Netherlands: Cow escapes slaughter, stays hidden for over six weeks

[Palinurus]

Source: https://nltimes.nl/2018/01/25/cow-escapes-slaughterhouse-eludes-capture-forest-weeks

Cow escapes slaughterhouse, eludes capture in forest for weeks

By Janene Pieters on January 25, 2018 - 11:40

Hermien, the most talked of cow in the Netherlands © FOTO HISSINK

A cow [named Hermien] managed to escape on her way to the butcher and has been on the run in the small town of Lettele for six weeks. So far all of the multiple attempts to catch or kill the animal have been unsuccessful, the cow's owner said to newspaper AD (in Dutch).

According to the farmer, the cow and one of her siblings escaped last year when they were being transported to the butcher. A veterinarian managed to hit the younger cow with three anesthetic darts, after which she could be driven into the cattle wagon.

But the other cow got away. Multiple attempts were made to catch her, but they all failed. A hunter called in by the police could not get the animal shot, despite trying for days. According to the newspaper, the cow flees the moment she sees people.

"We just can't get her caught", farmer and owner Herman Jansen said to the newspaper. "Very annoying, because I don't want accidents to happen."

Next week the vet will again try to sedate the cow.

Additional info from AD newspaper (DeepL translation, with minor corrections):

When Hermien is captured, she can in principle go to the Bert Hollander Cattle Rest House in the Frisian town of Oldeberkoop. "Basically, in principle. Because there are already twenty other cows on the waiting list. But in an emergency, we can of course always free up a place. Once Hermien is caught, it's a breeze to transport her by cattle car to us."

Hollander wants to point out that the reception of a cow has 'a decent price tag'. Hollander: "What people don't dwell on is that the maintenance of such a cow also costs a lot of money. Provided the conditions are right, a cow can live for about twenty years and costs us - in terms of care and feed - about 160 euros per month. That is a lot of money, and we notice that we are already struggling to scrape together funds for the 45 animals we now have. People are often very enthusiastic about participating in such a rescue operation at the beginning, but it is important that they also support us financially in the long run."

In order to satisfy this cry for help, Member of Parliament Esther Ouwehand of the Party for the Animals has already started a crowdfunding campaign for the cow under the hashtag #cow funding.

Owner Herman Janssen wants to give the animal to the nursing home. "If there are people who want the cow, they can get her for nothing from me. But then the responsibility is also for them. I am now responsible for the cow - even when accidents happen. If people want to have a go for it, I retreat." Esther Ouwehand of the Party for the Animals responds: "That would be very sweet. After all, Hermien should just stay alive."

Hollander surmises that the cow from the Overijsselse Lettele will now have a considerable 'stress syndrome' as a result of all this hassle. "We previously have had a cow, Victoria, who was also broken loose. She has really adapted herself well in our rest home, but she always remained somewhat different. As soon as something unusual happened - a veterinarian who came in for instance - she became very shy again. I always call these kinds of cows 'a bit borderliners'. They seem tedious but can flip for the least of the least. They have lost faith in people a little."

 

[Ant22]

Now that's interesting, coincidentally I came across the below article about an adventurous cow in Poland who escaped her farm and spent the winter with a herd of bisons. ;)

Cow walks on wild side with Polish bison: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-42803471?

A domesticated cow has surprised Polish naturalists by spending the winter living with a herd of wild bison in the primeval Bialowieza Forest.

The cow "chose freedom" by running away from a farm late last autumn, and has been seen lingering on the fringes of a herd of some 50 bison in the forest on the Belarusian border, Poland's TVN24 news portal reports.

Ornithologist Adam Zbyryt was the first to spot the cow. He made the news in November when he told TVN24: "it's not unusual to see bison near the Bialowieza Forest, but one animal caught my eye. It was a completely different light-brown shade from the rest of the herd. Bison are chestnut or dark brown".

He dropped his initial idea that this was a mutation when he trained his binoculars on the creature, and saw that it was Limousin cow - a French breed popular in Poland. The young animal appeared healthy, and unthreatened by the larger animals. Naturalists assumed it would wander back to its pasture once winter set in.

