How to deal with cow stampedes?!

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Hattiehorse1

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Sadly, my only available hacking at the moment involves country roads. On leaving the gate, either way has fields of cows at the moment. My horse has no issues with cows standing/staring/grazing but recently we've had to deal with 3 stampedes! We DO NOT ride in the fields, just along the roads.

1. Riding down a hill a herd of black cows started chasing us, all running along the fence. Luckily I had someone walking with me who was able to give my horse a lead and also help hold him steady when he wanted to run away. We were able to get past them and on the way home the herd paid us absolutely no attention!

2. Another ride, half way along the fence of a field of cows, the farmer starts rounding them up on his quad bike so they come galloping along past us and we end up cantering along the road until we reach the edge of the field and I manage to pull up. Not the cows fault but not helping my poor horse's confidence.

And 3. Today I timed my ride so that the cows from the 2nd scenario would have gone in for milking but riding past the same field, the cows on the other side of the road, who had paid us no attention the other day started galloping up and down their fence line! So we extended trotted away until I could pull up and settle him. I hopped off and tried to walk him back to them but he planted and nothing would move him until we turned home. I walked him home on foot and found some calmer cows opposite our house so walked him up to those and had a chat for 5 mins and he was ok, only a little on edge.

So my question, is there anyway I can stampede proof my horse? I feel not as 20+ cows running down the hill at me makes me want to run away too! Also he can't always see them due to hedges which can't help! It's awkward as cows on either side of the road and me trying to stop him there doesn't help as as soon as we move off they all start running again! Advice on cow proofing? Should I just put up with riding in my own fields until the cows go in for winter (Id rather not)?

I'm going out on foot with horse and treats tomorrow along the road to meet some cows and see what happens.

Any suggestions appreciated!
Thank you.
 
Watching with interest as I have a similar problem but with pigs! So far, only the company of another brave horse has worked ridden, I can now lead past with lots of encouragement but riding past on my own is all but impossible, he plants, runs back or spins and legs it.
Hope someone has some ideas, it's messing up my hacking big time as I can't get off and on easily without a mounting block due to a bad back and a treeless saddle :(
 
We used to go with another horse mounted to the bottom of the lane where there were some ridiculously friendly cows that used to trot over to investigate. We did this regularly till the horses were fine even with cows licking their noses and generally being pals. Served me well at a county show once when a loose cow in the grand parade came galloping at us
 
Watching with interest, as the only way off our yard, is straight through a field of cows, with a highly strung very green horse and very little chance of company. I have until managed to work my way around the field, but on lots of occasions the cows are positioned in such a way navigating the gates and fields is virtually impossible and they are very curious about horses and anything else that is in their field.
 
You could go out in hand and see if you can get them used to it. Or just sit it out, trot with the cows, turn it in to a game. The cows will also get used to you and start ignoring you, our local cows barely lift their heads.
 
Sukistokes2 said:
You could go out in hand and see if you can get them used to it. Or just sit it out, trot with the cows, turn it in to a game. The cows will also get used to you and start ignoring you, our local cows barely lift their heads.
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I think this! Sadly they just have to all get used to each other. My old yard used to involve either horrible busy roads to going through two fields of cows. The first looked scary being highlands with huge horns, They actually rarely bothered us (except one scary day that i managed to walk between a mother and calf...)
The others younger black and white more regular looking cows who would give chase and get all excited. We got to the point that my horse didnt even look round when they rubbed on his bum! (i was still silently sh****g myself!)
 
Due to a number of incidents involving walkers, cyclists and horse riders with cattle the NFU have recently given advice to farmers suggesting that they provide an alternative safe route if there are cattle in a field crossed by a public right of way. I appreciate that this only applies to the above reply.
 
Repetition, make your horse walk and ignore them yourself, don't look at them or acknowledge they are there. Both species will be bored of each other soon. They will most likely be housed for the winter fairly soon anyway.
 
