I shall never go adventuring again!!!

Doormouse

Doormouse

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Had one of the most terrifying moments last Friday. We had decided to go on an outing and found a bridleway using an OS map. We set off, were slightly handicapped by sheep hurdles etc but continued undeterred along the fields. Arrived at last field before road and found the field full of shorthorn cattle with calves. Decided that if they were on a public bridleway they shouldn't be a problem so carried on. Halfway across the field we spied the bull, who took one look at us and started trotting in a fairly purposeful fashion toward us grunting!!!! I have to admit to a feeling of blind panic and to rapidly assessing the 6 foot hedges and wondering whether me and my 4 year old could jump them! I then shouted at the bull, who stopped and stared at me, so I shouted again and he turned and started herding his women away from us. At this point I decided a hasty exit was required and trotted briskly up the hill to the gate. I can laugh now but I must admit at the time I have never been so terrified!!!
 
Me and a friend got cased by cattle once, we got halfway across the field before we realised they were there so we turned round and tried to creep back, unfortunately they spotted us lol and we ended up with a whole herd of aberdeen angus bullocks charging towards us. Galloped to the gate and as I got off to open it my horse decided he wanted to pee, right in the middle of the open gateway!!! We laughed about it afterwards but it was blo0dy scary at the time!!!
 
That's a little bit naughty, having a bull in a field with a right of way through it, with no warning sign up.

Glad you're ok OP!
 
Oh dear I am afraid I feel for you - Were you alone? Where was this? how horrible though, especially since he started to move in your direction.


Scary but then again just last week I rode through a field of cattle and (FYI I am terrified of cattle - I fall off alot and the thought of falling off when they come over and stand on me is quite an obsessive paranoid feeling!! lol)

Anyway, as we were walking in between them all, right to the left of me was the Bull!! I said to my friend.. "Is that a f**king bull?" to which she said yes but thankgod he just stood there! Er I was about to just drop down dead there and then!

But we have to ride with cattle all the time, sometimes the younger ones come charging over and leap into the air at us and other times we get ignored... It's very scary either way- through somesort of twisted miracle my spooky mare doesn't flinch at the thought of cattle, so at least i am safe there!

Are bulls more prone to charging?? Could they really take offence to horses in their field?? What would be best case scenerio, would it be bull with the ladies? i.e would it react worse if it had calves in the field too..? Also if a bull did charge what is the best thing to do? (apart from starting to cry..lol)

x
 
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Well I did think it was a bit wrong to have a bull that was obviously not happy with horses on a bridleway. I can understand that as he was with his girls and they had calves that he was just protecting them but he had very long horns and he was clearly very cross that we were there. I find that young cattle usually will chase you and sometimes cows with calves are a bit more aggressive but a bull could do alot of damage especially with horns so I was a bit surprised the farmer had put him out in that field. Just really relieved that we were ok, my poor 4 year old does seem to get put through it a bit lately!
 
According to the NFU rep I spoke to, beef bulls are permitted in fields with a right of way as long as they are with a herd. (I think that shorthorns, and I stand to be corrected, are classed as dual purpose, beef and dairy, so there could be a bit of a grey area there)

I used to have to walk through a field to get to mine where there were Charolais cattle and the bull was the size of a tank, he never, ever, bothered us but I always stayed close to the hedge with an eye to possible escape routes- just in case. I did ask the Rep where I stood if the bull caused trouble, I was told that nothing could be done until he did, as the farmer was well within his rights to have him there.

I am not a cattle person, I don't like or trust them at all and will go out of my way to keep out of their territory. Youngsters in particular are very nosey and can be quite daunting in a bunch, I know that my Angus babies love to chase the horses.
 
enfys said:
I am not a cattle person, I don't like or trust them at all and will go out of my way to keep out of their territory. Youngsters in particular are very nosey and can be quite daunting in a bunch, I know that my Angus babies love to chase the horses.
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Me neither, I only like cows in burger form:D

You would think that in the interests of not having to clear up little bits of squished person from his field, a warning sign would make sense!
 
:eek: I would have been petrified!! Bulls scare the life out of me. I probably would have pancicked and been speared by a horn.

Good job you are clever and thought of shouting! Glad you're ok, really should have been a sign up, surely.
 
I can relate to your experienece, although mine was far less dangerous.

I did a Trec taster day yesterday and was walking through a field of bullocks. This would have been OK if we had not been the fourth horse through, as the other three had obviously got their curiosity up. Just at the narrow point between two fields, they decided to; 1) investigate this strange cow with a man on it's back, and (2), this thing was scary and it was better to run past it as a heard. I ended up hopping off my gelding, before he exploded. He does not mind cows, but 30 of them running about is more than a poor lad can bare.

