Sunday 13th September – All 4 seen – Steer 200 is limping on his front right foot

At 15:15 this afternoon, despite the light rain, steer 200 was resting and chewing his cud near ///trusts.layover.query, west of the Gelvert Bottom ditch. Cow 201 was grazing nearby, while steers 207 and 208 were grazing on the far side of the ditch among the bracken. There were a large number of flies around today, but the cattle didn't appear too bothered. Steer 200 was happy to be approached and enjoyed some head and ear rubs, which helped to keep the flies away from his eyes. Steers 207 and 208 soon made their way over to say hello, both rather damp from the rain, but happy nonetheless.

After our initial greetings, steer 200 got to his feet and all four gathered around me to relax and chew their cud. Steer 200 and steer 208 both enjoyed long back scratches while resting. All four appreciated having the flies gently brushed from their eyes whenever they settled there. By 15:45, the cattle began to drift away to graze in the surrounding area. Steer 200 lingered with me for a while longer before wandering off to join the others. It was then that I spotted he was limping on what appeared to be his front right foot. He was able to walk, albeit with some discomfort, and was still able to graze and keep up with the others. I initially thought he might just have been stiff from resting, but sadly his limping continued. I gave both his front legs and hooves a good check, and there was no physical sign of injury.

I kept a careful eye on him from afar, and he continued to graze to the southwest, eating plenty of long grass, leaves from the bushes, and the soft tips of the gorse bushes. The boys stayed close to him, while cow 201 ventured a little further away, crossing the path at one point, only to return after a short while.

I said my goodbyes at 16:15, leaving them all peacefully grazing.

At one point, I took the opportunity to slip away to check that there was still drinking water available in the pond, which there was, with perhaps a little more water in it than there has been recently. Before leaving, I took a walk over to the Fire Hydrant sign to check the water levels. There was still plenty of drinking water available, both in the main pool and in the surrounding run-off areas.

Except for steer 200, the cattle were all good today.

Weds 9th Sept, all four lazing between Brock Hill and Tweseldown race course

Just a fleeting look today as i passed by.

2.15pm, Mon 7 Sept, All 4 together, under the trees along the racecourse near the pond

All looking fine and fewer flies around today than the last time I saw them.  They were sitting but one did get up as I was leaving.

Also came across a pile of empty shells and clips left by the army but didn’t have any means to tidy them up.  Happy to do so next time i visit, prob Weds or Thurs. 

Also passed the pond and fire hydrant area and as noted yesterday, still sufficient water.

Sunday 6th September – All 4 seen – Gentle reminder that the fence needs repairing by the fire hydrant sign

At 16:15 this afternoon, cow 201, along with steers 200 and 208, were grazing along the sides of the main path just beyond the bend after the straight by the racecourse, near ///sleepers.lighter.surreal. They were all very friendly, stopping to say hello and enjoying a few strokes. Like earlier in the week, cow 201's collar was showing as being in the thicket in the centre of the site. Steer 207 was grazing in the pasture to the south of the path about 50 metres further on, near ///inch.cashiers.mats. He spotted me approaching and came over to greet me, with the other three following and joining us soon after.

After our initial greetings, the cattle gathered around me and started to rest and chew their cud. They were all happy to be approached for their checks. Steer 200 enjoyed a neck scratch before positioning himself for a long back scratch, which he thoroughly enjoyed, shifting around to ensure I reached all his itchy spots. Steer 208 had been watching on with great interest, and after a while he wandered over to spend some time with me. It appeared he wanted to try a back scratch too, and I was only too happy to oblige. After initially being a bit unsure, he quickly relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed the attention. All four were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

At one point, I slipped away to check that there was still drinking water available in the pond, with the group watching on as I left. They seemed happy when I returned, with steer 200 coming over for another back scratch. The army must have been training in the area at some point, as there were a large number of spent bullets lying on the grass close to where the cattle were gathered. I gathered them up and removed them from the site.

After saying my goodbyes at 17:05, I set off north along the side of Brock's Hill to go and check the water by the fire hydrant sign. Behind me, I heard a chorus of moos and turned around to spot all four following me. I wandered back to say a final goodbye before setting off again. There was still plenty of drinking water available, both in the main pool and in the surrounding run-off areas. The broken strand of barbed wire was lying loose, stretched out on the inside of the fence line. Concerned that one of the cattle may stand on it, I repositioned it on the outside of the fence line. A gentle reminder that the fence still needs to be repaired.

The cattle were all good today.

Saturday

 All found looking fine grazing just off the main path to the west of the hill at 9.30

Tuesday 1st September - One collar not working

I had to visit later than usual today and was concerned to see that, according to the NoFence Collar map, three of the cows were in D4 while one was in E/F5.  The map had shown this for several hours so I was hoping that this was an anomaly and and there wasn't a cow by itself among the silver birches.  As it turned out all four were lying together in the open space to the SE of the hydrant pool.  When they heard me approaching all four stood up attentively.  All of them appeared well but were clearly disappointed that I wasn't Gordon!  They did try to trot after me as I left though.

I checked they all still had their collars attached, which they did, so I'm guessing that one of them stopped working while they were all in the birches at some point.  The following photo shows the locations shown on the map when I left and the serial number of the collar showing the wrong location.

Sunday 30th August - All 4 seen

At 15:20 this afternoon, the cattle were resting in the woodland east of the large pool by the fire hydrant sign, near ///doubt.could.activism. A light shower was passing over, so they had sensibly taken shelter among the trees. I had parked in the Velmead Woods car park at that end of the site and, as I made my way along the path outside the boundary, steer 200 spotted me. He soon got to his feet and came over to the fence line to say hello, with the other three quickly following his lead. As I continued along the path towards the kissing gate to enter the site, the four of them wandered alongside me, before giving me a much warmer welcome once I was inside.

After our initial greetings, the cattle gathered around me, content to stand and chew their cud, occasionally stepping forward for a few head strokes. After a while, steer 200 leaned in for a longer shoulder rub before shuffling forward into position for a long back scratch. While steer 200 was being fussed over, the others stood beside me, continuing to chew their cud and occasionally stopping to snack on the surrounding gorse and leaves. By 15:50, cow 201 had drifted off into the pasture to the southwest to graze, with the boys gradually following her one by one. I said my goodbyes at 16:05, leaving them all peacefully grazing among the bracken as some late afternoon sunshine broke through. All four were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

Before leaving, I returned to the fire hydrant sign to check the water levels. There was still plenty of drinking water available, both in the main pool and in the surrounding run-off areas.

The cattle were all good today.