Mad cows

Early September. A field in Norfolk. A morning walk with partner, friend and small dog. The people are taking in the views while the tied-up terrier, used to the pavements and parks of London, gets lost in the irresistible smells of the eastern English countryside. In the distance a large group of cows is hanging out. As we get closer we spot one lingering on the edges of the crowd. She seems to be eyeing us, sizing us up. Not moving, but probably ready to if needed. We note some calves among the herd. And no fence between us and them. Best to turn back.

The cow who had us in her sights may have been staring into space. Or we may have had a narrow escape. Between May and September this year two walkers have been killed by charging cows in England. When we heard this news in the days after our uneventful meander in the meadow, my partner ventured: “Maybe the cows have had their consciousness raised.”

In 2015 cows were named the most dangerous large animals in Britain (big wild animals, including wolves and bears, were made extinct on the British islands centuries ago). The deaths this summer bring the total number of people killed by cows in Britain in the first two decades of this this millennium to 100. The majority of these people worked with the cows, reminding us that farms can be dangerous places for human as well as animal workers. Lone walkers with dogs are the second largest at-risk group (for…