Taking the Bull by the Horns

 A few months ago, I was faced with entering a field where there was a snorting, bellowing bull, just yards away. What to do, take a chance, or turn back? I hate turning back on a walk.

The start of my walk that day...

I've been walking for over twenty years in the British countryside and abroad, so I'm used to passing through fields of cows and bulls, most of the time with no problems. Usually they ignore you, or they begrudgingly move out of the way. 

The advice is, don't get between a cow and her calve, or a bull and his harem. If you feel threatened, don't run, as it will make matters worse. Face the beasts and wave your arms around until they back off! If you have a dog, keep it on a lead, or if cattle go for it, let it off the lead so it can escape. Personally, I would never enter a field of cattle with a dog.

In the last couple of years I've noticed that cattle have been taking more of an interest in us. They sometimes come over and crowd around, and follow us to the stile. This can be intimidating because they are big heavy animals, and you can't know what's going on in their heads. Likely it's often curiosity, or they think you've come to feed them or take them for milking. Bullocks nearly always display this behavior, but I'm sure they are just curious little boys. Farmers have taken more to corralling cattle into small areas using temporary single wire fences, letting them chew the grass, before moving them to the next patch. So they probably think we've come to move the fence to greener pastures, hence the unwanted attention. I've found that where they have a full field to spread out, they're not interested in us.

Sadly, in recent years, there have been several deaths of dog walkers, trampled when they've tried to 'protect' their pets. To a cow with a calve, a dog is a wolf and a threat to her young. It seems that even if the dog has escaped, the owner may still get attacked, possibly because they are the one who has introduced the wolf into the herd's territory, and are therefore also seen as a threat.

That was all at the back of my mind, that day, when I set off on a short walk from my home. All went well until I came to a stile with a sign on it, warning of a bull in the field. I heard it before I saw it; a big black beast just yards away, against a dividing hedge, snorting and bellowing.

There were cows further up the field. But the bull wanted to get into the next field to be with the cows there, hence all the noise. To cross the field, I would have to walk between the bull and the cows. I was also on my own, so who would call the air ambulance if it all went wrong? Likely the bull would ignore me, as its attention was clearly elsewhere, but was it worth the risk? I decided it wasn't, and reluctantly turned back.

But it didn't end there. Couldn't end there. I had to report it for investigation. My understanding was that a bull older than ten months shouldn't be in a field where there was a public right of way. This animal looked much older.

I went on the Cheshire East Council website, and filed a report. This was Friday afternoon, and I was very impressed when I got an email response Monday morning. The Public Rights of Way Manager asked for photographs, a grid reference, and a footpath number and Route Code which I found on their Interactive Map. I also included a screen-shot of the OS map, where I had highlighted the field. I was then informed that a member of their team would go and investigate.

The officer subsequently informed me that he went into the field where the bull was with a herd of cows and calves. He said 'the bull did not show any interest in me, and was very docile'. I replied I didn't doubt it, but on the day it was very agitated, as it was obviously on heat! I then asked him if it should be there, as it looked older than ten months. He replied that as the bull was 'a recognized beef breed', Aberdeen Angus in this case, it was permitted to be in a field with public access, along with dairy cows.

Did I over-react? I'll never know. But at least I did the right thing, and got it investigated. If someone had been attacked, and I hadn't taken action, I couldn't have forgiven myself...

Read my 5 Star novel: Stench of Evil - a supernatural thriller https://goo.gl/VQOVuS

The sequel: The Devil in Them  https://goo.gl/aS1cjZ