The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Cattle => Topic started by: bigchicken on May 24, 2013, 11:16:53 pm
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A couple of my daughter's pals came to my door asking me for help a Holstein stirk was stuck in a soft boggy part of the farmers field. I went along with a piece of rope to see what I could do, managed to get it out after a struggle and on to its feet a bit wobbly to start with but walked slowly and seemed ok. My point is should I tell the farmer who I know slightly about what happened, he must know about the danger to his animals.
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Why would you not tell the farmer?
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The farmer has stirks in this field every year and must know the danger to his animals so what good would it do telling him something he already knows about and has done nothing about over many years. I would like to tell him about my concerns for the safety of his animals and that he should do something about it, I think he would just ignore me and that would anger me and I would have to go to animal health or SSPCA and I don't want to get that involved.
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Could the parents of your daughter's pals tell him? Might be easier all round if a stranger did it (always assuming they don't know him personally).
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Oh, ok. Well, if your attitude to the farmer is going to be telling him how to do his job then yes, probably better to say nothing.
However, I doubt he knowingly keeps valuable stock in a field where they are likely to come to harm - perhaps there's a field drain has bust under there, making it wetter and more dangerous than it would usually be. He probably does know he's got a bust drain, and probably has a plan as to when he'll fix it, but perhaps doesn't realise it has become boggy enough to be dangerous to the stirks. He'll see the mud on the legs and body of the one you pulled out, and will assume the stirk has been in the wet patch but has got out ok. So, if it were me, I would, without judgement and with humility, mention to him that the stirk had been stuck and that you and the neighbours got ropes on it to it to help it out.
By the way, did either your neighbours or yourself contact the farmer at the time to see if he wanted to come and help his own beast?
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Not trying to tell the farmer how to do his job, just not the way I would have things. While passing today the farmer was setting up to dose the beasts and I told him what had happened, he thanked me and said that this part of the field was always wet leakage from the loch and nothing he could do about it and the stirk was missing. It's a very rough field with rushes and whines so it is difficult to see. As far as I,m concerned I would try to help any animal in difficulty as this is part of my caring nature I would like to think that if any of my animals got into trouble that someone would help but maybe this is an old fashion idea what with the way people think now a days. An old saying it's nice to be nice.
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I'm glad you told him, and I'm glad he thanked you. I'm like you, I wouldn't leave any animal in distress if I could help and had reason to think that no-one else would or could. :-*