OWLIE185 said:
Due to a number of incidents involving walkers, cyclists and horse riders with cattle the NFU have recently given advice to farmers suggesting that they provide an alternative safe route if there are cattle in a field crossed by a public right of way. I appreciate that this only applies to the above reply.
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We have requested on several occasions, that the cows are electrically fenced in on the large side of the field, giving us riders & walkers access across the field, however, we have been told that this is not possible :( apparently electric will not keep cows in???

Im going to continue trying to ride and just get a little closer, I feel more confident when riding my girl, rather than on the ground.
 
Radical thinking I know: but one way to sort this for good and all would be if you were to find a farmer who'd let you turn your horse out with cows.

My little pony when I was a kid was turned out in huge field with a big herd of cows - he ended up being their herd leader and was adept at nipping around the back and herding them in when needed!
 
Joyous70 said:
We have requested on several occasions, that the cows are electrically fenced in on the large side of the field, giving us riders & walkers access across the field, however, we have been told that this is not possible :( apparently electric will not keep cows in???

Im going to continue trying to ride and just get a little closer, I feel more confident when riding my girl, rather than on the ground.
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This is correct,nothing keeps cows in! As soon as you put them out they're determined to escape!
 
FfionWinnie said:
Repetition, make your horse walk and ignore them yourself, don't look at them or acknowledge they are there. Both species will be bored of each other soon. They will most likely be housed for the winter fairly soon anyway.
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This - deep breaths, brave pants and bit up if you think you might have trouble with brakes. I'd have him on the bit and working properly and maybe try some leg yield or shoulder in (something else to think about). If it's safe for you to push out into the middle of the road a bit they a. might not notice you and b. won't feel so close to the horse if they do come running over so he should be less panicky. Do you have a friend with a quiet horse who wouldn't care about the cows you could ride out with? If you were close to me I'd offer, I've ridden through fields of cows pretty regularly with mine and other than wanting to say hello (which he always does, even with a wild stallion on his back legs trying to box him - luckily a Welsh Mountain Pony :rolleyes:) he's not bothered by them in the slightest.
 
Thanks for the replies! I guess it just needs practice til they're all bored of each other. I am going to take him out on foot today with his companion for back up and wander past their field. Then when it's less rainy and slippery I'll put my brave pants on and ride him past, maybe dragging my dad out with us, sadly no other horses for back up, just my 2 and no one to ride the second!

Thanks again!
 
As with any scary thing, you must be the one that is relaxed, firm and insists quietly on some manners from your horse. Spinning and ****ing off at the first sight of a herd of cows (or anything else, for that matter) is just not on. Anything 'different' should be watched, approached, and (when he's ready) sniffed. Repeat until horse is bored of the game.

I drive ponies past such things on a regular basis, and a fine pickle we'd be in if they took off down the road with the carriage!
 
Would the cows come over if you called them from a slight distance, as they're so curious? A herd of cows running at him and stopping at a distance might not be so scary, then once they're there you can approach.
 
FfionWinnie said:
Repetition, make your horse walk and ignore them yourself, don't look at them or acknowledge they are there. Both species will be bored of each other soon. They will most likely be housed for the winter fairly soon anyway.
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Agree with this. I pass cattle frequently, separated by wire. Not the best scenario, but for off road riding, I have to compromise. My Arab associates cattle with mints from zippered "bum bag'. Repitition is the key. Good Luck. Stay safe though, what works for one may not be right for another.
 
My previous horse had cow issues and the cows seemed just to make a beeline for us then I realised that the local cows were very interested in us because their farmer had started wearing a yellow fluorescent jacket so the best thing that I did which helped was to change to wearing an orange fluorescent jacket when hacking past the coos
 
MiJodsR2BlinkinTite said:
Radical thinking I know: but one way to sort this for good and all would be if you were to find a farmer who'd let you turn your horse out with cows.

My little pony when I was a kid was turned out in huge field with a big herd of cows - he ended up being their herd leader and was adept at nipping around the back and herding them in when needed!
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I did that with a mare of mine, it was a last resort, poor girl spent two days huddled against a hedge, on the third day she was grazing, on the fourth she was with them.
 
pennyturner said:
As with any scary thing, you must be the one that is relaxed, firm and insists quietly on some manners from your horse. Spinning and ****ing off at the first sight of a herd of cows (or anything else, for that matter) is just not on. Anything 'different' should be watched, approached, and (when he's ready) sniffed. Repeat until horse is bored of the game.

