As a vet, I thought I knew cows. Then they attacked
I would like to add my voice to those urging greater caution when walking in fields with cattle (The hell and horror of cow attacks: ‘I told my husband to leave me to die’, 12 September). I had to be airlifted to Southampton hospital from the Isle of Wight earlier this year and spent 10 days in intensive care and the acute trauma ward being treated for chest injuries. As a retired vet, I thought I knew how to behave around cows and calves and followed good practice when walking through a local field with my dogs on leads. In the event, the speed of the attack and the determination of the cows to knock me down and trample me was astonishing.
We need to work with farmers to reduce risks and work with walkers to raise awareness. My final recommendation is to support your local air ambulance, which is run as a private charity, as without the Hampshire and Isle of Wight service I would not be here to write this letter today.
David Mackay
Niton, Isle of Wight
• I read your article on the dangers of cows with great interest. My husband and I are keen walkers and not easily discouraged. However, we are increasingly wary of cattle and these days will avoid their fields. As modern farming practices are becoming more automated, the animals are less accustomed to human contact. This means that cows should be viewed as essentially wild animals and treated with the appropriate respect. You wouldn’t try to walk through a herd of buffalo, for example.
There is a need to make everyone aware of the Countryside Code so that we can safely walk the footpaths through farmland without causing distress or harm to livestock. Equally, landowners need to make sure paths are not blocked by water troughs where cattle gather. Clearly marking footpaths would also avoid walkers straying off allowed routes.
Sara Davis
Tonbridge, Kent
• I am French, living in England, and I have done many walks in both countries. In Britain, with your strange rights-of-way paths across the middle of fields, you are bound to find yourself in the middle of a field with cows: in France that does not exist – we have miles of lovely paths throughout the country on the sides of fenced fields. Why not reroute paths in the UK along the periphery of fenced fields? The enclosed field for the cows, where they belong, and the safe path for the walkers: it would not cost a fortune to do and everyone would be happy.
Danielle Stevenson
Richmond, London
• In this article it takes 10 paragraphs to get to “Adding dogs to the equation…”. Attacks by cattle occur regularly when walkers cross a meadow with a dog, which is a predator in the cows’ eyes, and which they are programmed to attack. The other mistake is coming too close to calves in the herd. In Austria, it is mostly inexperienced holiday walkers (from Germany) who cross a meadow with dogs and get chased away or end up in hospital, or walkers who attempt to “acquaint” their child with calves. Both behaviours are a no-no.
Try to take the cows’ perspective; they are not pets. Leave dogs at home or stay out of cattle enclosures with them. In general, always give standing or lying cattle a wide berth when crossing their turf – and don’t stop to watch. Never shout or try to scare them. I never had a problem with cattle in my long life of hiking in the mountains.
Wolfgang Wagner
Linz, Austria
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