I make no apology for today’s diary referring to Hereford cattle only. Upon arrival I found cattle roadside in Long Meadow and my heart sank. I rang grazier Paul Dyer for assistance not knowing how far down Lighthouse Road they may have gone to Swanage.
I roped in a couple out dog walking who helped me herd eight cattle from Long Meadow, through the car park and past the centre to being behind a fence line. On our second maneuverers, unintentionally "Seventhwave" Chef Mark drove in and spooked the two cows that were about to cross the road. I had to follow and get ahead of them on the woodland play trail. At least I managed to herd one back, this time having to take the seaward side of the Centre. I was concerned that I needed to get ahead of the animal to open the gate but no. The gate at the southeast corner of South Field had BEEN LEFT OPEN! Okay it helped me to herd the animal in but clearly this had been the cause of the escape. I checked but there was a “cattle grazing” sign on the gate.
Fearing for further escapes myself and the dog walker duo proceeded to herd the cattle through to the relative safety of South Field. The Herbivores appeared out of the hedgerows from the Small Copse. Grazier Paul joined us at this point having also brought up the solo animal that had escaped on the play trail. Paul had to wake his daughter & partner up to take over his milking duties so that he could help me.
With the herd in South Field, yet to be counted we returned to Solent Road just to check for any independently minded animals. At this point my alarm went telling me it was time to take the daily weather reading.
If you a reading this, then I am probably preaching to the converted. Some gates have been seen to opened then merely slammed back and not latched by a jogger. I am regularly seeing gate hooks place in the loop upside down. Clearly someone does not understand the laws of gravity, but at least they tried. I hope your day starts better than mine. At least (so far) we have had no reports of cattle causing a traffic collision or household damage…. Enjoy the countryside with care and consideration.