FOLLOWING THE killing of three people in the UK in the last month by cattle, the Irish Farmers Association (IFA) has joined in warning dog owners to only enter fields of livestock with the farmer’s permission.
All the people trampled to death by cattle in the past month were with their dogs when the incidents happened.
There has been a similar case in the Irish midlands in recent years.
One of the victims, Elizabeth Crowsley (49), was a vet and she was killed by a herd of cows as she walked her dog near Hawes, North Yorkshire, late last month.
Earlier this month, Barry Pilgrim (65) was trampled to death by cows in Sheldon, Derbyshire.
The latest victim, Anita Hinchey (63), was trampled to death when she slipped into a herd of cows as she sought to put her dog back on its lead in St Fagins, near Cardiff, South Wales.
Eifion Huws, vice-president of the Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW), warned that deaths from stampeding cattle were almost certain to rise if people allow their dogs off leads in the countryside.
He said those who do were tempting fate as a consequence because cows were instinctively protective of their calves and would act to protect them if they believed they were in danger.
Mr Huws said despite a natural urge to protect a pet, if it is charged by cattle he advised owners to leave their dogs and think only of themselves.
“Even if your dog is still on the lead when it happens, let it go. You would be surprised at how fast a cow or a bullock can run. They can easily outrun a human. But not a dog – it can look after itself, said Mr Huws, a dairy farmer on Anglesey. “If there is a herd coming down on you and you hold on to your dog you have not got a hope in hell. That is why I think there must be a change in the legislation.” He wanted dogs kept on leads at all times in the countryside, he added.
A spokesman for the IFA said livestock may appear to be very harmless but can be very dangerous and he advised walkers not to enter fields of livestock without the permission of the farmer.
“There is a particular problem of walkers with dogs near livestock. Cattle . . . can become easily spooked by dogs,” he said.