I drive ponies past such things on a regular basis, and a fine pickle we'd be in if they took off down the road with the carriage!
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This, and don't even look at the cows.If you can make your body relaxed and slow your breathing down, the horse won't pick up on any tension from you, which should infact help him to realise the cows are nothing to worry about. Difficult I know if your horse is turning into a lunatic and trying to spin but do persevere. Good luck!
 
Jnhuk said:
My previous horse had cow issues and the cows seemed just to make a beeline for us then I realised that the local cows were very interested in us because their farmer had started wearing a yellow fluorescent jacket so the best thing that I did which helped was to change to wearing an orange fluorescent jacket when hacking past the coos
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This is a good point, all the cows around us have been accidentally trained to come running at the sight of someone wearing yellow hi-viz, particularly at certain times of day.

One thing that seemed to help my cob was being behind cows when they were being moved on the road (i.e. doing a bit of herding, but with the presence of a farmer so no chance of a failure). We then progressed to making them get up and move if they were on the path when we went through their field (these were very quiet dairy cows). Once he realised he could boss them around it made a big difference.

He is totally bombproof with cows now, we once got stuck in a field gateway whilst a huge herd of cows were herded past, squishing as in and mouthing all over the horse and me. I was pretty worried, but he was fine about it.
 
repetition, with a calm companion.

we have 2 fields on our most frequent routes where the cows charge along the fence line and my young stallion is never sure if he is terrified or aroused by them lol!

i keep him firmly shoulder in, hand to leg, eyes up, and ride forward past them. He can snort and bounce and look but he is not allowed to stop or spin.

its horrible and i really feel your pain but my chap IS getting used to the wave of smelly black monsters that charge us! it helps that hisvery mild mannered hacking companion barely acknowledges them :)
 
Huge amount of sympathy to the OP, this is horrible when it happens! :(

I only experienced my first real stampede this summer. On a hack we took a different route where there have never been any cattle before. This time there was a single young bullock up in the corner of the field. I ignored him because he wasn't doing anything, and my mare doesn't care about cows. Then out of nowhere the bullock actually -roared- at us and a whole herd of other bullocks appeared from the other side of the hill and came galloping over. My mare toughed it out until they started rushing at the fence and bucking at her. I've since put on my big girl jods and taken her back to the same field a few times, but when we start getting close the bullocks get agitated and the braver ones start charging the fence again. My mare just hates it and I'm pretty sure the farmer won't like us upsetting his herd. Since she'll walk past all other cows just fine even if they trot over to have a look, I've decided that there's a limit to what I can reasonably expect her to tolerate placidly.
 
I have a similar issue, we have cattle in a field close to our yard. The problem is that it is a narrow, twisty road with high hedges and no verges. The cattle will suddenly appear at a gallop, head tossing and bellowing and however hard I try my horse will get a bit panicky and will spook or at least, sidestep right. The problem is the traffic, it has no idea whats going on out of sight and more than once we have nearly ended up on someones bonnet :( Personally Im not bothered about cattle and horse is OK if they move slowly, but when they behave like a herd of wild buffalo coming to get him his bottle goes! Im quite confident riding in traffic and not afraid to ask people to stop or slow down if I can see a potential danger, sometimes though the drivers dont seem to have the first clue what, or more importantly why, Im waving at them like a lunatic! Whilst it is definitely possible to make horses less reactive, they are after all, flight animals so only doing what is natural to them, albeit a bit dangerous in a ridden situation.
 
In my experience, cattle are idiots, especially younger ones. The only thing I've found helpful is to talk loudly, so they know you're coming, and stay in a lazy walk as far as possible. When crossing a field of young cattle, I'd even stop and let them catch up, rather than have them get up speed. Fast moving things, and the opportunity to run in a group, gets them excited. Obviously, it's not always possible though!
 
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