AN INNOCENT WALK

It’s things you don’t know that get you in trouble. I have just learned something quite important from an article in an English newspaper and I’m going to pass it on so none of you will have any reason to get in trouble either.

What I learned is this: Do not take your dog for a walk in a cow pasture, especially one where both cows and calves reside.

I know, it really isn’t likely that it’s going to happen anywhere around here in Mira Loma, but I suspect that there are places in the heartland of America where there might be an occasion to put this rule to use.

The article I read told of a lady and her dogs that were up in the Yorkshire dales on a wee holiday. As those of you who have been to England know, there are lots of walking paths all over and if one is so inclined, which this lady was, it’s possible to have a lovely jaunt on clearly identified walking paths. However, the particular path the lady went on actually took her through a cow pasture and even though she herself was a veterinarian, she apparently did not know that there is little that aggravates a mama cow more than a dog. The cows see dogs as a danger to their calves. Especially during the spring and early summer months, when the calves are small, the cows can turn into bulls. Oh, no, that’s not right. What I mean is they can become as enraged as mad bulls.


In the case of this poor lady and her dogs, while she was simply taking her morning walk on the identified path, she and the dogs both were attacked. She was trampled to death by the protective mamas. The article said she got pinned to the fence and was unable to get away. However, the cows, once having done away with the woman, left the dogs alone. They were found scampering around near her body. This was a real unexpected tragedy.

All this happened because a) the sign said it was a walking trail, b) there was no warning on the trail to leave dogs at home, c) she apparently was unaware of the propensity of mama cows to run amok, and d) England is known for its mad cows. (California is known for its happy cows; aren’t we lucky).

I don’t mean to make light of this incident. It certainly is no laughing matter. But it is such a bizarre thing to happen – I mean, when I look a poor mama cow in the face I never suspect she might trample me and my dog, if I had one, to death. No, to me she always looks like she wishes the milk man would hurry up and come around.

I do believe it is important for tragedies like this to count for something. So I’m letting you all know that I will think about cows now in a new light and I’ll keep my distance from them, especially if I decide to get a dog. That mix just might be an accident waiting to happen.