I shall never go adventuring again!!!

Never been fond of cows personally [I remember 3 weeks ago not realising the bullocks were out in the field we could cut through to the horses...I backtailed out of there mach 9 leaping the gate like you wouldn't beleive!!!].

I don't mind the friendly ones though tbf. I've finally got the courage up to hack through the cattle fields here now...after a year! lol.
My friend who's worked/lived on his diary farm all his life was caught up between a gate and one in the pens, with the horn going into his stomache which many years/surgery on still causes problems.

Lucky the reliable cobby's don't mind them though! I'm a jibbering wreck riding through them, but they're quite chilled with them.

Tommy HATED them. I remember going sideways down the road with him eyeing up the dry stone wall and hedge next to us to get away from them. He usually was most chilled fella here...but my god when he saw a cow, having 18.3hh of horse about to explode was sure an experience!
 
That is useful information about cattle about to charge RuntoEarth, I hadn't been told that, and it is good to remember.

I must admit that our experiences happen at a faster pace, but I suppose it is when we are handling the cattle, moving them around, or trying to sort them and they are agitated.

I have to add that it is still a very rare occurance. My husband ended up in hospital after being knocked over by a heifer, but that wasn't charging it just decided it didn't want to go into a barn, and my son had to climb over a gate pretty swiftly to escape a cow with a calf one day, although it gave him warning first and he had time to get away.
 
So would everyone say you were effectively more safe going through the field on a horse, than you would be if you were on foot?

x
 
I'd feel more safe....as all the cattle fields here have lovely post and rails built in for a handy getaway ;)
 
I'm always more worried about cows with calves than bulls - as said, they're hopefully not left in a field with a ROW if they're potentially dangerous, and are less likely to see you as a threat, whereas cows with calves are a lot more defensive.

Even on foot, I do my best to avoid walking through or close to a herd and if so, stay close to a fence low enough to hurdle. Better safe than sorry.

Let's face it though, there are scarier things out there than cattle. Ramblers, for example.
 
Would cows come near you if you're leading a horse? We have to lead two of the three horses out through a field with cows in. So far we've not met any of them near enough, but I do worry every time! What should/would you do if they came up to you?
 
Our young heifers always follow me when I bring mine it- cow charging unprevoked is a myth, they will happily follow anything but will only come chasing if something runs
away from them. This is why they often get walkers with dogs- the dogs panic and are often looking to their owner for protection, the more you run the better the cow's game becomes.
I suppose if the horse decided to have a wobbler about it the cows would find that quite interesting as well, luckily mine are cow proof.
Ultimately, bulls challenge humans, if they haven't been socialised properly (referring more to dairy bulls) and cows are more curious than mallicious. They are herd animals and just simply want to know what is happening in their field.
 
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