On another occasion, I was hunting with a hawk and had a falconry club member with me, as he owned some ferrets. We went into one field and were part way across when a heard of cows appeared, wandering along, as they do. My friend nearly soiled his pants and hid from the cows using me for cover. I have to say he did an excellent job of using me as his means of avoiding detection, mind you so he should, as he was a member of the Parachute Regiment :eek: The man used to throw himself out of perfectly good aeroplanes for a living, but was terrified of cows...takes all sorts I guess.

Glad you made it home safe.
 
im not a lover of cows i must admit, if they are behind bars im fine but in a field its a no no. me and my friend and her dad went riding across the mendips a few years ago and went through a field that ajoined said friends nans house. it had calves in it, the gates were all built for horse riders so were easy to get through. we didnt realise the calves could go out of the shed into the field or we prob would have chosen a different route, we were halfway across the field when said calves decided to chase us!! 2 tb ex racers together in a field being chased by calves isnt a good combination, my friends horse went backwards into a hedge and cut his artery in his pastern on barbed wire, we galloped back across the field to the house and screamed into the house to get them to open the gate (the only gate with out a leaver for horse riders ) rode onto the yard and the calves had followed us across the field and into their shed spooking the horses, friend then saw the blood pumping out of her horses leg and screamed and ran away leaving me with 2 phyco tb's!! her dad then made his way across the field and rang the vet, everything was fine untill the thunder and lightning started!! havnt been back since!! i think on public rights of way they should have some sort of fencing seperating livestock and public, there are so many cases of walkers being attacked and trampled by cows with calves!!
 
miss_buffay said:
i think on public rights of way they should have some sort of fencing seperating livestock and public, there are so many cases of walkers being attacked and trampled by cows with calves!!
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I kind of agree, but that subject opens a huge can of worms. The advantages of fenced paths to all parties are obvious to me.

But, why should a farmer have to fence off part of his land at his own expense when he has every right to graze it?
Fortunately there is no such thing as RoW here, if people want to go on your land they generally come and ask, usually my answer is yes, a long as they are aware that I am not shutting up my dogs and that certain areas are verboten with horses because of the stallion.

I would hate that I had to allow people access to my property if I didn't want them there. Blasted Ramblers exercising their rights (illegally as it happened, to use my field as a short cut, not even on the RoW) in Wales has rather soured me to all users. Very unfair I know, as the majority are sensible and respectful.
 
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Well we have beef cattle at home, so me and horse are used to them. BUT went on a bridlepath the other week and there is a field with a new bull turned out with cows and calves from quite small to fairly large. I didn't like the way the bull was looking at us so I thought it might be prudent to wait until the herd of crurious cows and calves moved away. I had to wait about 10 minutes until I became very boring and something more interesting happened at the other end of the field, so I hopped off quickly, got through the gate and manged to get out of sight of the cattle straight away and legged it to the far gate. I knew that the previous bull was very quiet as I had ridden past him on many occasions and didn't have the whole herd gathering round.

Now cattle don't normally "charge" when they rush over they are merely being nosey and want to know what you are and if you might be interesting or bringing food, but it can still be quite worrying. As I said my horse is used to them, and will put up with a cow rubbing its head on his back legs, although that might get a warning hind leg raised,and can herd them by putting back his ears, but even he gets a bit hyper if a herd of bullocks or heifers comes galloping over en masse, so I know what you are worried about.

If a cow or bull is about to CHARGE At you, it will usually threaten first, by lowering its head and often pawing too, unless it is cornered and in a panic, when it will try to rush out and over whatever is in the way.

I can remember seeing my youngest son running down a field chased by a herd of heifers, but I wasn't that worried as the cattle were following him, not wanting to catch him, if you can see the difference.
 
Perfectly legal to have a beef bull in a field with a bridleway, just not a dairy bull (for obvious reasons). I can't really understand your shock at it being there- the countryside is often home to cattle, believe it or not.
I do think perhaps more people should be made aware of the dangers of cattle. (I'm not having a go at OP at all, cattle are underestimated by the vast majority, these dangers need to be raised by defra)
It may be worth noting that cattle love having something to chase, so galloping away in haste is not the best plan of action. Unless you are confronted with a dairy bull (in which case say your prayers) making yourself as big, and loud and scary is often the best plan of action, although I completely understand your fear of bulls because they are even more unpredictable than heifers.
DEFRA announced last week in FG that farming was THE most dangerous work place in the UK, accounting for 1/4 of all work related deaths in the previous year. This workplace of course extends to the fields which host such rights of way, and I really feel with the increase of people using bridleways and footpaths DEFRA have a duty to make the dangers of livestock well known.
 
