Eventually found all 3 strung out between: Teasel moving south in I9 - having browsed (acorns?) under leaf litter; and the boys browsing gorse and heather in I6 and 7.  All fit and well.

Looked yesterday at 3.00 pm. Found Teasel and Cronus licking hard on the lick in J12 - looked quite happy, no problems. Clever Clogs some way off in L10, grazing on heather and moving towards the lick - join the other two later? Trough full and working OK.

In N7 with Teasel giving the lick there a real licking!  The boys nearby and all 3 fit and well.

Monday 24th December.

Found all three in M5 this morning. All looking well and in the case of #75, in fine voice too!

At 1310 hrs in and around H12, all browsing gorse around new lick.  All fit and well, if a bit wet and mucky.

Walked throughnothing seen

All looking well and not impressed with my lick..

Tuesday Morning

All three were at he end of the track heading up towards the track off towards the trough.
They were in amongst the gorse.

I called them out and gave them a lick.  All fine. 

Trough full.

At 1245 hrs the 2 boys were browsing gorse and bramble in L13.  Meanwhile, Teasel was walking  away from them, down the back track towards the trough and was not for stopping for a chat with me.  All fit and well, however.

Lick dropped off.

I dropped off a lick for the cattle yesterday. I stashed it in the woods near the railway line so that it's out of the way of dog walkers etc.

The cattle seemed grateful at first then followed me back to the vehicle to see what else I had!

All seen.

Found all three in K12 early this afternoon. All looking fit and well but we'll probably start putting a lick out for them soon to help them get the most from the rough forage.

Found all OK but well spread out. Lola used to keep the boys close, Teasel does'nt seem to bother. Found Cronus in the trees at N7, Teasel on her own in K6 and Clever Clogs in K8. All looking healthy and grazing on gorse - not much else left to graze! Trough full and working OK.

They took some finding but at 1015 hrs they were in J8 with Clever Clogs "hidden" in the deep ditch there!  All fit and well, trying to graze but moving on rapidly up the area.  Trough OK.

None spotted

None spotted.  A tree has fallen over one of the cattle grids near the water trough.  Still usable, but a bit of manual handling required.

All just off the central path in K10.

All doing very well. The boys got excitable when they saw the truck, Teasel was like "pft, men!" And lazily followed them to me  as not to be left out haha. 

All good in Bramshot.

At 1450 hrs all in K12, the boys browsing gorse and Teasel grazing some very short grass.  She has a very minor graze on her back right leg - nothing at all serious.  Otherwise all looking fit and well.

All grazing in the middle of the gorse J8/J9

Looking relaxed and content. Even got a little sun.

Found in N7 all browsing gorse at 1030 hrs.  All fit and well.  Trough OK too.

Found them today at 3.30, deep into the gorse and trees along the path in N8. As Alan said, with Teasel in charge they are popping up all over and have abandoned their old grazing grounds. They seemed to be feeding on the dead gorse and heather among the trees. All looking very clean and healthy. No problems. Trough full and working OK.

Tuesday

Found them early afternoon laid up to the south of the site in the open heath.


All seemed fine.

With Teasel the cows now pop up in different locations to before.  Today at 1315 hrs in the wood edge in I9; Teasel lying, the boys browsing casually on bits of heather greenery.  All fit and well.

All laying up under the cover of wood on this wet day (C4/D4).

Looking well together, no issues or concerns.

Walked through  the site along the railway path. Saw Cronus and Clever Clogs in G4 but no sign of Teasle. The boys were grazing among the trees and looked quite happy without mum.

At 1015 hrs today said a big hello to Teasel who was down cudding while the 2 boys were browsing heather and small fir saplings, all in H6.  All fit and well in their winter coats.

3 cattle on site

3 cattle are now back on site after TB testing

Bovine update

Just spoke to Rosie. They weren't able to test them this week but we can expect 3 cattle on site by next Thursday 'all going well', plus one more eventually.

Teasel plus 1 other will be heading to Great Bramshot on Foxlease so that'll be nice for her.

