Had a (very) close call tonight. Was out on one of my regular runs and had to pass through a field of cows with calves.

As I approached I thought that I'd better move off to one side of a small group that were lying down and walk rather than run so as not to spook them. This took me closer to another cow and calf who either hadn't heard me approach or were just "flighty". Anyway this one ran across my path about twenty metres in front of me then stopped. As I began to move on she charged at me and knocked me to the ground, not with a lot of force but enough.

Fortunately at this point she must have decided that she had made her point and moved away, as did I! Some of the other cows appeared agitated but none made any move toward me.

I finished my run and went to see the farmer (a near neighbour). It seems the same cow (distinctive colouring) had knocked him about earlier in the year. His problem is that he doesn't have any fields that don't have some form of public access though he did say that if an animal got a bit too aggressive then it went to slaughter fairly rapidly.

I grew up on a hill farm so am used to cattle but this is the first time for about thirty years that I've had a cow charge at me.

Be careful is perhaps the main message from this.

Bob