Do Cows Like You?

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Inyati,


I like you, and I don't even know you. I know from reading your post, that you are very intelligent. You also take exceptionally good care of your animals. I'm only saying this as your friend. In the "forum" sense of the word. I'm sure if we ever met in person we would become fast friends. Please be careful, and don't underestimate what your cows are capable of. Gods grace and a pocket full of stainless steel screws are all that's holding me on this earth. The majority of my injuries are from livestock. The right cow-------------that's crazy about her calf, or thinks she's stuck in a corner will walk right through you. Anything with four feet, and a mind of its own can be dangerous.
 
Bigfoot":3j6drj8h said:
Inyati,


I like you, and I don't even know you. I know from reading your post, that you are very intelligent. You also take exceptionally good care of your animals. I'm only saying this as your friend. In the "forum" sense of the word. I'm sure if we ever met in person we would become fast friends. Please be careful, and don't underestimate what your cows are capable of. Gods grace and a pocket full of stainless steel screws are all that's holding me on this earth. The majority of my injuries are from livestock. The right cow-------------that's crazy about her calf, or thinks she's stuck in a corner will walk right through you. Anything with four feet, and a mind of its own can be dangerous.
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, we have "good" cows, but always have a fork or something handy if we think there is ANY chance they will try to run us down while we are moving or handling them. Even if it isn't their intent to come after us... they still outweigh us by a lot. Having something in the hand is just a reminder to them that we don't wish to be run over. ;-)
 
I've often wondered about the attachment between man and animals, while most animals have a fear of humans, some seem to have a curiosity about humans as well. The interaction from birth seems to have a lot to do with their comfort or being at ease around us. Like handling a puppy or kitten when they are little. Man has interacted with cattle, dogs, sheep, goats for thousands of years, whereas it may not be as easy to halter break a buffalo or milk one, since there has never been that interaction to my knowledge.
Also the intelligence of an animal also plays a factor, for example, dolphins interact with humans and seem to like people a whole lot, many stories i've heard of sailors shipwrecked at sea and pushed to shore by dolphins, they are also considered to be about the most intellingent animal. Pigs rank up there high close to dolphins on the intellingence scale,maybe that would explain why pot bellied pigs have become a popular pet these days.
 
Never met a Hereford cow that didn't 'like' me. There have been, however, many Saler, Limousin and Angus cows that have told me they don't.
 
Bigfoot":2jnjl8p8 said:
Inyati,


I like you, and I don't even know you. I know from reading your post, that you are very intelligent. You also take exceptionally good care of your animals. I'm only saying this as your friend. In the "forum" sense of the word. I'm sure if we ever met in person we would become fast friends. Please be careful, and don't underestimate what your cows are capable of. Gods grace and a pocket full of stainless steel screws are all that's holding me on this earth. The majority of my injuries are from livestock. The right cow-------------that's crazy about her calf, or thinks she's stuck in a corner will walk right through you. Anything with four feet, and a mind of its own can be dangerous.
Click to expand...
Bigfoot, your response is very warming. I appreciate your thoughts. I appreciate everyone who like you, dun, Bez, and others are giving these warnings to prevent bad things from happening. I have been fortunate, like you say, by Gods grace, that I am almost 63 and have never broken more than a finger. I have done some things that woulda, coulda, shoulda got me hurt. I don't want to be hurt. I hate bumping my head. I am careful around the newborns. I think some luck plays a role in injuries. I hope to meet you sometime and we are friends. I like my cows but I love my friends. Thank you. I appreciate your thoughts, my good friend.
 