That's all I have for you for the time being folks.

Lesson 1 - Check blog before going out (in the rain) to check cows.................to find they have been moved for TB test.  However, trough OK!!!

Monday 8th October.

Checked in on the cattle this afternoon. Found them all around K13 and they quickly came over to check out what treats I had in the vehicle.

Straight away I noticed that Lola has a problem with her left eye - a white dot just off centre and the front half of the eye beginning to cloud over and lots of tear staining. It looks like she has a about of New Forest eye so I reported this to the grazing team immediately.

This herd were due to be temporarily moved to Foxlease South on Thursday for TB testing, however, as the grazing team will be herding them up tomorrow to treat Lola's eye problem, they will take the opportunity to move the herd over tomorrow (Tuesday) instead.

The three steers were all on good form. Trough working ok.

At 0945 hrs today Lola was on her own in H14 browsing bits of bramble in amongst the bracken; the boys were in E15 taking sweet chestnuts.  All fit and well.  Trough OK.

Looked at 3.30pm. Restricted access due to army training so unable to find cows. Checked trough - looked OK. Walked the path from the trough to the railway line but unable to follow path from N4 up to N14. Suspect cows were hiding in the gorse in the center of the field among the army cadets.

All seen.

Found the cattle in N14 this afternoon. All looking fit and well and Cronus in fine voice as always!

Cantor's eyes were looking fine today. Think this will be one of those conditions that will flare up every now and then but fortunately doesn't seem to particularly bother him.

Just about spotted them at 11:10 where they were in L6 & K6 spread out in the gorse.  Then at 12:10 we saw them heading away from the trough along the fence on the Pyestock edge, guessing they went to find out what all the noise was about lol.  They all looked fine but didn’t get too close to notice any issues.  Trough checked ok too.

At 1000 hrs today all in M4 looking very fit and well.  Trough OK.  More mushroom picking going on again!  Family of Poles this time.

Today 5.45

71 has sore eyes, red bumps near tear ducks. X

Today at 5.40 pm

All four laying in the sun top right of the heath field, looking pretty grey but OK. Some fatter than others. I've been away so haven't seen them in a while. All good tho. X

At 1700 hrs all close to the trough.  Two cudding and Clever Clogs and Cronus eating fallen sweet chestnuts, sometimes shells and all.  All fit and well.  Trough OK.

Wednesday 9th

Took me a while to find them all as they were quite spread out and some were in the thick gorse to the top end of the site gorse.

All good though
Trough full

All 4 in L11 grazing and looking very fit and well at 0930 hrs today.  Trough OK.  Meanwhile, whilst I was checking the cows, Mrs B was moving on 2 foreign chaps who had picked an industrial quantity of mushrooms off the area. They feigned not to speak English but then did so when she said they would be reported and mushroom/fungi picking was not allowed here.  I expect they will be back, unfortunately!

Belated report: Tue 11th Sept, about 7pm all well

All 4 grazing (greedily chomping more like) around J8, looking well and no problems seen. Mike

Monday

All four animals were in the woods skirting the railway line.  They all came over to see me when the van pulled up.  All were looking fine.

Looked from 0900 - 0930 hrs and found 3 widely spread in K, L and M 11 area.  Those fit and well. No sign of Cronus but I think he was in the middle of very thick gorse I could not penetrate/find a way in.  Another dog walker reported seeing 4 cows earlier, however.

Found nice and easy this morning at around 7:30, all in M9 along the edge of the track together.  Heads down, not bothered by us at all and looking really well. Got a good close up look and apart from some flies couldn’t see anything wrong, even all eyes looked ok. Trough checked ok too.

All good today

Saw all 4 by the water trough today mid-afternoon. 071 eye looked fine. Water trough all good.

Looked at 09.30. Found all four grazing along Southwood Lane (G3, G4). Checked 071, he looked quite healthy and eyes were quite bright. Not sure what I was looking for but he seemed OK. Others all moving  OK and no obvious problems.

All found off the track dividing the middle heaths up.

