Dog eating cows..

Luci07

Luci07

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Thought I would share a laugh at my expense, particularly as we keep reading horror stories about dogs chasing and attacking stock.

All my dogs (staffords) have had it absolutely drilled into them that they do not chase or go near the horses. Imagine the surprise of middle Stafford bitch when asked to walk through a herd of cattle (mixed stock) this morning. Of course the cows were curious and wanted to come over cue 1 little red dog haring down the field and the other 2 tripping me up.

It would have been less embarrassing but the farmer happened to drive through to check his stock and thought it was very funny! Honey was desperate to get back to me but wanted to steer clear. Said he sees dogs chasing stock, first one he has seen who is doing everything they can to steer clear!

Sheep would be another matter. I can't get them to respect sheep (tried meeting on the other side of the fence) so sheep areas are avoided or dogs are on leads.
 
I'm very wary of cows if I have my dog with me. Had a scary experience when I took a bridleway through a field with a herd of youngsters in it. Was a huge field and cows were hidden from view at other end or I wouldn't have gone in. They rounded on the dog and meant it, stock fencing so he couldn't get out and fortunate that my pony isn't remotely scared of them and we held them back with much yelling and stick waving so dog could get back to the gate. Never again.
 
Be very cautious of entering fields which contain cattle, and especially those with calves at foot. I've known three people who refusing to release their dog, have been killed. The intention of the cattle is only to attack the dog, not to trample the humans, but the effect has been the same.

Lucie07, I'm very surprised to read that the owner of the cattle thought that your escape was 'funny', because without the one dog which the cattle chased, and had you had all three on leads, we could well now have an ex Lucie. I wouldn't like that.

The simple rule is 'NEVER' take dogs in fields which contain cattle.

Alec.
 
I walk my dogs through cattle but not with calves, I always walk beside the hedge figuring I could always jump in there if necessary. Our Lancashire Heeler will herd cattle and the Dobes dont, the LH has got surrounded before now and its been my Dobe bitch that has gone in and driven them away to save her. They are either our cattle though or someone renting one of our fields and they know my dogs are harmless.

We dont have sheep here and I avoid any neighbouring land which has them, my dogs are not used to sheep so I keep them well away.
 
For those who would prefer other advice and who would disregard my warning, Google 'Dog walkers trampled by cattle', and see what's available! There are pages of those who've died and those who've survived. Read the stories and then decide for yourselves! …….. It isn't alarmist nonsense. I never take my dogs in to fields which contain cattle. :)

Alec.
 
Friend of a friend was trampled when the cows objected to her poodle. She's had a double hip replacement cos they crushed her pelvis. You're a brave woman, Luci07!
 
First know your cows, Hereford xs are usually docile as are other beef breeds, milking cows are either Fresians or Holsteins and unless they have calves are also very quiet. I know our cattle and the farmers cattle who rents some of our land, most of the time they just ignore us and the positive for me when I walk in fields that have cattle is I know there will not be any deer in there which is the bane of my life. My foster dogs are walked through our cattle as I want to test their reaction(the dog that is) and I know they will be safe, even so I always keep to the hedge.
 
Dobiegirl said:
First know your cows, Hereford xs are usually docile as are other beef breeds, milking cows are either Fresians or Holsteins and unless they have calves are also very quiet.
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Having spent the first 20 years of my life living on a diary farm with a herd of Holstein Friesians, I beg to differ. You wouldn't catch me walking any of my dogs through any fields with cattle in them, calves or not.
 
RunToEarth said:
Having spent the first 20 years of my life living on a diary farm with a herd of Holstein Friesians, I beg to differ. You wouldn't catch me walking any of my dogs through any fields with cattle in them, calves or not.[/QUO


We gave up our milking cows a while back and now have beef cattle but and I can top the 20years and back then in the day I had 2 lancashire heelers who regularly brought the cows and calves in without any trouble at all and we always had a hereford bull. I suppose I should have said first make sure the cows know your dogs but having said that I can see people over the road walking theirs dogs through a field with a public footpath, 2 dogs off lead and there are cattle out there who are not taking any notice at all of the people and dogs. If it was such a huge problem Im sure cattle wouldnt be allowed to be in fields with public footpaths.

I do think people need to be careful and believe me there are lots of idiots out there, I wouldnt walk in fields I didnt know as I would like to know where all the gates are etc but when walking in unknown country you dont know if there are sheep around either.
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…….. . If it was such a huge problem Im sure cattle wouldnt be allowed to be in fields with public footpaths.

…….. .[/QUOTE]

I agree with you, the question of public footpaths and cattle in the same field, is one with little in the way of a clear answer. I suppose that the best compromise is that when cattle have access to grass where dog walkers have the right to be, then the answer is for the owner of the cattle to put clear notices at the points of entry, warning dog walkers of the risk. If they take that risk and they're injured, what then? It's two opposing rights which meet each other head on, and the only compromise that I can see is for dog walkers to accept that the grazier or farmer has the right to use the land, and that they voluntarily restrict their use of the land to the time when it doesn't have an agricultural use.

The alternative is to close down public access when the land is being grazed, or prevent the grazier from using the land. Neither would really be satisfactory, and it would be my opinion that common sense be applied. 'I know my rights' and 'Common Sense' are unlikely bedfellows!

Alec.
 
A farmer near me lets the cattle in the field with the footpath Monday to Friday, then moves them at the weekend when more walkers come through. This seems a sensible compromise to me, but I appreciate that he is lucky to have the flexibility to do this.

I would never walk through a field with cattle in by choice, either with or without my dog.
 
Ive worked daily with cattle for the last few years..
You couldnt pay me enough to make me walk my dog though strange beef cattle.not ever going to happen voluntarily.dairy cows with no bull il skirt around a field edge with a dog but would be more than a little on edge and have an escape route for myself planned before entering the field and id let the dog free to make her own way out.beef cattle...never if i can help it...bull doesnt make a difference, the cows and bullocks are just as dangerous. Most of the time they will be fine....but that one time they arent has a very high chance of injury..
Im very happy and confident to handle, move inject strange cattle as im quite good at reading them...and at vaulting gates/removing myself at short notice when required(im a vet-mixed practice) but I have seen and felt the damage they can do when they get annoyed or sometimes even by accident....its not humerous.

Cattle can get very riled by the presence of strange dogs...some will come to investigate out of curiosity others will come to remove the precieved threat...either way the human in the way runs the risk of being trampled.

Glad your dog escaped injury op...but threads like these make my blood run cold when i think about the possible alternatives. Plenty of people killed every year by cattle.
 
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