Following Along

Cows following along

Cattle are wonderful followers and if you get just one or two moving in a particular direction, the rest of them are almost always sure to follow along. Almost is the operative word here.

Monday we were shipping three animals to slaughter. The trucker was scheduled to arrive at 4:00 and we had spent the morning setting up a temporary corral and electric fencing to move the entire herd from one side of the property where they had been grazing to the other where the steers were to be loaded. Cattle are such social beings that it’s easier to move the whole herd and then separate out the animals you want than to separate and move just a few animals. To reach the new area, the animals needed to walk through a gate, along the drive in front of the property owner’s house (fortunately he’s forgiving of an occasional cow pie), across the main drive, through another gate, which was partially blocked by the metal corral panels that had been set up as a temporary holding pen, and finally, after a sharp right turn, into a smallish paddock on one side of the temporary corral.

The plan was that once they were in the small holding area we would move them through the temporary corral, sort out the animals that were being shipped, and release the rest into their new paddock. Generally when a story begins ‘the plan was…’ you know things will not go according to plan.

It all began well enough with Charles opening up the first gate and calling to the cows to follow him through, which they did. He led them in front of the house (where most of the animals decided to relieve themselves) and across the main drive with no problems. There was a moment’s hesitation at the partially blocked gate with the sharp turn but, seeing the way, the lead animals rushed in like a great wave.

Meanwhile, I had taken up the rear making sure all the calves were awake and standing up so they would see where the herd was going and would follow of their own accord. My end of the herd was slowly meandering out of the old paddock while Charles’s end was streaming into the new holding area, but like an ocean wave coming into a cove too small to hold so much water, the wave of animals surveyed the new area, decided it was not satisfactory, and proceeded to flow back out. As I was encouraging the calves and slower animals to move along the path I saw the lead animals coming back toward me. The trailing cows, uncomfortable at the stream of higher ranked cows coming at them, began to mill about not knowing which way to go; young calves were bleating, slipping under the line and walking into the flower beds; yearlings were walking through the lines and dragging them down; mother cows didn’t know where their offspring were and began bellowing; Charles also began bellowing, trying to tell me something from across the driveway, but I couldn’t understand what it was. I stood there trying to decide whether to close the gate so the returning bunch would have to go “back” to the new paddock or just let them pass back through and start over. Our plan was quickly unraveling as were the lines that we had spent hours putting up that morning.

Charles hurried to close the gate at my end (that’s what he had been bellowing about) and then led most of the herd back into the new paddock after which I ran to his end and closed the gate there to keep them in. I stood at the gate opening it briefly to make sure no cows got out each time he was able to get a straggler cow or escaped calf back from their various explorations. Soon the herd was united again with mothers finding their calves, some one and two year olds butting heads and things generally settling back into normality with most of the animals once again grazing contentedly. At that point we noticed the very experienced and amused trucker in the drive watching the proceedings. Charles said, “Well, that went pretty smoothly”. I silently contemplated divorce.

Yesterday, we made that same move in the opposite direction. Everything did actually go as planned, the adult animals hardly aware they were leaving one paddock and entering another, the calves following along like dawdling school children, occasionally needing to be reminded that driveways are not the ideal spot to nap. As they settled in to graze, Charles, beaming, said “Well that went pretty smoothly” and this time I had to agree.

Francesca and Charles Noble of Movable Beast Farm raise 100% grass fed beef in the Rondout
Valley of Ulster County. Their cows graze at various locations throughout the valley. If you are interested in ordering they can be can reached at movablebeastfarm@gmail.com. Their website is currently under construction and will be up shortly.