Then biologist Rafal Kowalczyk spotted the cow again this week, still apparently healthy, and keeping pace with the herd.

Dr Kowalczyk told TVN24 that this is the first time he has seen a cow join a bison herd. "She is not very integrated with the group, as bison act like one organism and she stands out." He added that the herd had probably saved her from the wolves that prowl the edges of the Bialowieza Forest through the winter.

Although the cow may be out of danger, Dr Kowalczyk warns she could pose a threat to the bison themselves.

The unusual friendship could lead to mating, which would contaminate the vulnerable population of about 600 Bialowieza bison with hybrids. "Another danger is that hybrid calves are large, and the cow could die giving birth," the biologist told TVN24.

The interloper is still too young to breed, but it looks like her winter adventure must end in recapture before spring comes.

 

[Renaissance]

Love that photo of the cow with the bison. I worked at a holistic cow farm for a couple of years and had a few times chasing / trying to find a couple of escaped cows. They're more difficult to spot than deer and despite their size, they really know how to hide. The cows I worked with were also closer to wild animals than domesticated ones. Those cows never had much faith in humans to begin with; they weren't treated badly at all and lived good lives. They were just made to be more wild. I had a chance to visit a neighboring farm that had pastured dairy cows, and they were much more domesticated from human contact and it probably has something to do with breeding. They actually had pretty charming personalities and were rather sweet.

 

[Palinurus]

Thank you both for sharing these stories.

The Dutch cow is a Limousin type as well. They are bred for their meat, not for dairy. Therefore a little closer to nature perhaps. Maybe that's why they are a bit more adventurous ?

 

[Mikkael]

There was also an article on Sott posted in August 2011 about the cow Yvonne (6) in Germany, who escaped before she was meant to be sent to slaughterhouse. She managed to break free in May and in August was still nowhere to be found. I remember that I wished then she's fine and well.

http://www.sott.net/articles/show/233536-Increasingly-Curious-Animal-Behavior-Yvonne-A-Cow-Wrapped-In-A-Mystery-Inside-A-Forest-in-Germany

Holy Mother Cows! They are getting smarter

 

[Palinurus]

Thanks for remembering and sharing, Mikkael.

I must have skipped that one at the time as I don't recall having read this.

As for some animals getting smarter, maybe they feel a certain influence of the upcoming Wave like some of us humans do too ?

Just a thought. ;)

 

[Palinurus]

FINAL UPDATE: http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2018/02/runaway-cow-hermien-is-out-of-the-woods-after-being-tranquilised-and-captured/

Runaway cow Hermien is out of the woods after being tranquilized and captured

February 12, 2018

After two months on the run, during which she evaded the combined efforts of farmers, vets and police, Hermien the cow has finally been captured.

Hermien’s bid for freedom began in December when she escaped being loaded on to a slaughterhouse truck and fled into woodland in Overijssel. In mid-January she was given an extra two weeks to roam the woods to calm down from all the media attention.

Owner Herman Jansen was said to be relieved (in Dutch) after a vet captured the Limousin cow using tranquilizer darts at the weekend. Hermien will spend the rest of her days at a rest home in the Frisian village of Zandhuizen after the animal rights party PvdD raised almost €50,000 in a crowdfunding action to save her from the abattoir.

She was seen raiding a nearby farm for food, but attempts to catch her by planting food laced with knock-out drops in the barn also failed.

‘We’re pleased that we succeeded in the end,’ said Jansen’s daughter Maaike. ‘The last few weeks have been very stressful. She was walking over roads, which wasn’t safe. She also upset a lot of neighbors because she destroyed their fences.’

Similar coverage here: https://nltimes.nl/2018/02/12/escaped-cow-caught-roaming-dutch-town-8-weeks

 

[Palinurus]

SOTT now carries another story of a cow escaping slaughter, once again in Poland and about a month ago:

https://www.sott.net/article/377644-Cow-escapes-slaughter-by-smashing-through-metal-fence-breaking-mans-arm-then-swimming-to-safety-on-island