Rural Strays

We came home from Mass last Sunday only to pull up short on our drive because there was a cow and calf standing on it. Usually it's deer we stop for. And although deer are damaging enough (one leapt into the side of our last vehicle once and left a sizable dent) it is a little more disconcerting to come to an abrupt halt for a 600 to 1000 lb. cow who is protecting her baby.

My husband had his cell phone with him and promptly called our neighbors. These were undoubtedly their cows. In the meantime, the cattle got spooked, and the calf slipped into the lower hay field through the gate which was ajar, and the cow barreled onto the road on the other side of the wire fence. So, as they were on the move, we were in our Sunday duds, there was no traffic on the road, and the owners were on their way, we continued up the long lane to our house.

Those who have been following this blog since last summer know that in these parts, it is not out of the ordinary to have stray animals wander on to your property. I am referring to a specific case about a horse. (For the back-story, refer to these ancient posts in order: Horsin' Around, Gift Horse, Sorry Charlie, Charlie, et al. , Horse Trading, and The Horse Saga.) We've had stray cows several times too. (Here's one example: Round 'Em Up.) And this phenomenon is not restricted to this locale. At our old place we had stray cows a number of times, and even a stray horse, not to mention the stray rabbit, numerous cats, and wandering dogs (one blind). Sadly, we've even been a contributor to the issue, having once lost a whole herd of cows (The Cows are Loose.)

In the city it's the neighbor's cats digging in your flower bed and chasing birds off the feeder. It's a stray dog pooping in your front yard. In the rural world, it's the neighbor's bull in the road, cows in your hay lot, sheep bleating from your woods, or a horse rearing at passing cars on the road out front. It's packs of hounds yelping and howling as they follow the scent of some critter and tear through your property.

Wandering dogs are so common that I think we're the only folks for many miles who do not own one. And most people don't just own one, hence the groups of them. Our closest neighbors currently own four and have had a couple of others there in the last few years. And my husband was chatting with one of our neighbors from across the road as my son mowed her yard the other day. In the course of the conversation, he learned that her daughter and son-in-law who live on the same property currently own 14 dogs. (It used to be 15, but recently one was "lost" to a coyote.) Her daughter breeds them I guess, but must sell them far more slowly than she raises them. They roam the place (and sometimes ours) and go in and out of their house. They're sort of like the "Bumpus' hounds" from The Christmas Story, I guess. Only we don't swear or live by Lake Michigan.