Dairy bulls aged over 10months of any recognised dairy breed are not allowed in fields crossed by public rights of way. They are extremely dangerous.
 
Just like to add that is is very, very rare for anyone to be attacked, which is why when it happens it makes the news. Mostly it involves walkers with dogs going into fields with cows and calves and a cow feels threatened by the dog. Which is tricky if you keep your dog on a lead! But nearly all our fields have public footpaths and sometimes our cattle have calves (even if they are not supposed to!). I think there are sufficient public footpaths for anyone coming across a field with cows and calves and walking their dog to think that discretion might be better and find an alternative if they are worried. At least give the cattle a wide berth and avoid going through the middle of them.
Most people who are injured by cattle are farmers who have to handle them frequently.

Now, just get me onto the subject of keeping horses in fields crossed by bridlepaths - that is a different thing altogether. They should be fenced off!
 
It is just that dairy bulls are considered more unpredictable than a beef breed, although it is a good question.

Jersey bulls are supposed to be one of the worst, yet they look so sweet. I remember a farmer going up to an enormous bull in the field and slapping him on the rump and saying how quiet he was, as I looked for the nearest tree to get behind. Bulls are quiet until the day they decide not to be and as they are so big and powerful they can do a lot of damage very quickly.

A friend of ours was tossed out of a yard by a young bull playing while he was spreading straw. He just got his head down and bunted the farmer in the backside and he went flying over the feed barriers.
 
Because a lot of dairy bulls do not get socialized properly. Farmers often keep just the one dairy bull as they buy semen frozen, but keep a dairy bull to allow the cows to come into bulling (as they are more arroused when a bull is present).
In order for dairy bulls to be properly socialised when they reach adulthood (aged 2) they need to challenge another male. due to the fact most farms one have a single bull this is very rarely achieved. When a single bull in raised alone with only cows, he feels the need to challenge human, which is where accidents occur.
 
ORANGEHORSE said:
If a cow or bull is about to CHARGE At you, it will usually threaten first, by lowering its head and often pawing too, unless it is cornered and in a panic, when it will try to rush out and over whatever is in the way.
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I'm sorry, but this is just NOT true. I live on a big dairy farm, and from a young age was taught how to recognise when an animal may charge.
They stand sideways onto the cow/bull/human so as to demonstrate their size to the other. It is during this time you back away, always facing the animal, and never running. As a few on here know, last week I was taken out by a calving heifer for being too complacent when she did this- it is a show of their size and strength, demonstrated when they feel threatened.
 
I think you are more at risk from a continental cow with a calf at foot, than a beef bull? I was seriously challenged on a bridleway running through a field when the youngsters thought we were worth a much closer look than their mothers thought was wise...

I learned what 'legs turned to jelly' means when I finally got off to open the gate to get out of the field - and fell over!
 
brighteyes said:
I think you are more at risk from a continental cow with a calf at foot, than a beef bull? I was seriously challenged on a bridleway running through a field when the youngsters thought we were worth a much closer look than their mothers thought was wise...

I learned what 'legs turned to jelly' means when I finally got off to open the gate to get out of the field - and fell over!
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This is very true, and I know with beef varieties farms run in a very different way, but to an extent I think it is extremely irrisponsible having cows with calf at foot in the fields, and we would simply never entertain the idea.
Bulls are dangerous, but it is mostly their handlers who are most at risk, which is why AI is such a popular choice- bulls are just SO dangerous.
I do believe when it comes to herds outside bulls are far too feared however, and a lot of people just do not realised quite how dangerous a herd of heifers can be- especially with a dog at foot.
We now have signs on footpath gates stating "Young heifers in field: unsuitable for dogs".
Amazing the amount that still amble through, almost trying to defy the message on the gate. Last week two holiday cottage people went walking somewhere they shouldn't have, and were chased by 70 heifers. Their dog was trodden on, and they asked what we would do about it. Torn between being the owners of the holiday cottages, and the farm, they were simply told that they should think themselves lucky their dog is still alive and perhaps think twice about tresspassing, when it says so clearly in information packs how cows and dogs DO NOT mix well.
 
ORANGEHORSE said:
Just like to add that is is very, very rare for anyone to be attacked, which is why when it happens it makes the news. Mostly it involves walkers with dogs going into fields with cows and calves and a cow feels threatened by the dog. Which is tricky if you keep your dog on a lead!
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If this happens it is a good idea to drop the lead and let the dog run off, hopefully the cows will follow. Unless doggy intends to use you as a human shield.
 
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