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Cows

I fish a fly syndicate on a river than runs through a farm. The cows always give me the 'come in our field if you think you are hard enough' look when I approach. Although I have never come to any harm, I much prefer avoiding direct contact if possible. On the odd occasion when they have made a move towards me I have stood my ground and it turns out I'm harder than they are!

Steve
 
Barry Peck said:
How to stop cows charging


This has always worked for me . As a kid I used to spend a lot of time with a fella who was a poacher . When out harvesting he taught me never to run from cows . Stand your ground and make noise and they stop instantly ... 😎☺️works every time .
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Steve Reed said:
I fish a fly syndicate on a river than runs through a farm. The cows always give me the 'come in our field if you think you are hard enough' look when I approach. Although I have never come to any harm, I much prefer avoiding direct contact if possible. On the odd occasion when they have made a move towards me I have stood my ground and it turns out I'm harder than they are!

Steve
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Love it Steve...Actually I think I am the only member with a cow in their Avatar😁 They have a wicked sense of humour despite everything.
 
Haydn Clarke said:
View attachment 35881

This bugger wouldn’t leave me alone when I spilled some Source bait dip on the back of my fishing chair. I never noticed it at the time, being somewhat pre-occupied with fending off the unwanted attention of this great lump behind me, but in the far distance the bull looked to be sizing me up too.
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I think he's just keeping an eye on you in case you shag his missus.
 
Can remember fishing the teme years ago with a couple of mates and as we was walking back to the car after it got dark we came across a couple of guys hiding behind a tree on the bank surrounded by cows lol. One of my mates was from a farming family who just laughed and marched straight through them closely followed by us and these 2 guys quickly tagged along. If I’d been on my own I’d have probably joined the lads behind the tree lol.
 
Had the same thing happen to me when I was about 15. Me and my mates walking through a field of cows when all of sudden they decided they didn't want us in their field. Their bad mood was pretty scary and they even started bucking at times. Always the least athletic of my mates, and the stockiest I ended up with them ganging up on me and I had to get over a barbed wire fence (not really one of my best skills) and it was the cows one side, giving me the evils and what looked like a shallow ditch of muddy crap the other. I went up to below my waist. All fun and games! But I've never trusted them since.
 
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It's quite unnerving when you can make out 50 pairs of eyes reflecting after dark from a head torch at distance. This happened to me a few weeks ago when they were blocking my route. One got a bit playful and the usual shouting, flapping tackle laden arms made them back away but still made a detour around them as I wasn't sure if any bulls were present. They were very curious of the head torch I think.
 
Ignore them, they're just inquisitive.
As long as you don't venture between a bull and it's cows/calves you'll be fine.
Cows and horses are in the field where I fish all the time and I've never had a problem.
They're just nosey buggers!
 
Not my favourites!

55 years ago I and my uncle ended up in the Stour (now the golf course on Beat 3 of Throop) as a "inquisitive" bull became the aggressor. It trashed Mick's gear in 10mins of scary thrashing about.

More recently the pedigree Herefords and their young in the fields at Stanford End on the Loddon stopped me reaching my car in the dark. I retreated back to the river, phoned my wife to tell her I wouldn't be home until breakfast and proceeded to have three more barbel in the hours before daylight!

A year or so ago I stood my ground on the upper Frome faced with 30+ "young guns" wanting to get too close to me as I made my way back across the meadows. Only had my fly gear so very mobile, but pleased I had my 3mtr Drennan Twist Lock to bash & poke a few noses! A local had seen the developing situation, stopped his car and he and his mate came over to help. It was still a bit unnerving but all three of us literally slowly back stepped across the last meadow until we reached the gate.
 
Maybe 10 years ago I was fishing the Yorkshire river Nidd.

The long walk to the swims was long...the short walk meant navigating a good sized herd of cows with billy bull standing watch.
I worked out there was not a problem, there was an intersecting barbed wire fence with a stinking pond to keep "the enemy" at bay.

I got cracking down the field and laughed out loud as the numpties ran down along the other side of the fence at a gallop.

Bad for me, the intersecting fence was 20 meters short of the bottom perimeter, so so up the field the muck spreading monsters
swung without breaking pace.

I wasn't laughing anymore as I ran like hell to the barbed wire guarded pond, firstly hurling my gear over, then myself with no style
or composure. It took a good while for them to get bored not having a victim to charge anymore.

I stll take the route in daylight, and only if the enemy is grazing in another field.

Footnote.

One young lady I worked with at the time was the wifie of a livestock farmer.
I said..you have grown up with these Evil Demons, what great country lore can you provide me with to protect me from a hidious cow pat covered death?

With narrowed eyes, she went silent for a moment, then the secret was given!.....
I never go in with any of them without an electric cattle prod!
The trouble makers get a blast, the others watch and learn, they mostly run off to the other side of the field as soon as I go in now. She was a big lass, and if I saw her coming after me with it I would do the same, or jump in a stinking pond! :p
 
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