Banjo":2e5vfpmb said:
I've often wondered about the attachment between man and animals, while most animals have a fear of humans, some seem to have a curiosity about humans as well. The interaction from birth seems to have a lot to do with their comfort or being at ease around us. Like handling a puppy or kitten when they are little. Man has interacted with cattle, dogs, sheep, goats for thousands of years, whereas it may not be as easy to halter break a buffalo or milk one, since there has never been that interaction to my knowledge.
Also the intelligence of an animal also plays a factor, for example, dolphins interact with humans and seem to like people a whole lot, many stories i've heard of sailors shipwrecked at sea and pushed to shore by dolphins, they are also considered to be about the most intellingent animal. Pigs rank up there high close to dolphins on the intellingence scale,maybe that would explain why pot bellied pigs have become a popular pet these days.
Click to expand...

Banjo, I would have to look it up to give details but on the phylogenetic tree of all life, the ungulates and whales, dophins, etc. are related. I remember in comparative anatomy that a cows eye is very similiar to a dophins based on internal anatomy. I believe based on the time I spend with my cows and dog - people don't hear me talk about this but I am with my dog every minute of his life except when the two of us bed down -that there is more going on in animal's brains than science has revealed. Blue responds to words as well as any person does. When we go to the barn and I don't want him distressing the cows, I tell him to get in the barn. He goes directly to the barn and usually jumps up on a bale of hay. Of course, he is still young and on occasion he sneaks out the back of the barn to go pee on something. :D
 
Our beef cows don't really care one way or another about me, but they are happy to see a bale of hay or feed. It is safe to say that they tolerate me. They are all easy to work around because all but one have been shown. They will stand for you to put a halter on while in the pasture and you can touch them without them acting stupid. The one that hasn't been shown is a yearling 3 way cross heifer and our daughter halter broke her last year.
I do carry a sorting stick when I go out in the pasture and when I move them around in the pens. Sometimes they will start pushing each other excited about the feed or hay. They don't always look where they are going and I want to make sure that I am not accidently knocked down. I use the stick to let them know that they are getting to close & to keep them at a respectful distance. The cows aren't mean, they don't think like a person and they don't pay attention to their surroundings. The majority of the time that people get injured by cattle, it is by a pet or gentle stock.

Our Jersey cow does like my husband. When we go to a fair that involves being out of town for several days, she is always looking for him. At home, she will stand and watch him when he is working in the garden. She is very well mannered to work with. I enjoy handling her. She is pretty smart for a cow.
 
Stupid question to begin with. I try and never abuse or upset any cow I own so they've pretty much got a good place to live......the real question is "Do I like Her". If not she very well may quickly belong to someone else.
 
My cows like me and I like them, of course, there are days when there are exceptions to this, vaccinating, AI'ing, if they get out ect. then its a love-hate relationship for the most part.? Or as Facebook would say, "its complicated" then :)
Jenna
 
They may like me for their own reasons but I'll never let my guard down - they are unpredictable!!
 
my employees don't like me sometimes. because they didn't do their jobs, I assume my cows don't like me when I load them in the trailer because they didn't do there job. and last week I had several mommas that didn't like me because I took their calf away. My wife and Kids Like me and I like Myself all of the rest is just rhethoric.
 
Most of us are so careful not to anthropomorphize cattle that I think we're sometimes in danger of completely dismissing some of the intelligence and, dare I suggest it, feelings, they have. I know their intelligence(s) are not the same as ours, but just because they cannot be measured in the same ways, does that mean they lack insights we don't glean? I think it is we who lack intelligence in discerning some of theirs.

I've gradually become aware of an empathic sense around my animals. Whether this is innate in me, or developed over my years of farming, I can't tell. If you don't believe in that sort of "intelligence", you'll dismiss it; but I believe there's far more to learn about intelligence and sentience than we yet know. We'll all probably be dead by the time somebody figures out some of this stuff.

I am quite sure that one or two of my cattle are seriously emotionally (ooooh, scary word) attached to me. I groom and spend time with all of them and many of them are pretty care-less about it other than the good physical feeling it gives them. The ones with the attachment give me a completely different sort of sense of their emotional/mental state when we're close. Most of you will dismiss this as bunkum, but I find it really interesting and suspect there's far more to it than any of us currently understands.
 

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