end up being there for a lot longer than the farmer has planned!!!




The farm is actually just one that produces crops so they dont have any livestock at all. The fields i rent are what their daughter used to keep her horses on, they are the only fields suitable for grazing (the rest all have crops in) so its not an issue of having to move my horses where im told and i certainly wouldnt normally expect any other animals to appear in with mine!!
 
I guess baby cows aren't always obliging to herd to the right gate, maybe thats why the used the nearest one - yours?

Are you able to get farmer to either reimburse you and reduce your rent, or get these cows off your field? Farmer should know as well as anyone that hay will be at a shortage this year, so he should understand why you are so upset - surely!
 
Just spoken to Charlie's sharer.. Thank god she was there, sounds like she was the only person keeping my horse from ending up on the road!! But she assured me that Una was fine when they left, they stayed til she had calmed so i feel a bit better now.

From what she said the cow just wouldnt go through the gate into its own field (not sure why!!) which is why they put it through Una's field, but its a bit silly as the cow was apparently stood right outside the gate to their field and they'd have had to herd it down the road to get to Una's field gate, and then herd it all the way through her field!! Doesnt seem logical to me at all...

They reduced my rent by £10 a month lol! Not much, but considering the rent is fairly cheap anyway (£70 a month) i cant really argue over that as i dont want to lose the fields.
 
Diid you say he's put a bull, cow with calf in your field. If a calf escapes the mother and rest will follow, but putting a bull in with them is a no! no!. Cows are very protective of their young. And as you say grass is short, ask for payment of the hay they ate, but keep friendly with the farmer and his wife, unless you have a firm contract with them, don't sourer what sounds like a good relationship.
 
UnaB said:
Just spoken to Charlie's sharer.. Thank god she was there, sounds like she was the only person keeping my horse from ending up on the road!! But she assured me that Una was fine when they left, they stayed til she had calmed so i feel a bit better now.

From what she said the cow just wouldnt go through the gate into its own field (not sure why!!) which is why they put it through Una's field, but its a bit silly as the cow was apparently stood right outside the gate to their field and they'd have had to herd it down the road to get to Una's field gate, and then herd it all the way through her field!! Doesnt seem logical to me at all...

They reduced my rent by £10 a month lol! Not much, but considering the rent is fairly cheap anyway (£70 a month) i cant really argue over that as i dont want to lose the fields.
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Cows are so dumb and have no logic! lol
I think in your situation getting a discount is the best thing seems as you was paying for the space and now dont have all of it! Id still be asking for my hay to be replaced tho too!
Why should you be left out of pocket from someone elses cows eating your hay!?
 
UnaB said:
From what she said the cow just wouldnt go through the gate into its own field (not sure why!!) which is why they put it through Una's field, but its a bit silly as the cow was apparently stood right outside the gate to their field and they'd have had to herd it down the road to get to Una's field gate, and then herd it all the way through her field!! Doesnt seem logical to me at all...
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In my experience, cows are rarely logical.

I'm glad things seem a little less chaotic now. Hopefully the cows will be gone sooner rather than later. I fully understand those situations where some idiot decides to do someone else a favor and it ends up being a complete imposition on the innocent third party!
 
From what im told the cows are a family unit - mum, dad and baby. The big one which i assume is the bull is incredibly bad tempered, lots of snorting if you go within feet of the baby, which isnt so good when the baby gets under fences and follows you around!!

They ate about 4 bales of hay which isnt a huge amount, but still its my hay that i paid for and with there being a shortage of hay this year apparently, thats 4 bales i needed!! At first he had apparently agreed to replace one bale, but last i heard he wasnt replacing any of it.... I have said someone will have to replace it, if thats the farmer then so be it, he's making enough money from my rent to replace that, though apparently he's not recieved any rent from the cow owner yet.

I have no intention of kicking up a fuss and having a tantrum, i have a good relationship with the farmers wife, she bought a puppy from me and we always stop and have a chat when she's there. She is also furious about the whole arrangement so i have been leaving it down to her to talk her husband into removing the cows as i dont want to get too involved. But when my horse is put at risk thats a whole different situation.
 
Ok so v odd to have family unit of cows. are they dairy or beef? I presume beef! just a thought. could farmer be lieing and they are actually his cows he has bought for himself and he just told you that they were someone elses so you wouldnt get annoyed about him taking back fields you are renting?
 
I have no idea if they are dairy of beef, they look like yaks to me but im told they are cows... Someone on here did tell me what they were on the original thread but i cant remember. Here they are:

The one at the front with the big antlers is the grumpy one.

34xlzm8.jpg


They definately arent the farmers, I have seen the man down at the fields once.
 
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