Did you know that your cows are out? (Or sheep, or horses, or...)

[Creamer]

When the kids were younger I bought a well-broke pony mare not know ing she was pregnant. The next spring I had an idiot foal running around. That little bugger just spent his whole day trying to get out because he wanted to be around people (he scared my kids because he would run right at them and stop at the last minute just being a normal foal). One time I was gone for the day on business travel and my wife called that the ponies were out - which sadly to say was not that uncommon - and that they were somewhere west of the small town we lived next to. Since it was after dark the police had their headlights, flashing lights, and sometimes sirens on and they were scared - nobody could get up to them even though they were very tame. I got there about two hours later - around 10 PM - and drove directly to where they were and they came full speed to me as I got out of my car. They recognized me and were petrified of everything else going on. I didn't even put a lead rope on - just walked them about 3.5 miles back home. They always did love me because I was the one that spent time with them. Often when i was around home I would let them out of the pen and into the yard and the little one would mostly follow me around while the older mare would just graze. I think he had more dog in him than horse but he sure was fun when I was home.

 

[jigs_n_fixtures]

When I was 16 or so I was stying at my Aunt and Uncles place. There was already canal along their property line which separated them from a dairy.

I was working in their barn, and heard a cow bawling. Looked out and there was a cow in the canal. Looked further up the bank and there was a bout thirty feet of the fence separating the dairy from the canal down with a bunch of cows milling around next to the canal.

I could see there was someone over in the dairy washing out. So, I went in the house and dialed the number for the dairy. Guy who was washing the barn walked over to the phone, “This is Joey, I don’t no nothin about anything, I just milk cows, and clean the barn.“ and he hung up. Called again same result. now theere are two cows in the canal, and floating away. I tried one last time to call, and finally gave up. Got in the truck drove the mile and change up to a bridge over the canal and back to their place, and helped him stand the fence back up. Still had two cows drifting down the canal.

Aunt and Uncle got back from town, and I told them about it. They informed me that Joey had some issues. And, went across to see if his Uncle who owned eh dairy across the road from the dairy Joey was at. He went and got Joey in the pickup, and they went down the canal looking for the two missing cows. Came back a couple of hours later with one of them.. I left the next morning. Never did find out if they found the second cow.

 

[3Ts]

Not my cows. Neighbor just bought the land behind me and was moving them from a leased pasture to the new property he purchased. His fences were not in good shape. It's 2 hours from his old place to here, I have no facilities to handle cattle. By the time he got here the cows (more than a dozen) had moved on. Mean time reports from neighbors came in about stray cows. Took him a week with horses and dogs to round them all up.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

Cows can sense a break in a fence. They always seem to go straight to them.

 

[Beeenvenue]

Good fences make good neighbors

Or bad ones. Moved to my land last year. It was part of a large plot subdivided into 13-80 acre segments. Developer put in water and added nice fencing; 5 panel with brand new t posts and a strand of barbed wire along the top

Neighbor’s bull saw my (wild) winter ryegrass and went under the barbed wire, pushing the expensive panel fence down and destroying 450 feet of it. Cows followed. After I chased them off I put up double strand of electric fence. 2 weeks later that was shredded.

I ended up spending about 30 hours of work resurrecting the panels as best I could and learning how to add more barbed wire at other levels.

Neighbor used to come to the fence and chat when he saw me mowing. Now he avoids me and never has apologized or offered to reimburse me for the fence or my time, even to split the cost. His bull better not find himself on my land again or the sheriff will get involved.

 

[japody]

When I went up to my front gate this morning, 6 of our cows were standing in the field across the road. I opened the gate and walked around behind them. Took a few minutes, but they walked in. Spent the rest of the day walking the fence to find where they got out. Of course, the hole was near the front but figured I might as well walk that entire side. Definitely got my exercise in for today.