I've had a busy few days and all but forgot this post I made here, I just got the urge to check in and ideal to have all the replies to read with a coffee on a lazy sunday
@Gordie12
After all I had read online about cows thats the first time Ive read anything that was akin to my own experience, interesting that you spotted a Bull, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a bull or two among the cattle I encountered, and you mention the size too, absolutly!, some people might laugh at being wary of cows, of course they're placid, and they're not going to bite, but they do have natural defences against would be pretators = sheer bulk, and surprising speed when they bolt. I'd need to look up the figures for the U.K. I've seen stats before, and they show that hikers and dog walkers are indeed sometimes killed/injured in the UK by being trampled. Oh, I'm not a dog walker myself, but the advice I've seen for anyone ever in that situation is to drop the lead, your dog will no doubt get himself to safety, whilst you look out for yourself.
Also interesting that you mention the eye contact, I now tghink it it that, and also whole body language, after my scare I had decided to try and find ways past the cattle by using paralell fields, of course on my next big walk after the incident, just last week or so, I skipped past a couple of fields with cows, then, inevitably, I came to an area that was completely impassable either side, it was was through the huge field of (huge) cows, I couldnot see the end of the field as it continued over the brow of a hill.
As I stood, rather nervously at the gate, 3 or 4 cows had already begun to show more than average interest in me, I realised that if I cannot do this my walking days are practically over, I was frikking bottling it, but I really didn't want to give in, I wandered away from the gate, had a bit of a break and a think. I randomly picked up a small walking pole sized tree branch and decided to go for it, as I neared the gate I had a bit of an epiphany, I was thinking, just ignore the fekkers, stride through there just like a farmer (with his stick!) going about his business, and after a swig of water and a bite of a cliff bar (My last meal! - I honestly was thinking that!
) I purposely opened the gate, closed it behind me and strode in, head down, just keeping track of the cows by quick glances to their bodies, walking quite fast but steady enough for the ones on the track (path was like a landrover track) to stop grazing and shuffle off,
There must have been about at least a hundred cows in that pasture, first nearby cow barely looked at me as it was grazing, success! The next couple the same, then a tiny, and I mean tiny, little calf showed some interest, it wandered towards me, my heart started to race, momma cow isn't going to like this, but Farmer Boony style I strode on, Cows deal with people, farmers. all the time I mwas thinking, Momma cow mooed, the littled calf got startled and ran back to momma,
That little encounter really helped lift me out of my "weirded out about cows" feeling, and I continued on feeling normal, @Gordie12 it's funny you should also mention "the ringleader" I too got the feeling in my last encounter that there was a "wrong un" among them, and the rest were following the leader (as they would I assume, if a wolf or such was harrying a calf or something) I also remember reading something before, where the guy mentioned a cow having a really difficult birth, and after that it's personality became really aggressive, and that they sent it off for slaughter as they couldn't deal with it. I agree with your attitude in that I'm now not going to let what happened change anything (no more skirting paralel to cow fields) but to have a healthy respect for what cattle are capable of. Oh, also, I'm probably going to report my incident to the local council responsible for waymarking the path etc, just in case there is indeed a 'wrong un' among that particular herd.
Ha, this reply took so long I'm going to have to go make another coffee before reading the rest of the thread!