By: Blonde Two
Outlandishly Outsidish 8 – Cow Wrangling
I haven’t done any cow wrangling since I was last at the farm in New Zealand. I am not even sure if we call it that in this country. Anyway, whilst driving down off our lovely Dartmoor yesterday (after a relaxing lunch at Yar Tor), I spied four cows, one calf and one police officer all looking a bit middle-of-the-road. By this, I don’t mean that any of them looked boring. The police officer seemed like a friendly, in control sort of chap and the cows had interesting curly coats – they were all actually in the middle of the road.
Everything seemed calm but in New Zealand, it is the done thing to get out of your car and offer help if cows are in the wrong place (they often seem to be) and as I do love cows, I asked if help was required.
It apparently was and between us we managed to steer said cows and one calf off the road into a field. Probably the wrong field but at least they weren’t going to scare the visitors’ cars there. I was in charge of gate opening and stopping them going past the gate. I remembered the Golden Cow Rule just in time, cows are easy really as long as you remember not to look them in the eye.
Feel-Good-Score: 10/10 (I told you I love cows)
I have rarely had problems with cows, but read Ruth’s post – she is walking the whole British coast bit by bit in daily sections – started in Norfolk (I think) and going clockwise is now at Clevedon up the Bristol Channel.
http://coastalwalker.co.uk/2014/10/02/159pm-kewstoke-to-clevedon/
Thanks for that treat!
Oh lovely! A golden cow rule! This I should have loved to have seen. On holiday in Scotland I got behind a whole herd of cows, complete with farmer staying very safely inside his landrover and collie who was leaping in and out of the herd nipping heels (well it looked as though he was) and trying everything to move the herd down the lane past a big white minibus. The cows were NOT GOING – as far as they were concerned, minibuses were to be avoided, licked, kicked, nudged, but definitely not passed. (Does anyone else have trouble with past and passed?)
When I was younger, herds of cows were not uncommon on roads and helped develop patience and self-control in humans (didn’t they?) , but nowadays they nearly all get shunted around in stock trailers – such a pity!