071 corner of eyes red but not concerning, seen this in a lot of cattle and it usually dissapeares over time. Flies all about the faces giving them all some irritation, but again no concerns. Cooler day today, think they're loving it.

All looking very healthy.

At 7:45 we eventually spotted one in I4 tail wagged head down looking happy.  Well, then we had a challenge finding the others!  There they were spaced out between J5 & K5 in the trees & gorse so couldn’t get close enough but seemed ok.  Trough checked ok too.

Found by the gate in E4. Had a good look at Cantor's (71) eyes; a little bit of pink in bottom corners but otherwise fine.  He does not seem at all bothered by them.  Others all look OK, no evidence of similar problems.  Lola taking fallen acorns.  Trough OK.

Friday 24th August.

Checked in again this afternoon to see how #71 is doing. Only his right tear duct was bloody today although they were both still swollen.

We'll continue to monitor the situation but for now it doesn't seem to be bothering him and isn't getting worse.

Wednesday 22nd August.

Checked on the cattle today and they were as noisey as ever!

#71  has some swelling on the tear ducts of each eye. This has gone bloody too probably where he's rubbed them. There are no signs of New Forest Eye but this is definitely one to monitor for now.

The grazing team will visit over the next couple days to check on him too.

The other three are all fine.

Trough working ok.

At 0915 hrs all in a tight bunch grazing on the track corner in N13.  All fit and well.

Found all 4 at 1.30, grazing in the open area of J11/J12, all moving well, no sign of any problems. The large fir tree in the center of this area has shattered (due to drought ?) and two very large branches are hanging a bit precarious and dangerous for any public or cows that move them. Do we tidy this up? Checked trough - full to top but still very green.

All four grazing in the trees in G12 at 2.30. As we left they moved out onto the grass along thee path. All moving well with no sign of problems. Checked trough - full but looked a bit green.

Lola and boys all at the trough this morning.

By the end of my condition assessment they were moving into the centre.

All looking well.

At about 0920 hrs, after much searching through very tall bracken and gorse, all 4 found very spread out but centred on/in I9.  All in excellent condition.

3.00 pm Wednesday
All 4 meandering through gorse and bracken in J12, grazing on last of the grass. Looking fit and healthy. Checked trough - full to top and working OK.

Today at 6.45 pm

All four grazing m4 up by the gate. Nice it's cooled down a bit x

Hiding from me again! Wasn’t giving up today though.
Eventually found one’s tail wagging above the gorse in J5, then others all spaced out in K6 & 7 then last one in L7 at around 6:30 this morning. All heads down looking busy & enjoying the cooler temperature I guess lol. Trough checked ok too.

All well Monday morning 6th Aug

All 4 were sensibly in the woods, between the heath and the railway line, keeping cool. They were finding the flies annoying but were fine. Water trough full.

At 0845 hrs all in H8, hiding amongst the trees/shade, grazing and browsing, and looking in really great condition.

Today at 9pm

Finally I've found them, wasn't giving in tonight been looking for 1 1/2 hours, been up here many times with no luck. They we hiding amongst the gorse and fern, bottom center of the heath field, they all seem OK, the trough has been working fine although it has got very green and algified. They look soo big, they have all followed me to the path, bit foreboding in the dusk . Haha. All good tho x

The Maps Have Been Found!

The looker maps are now available again. Apologies for the delay in getting this resolved but thanks for your patience.

Rich.

Looked at 1.30. Found all 4 wandering up the path from the trough. Moving OK and look fit and well. Trough working OK, full to top.Left them moving into the trees in F12,G12.

8:30am:  Eventually found them all hiding in the gorse/trees just off the track over Pyestock side (sorry, page not found when I click on the maps so could give grid ref).  Couldn’t get too close but they all looked fine with heads down.  Trough all ok too.

27/07/18 12:25 Cattle found in the gorse

All 4 were well hidden in the gorse in H15.  Spotted the back of one from the track, then had to fight my way into the gorse and brambles to find the next two, then 30m away the last one.  All looked OK.  Sheltering.  Trough was full.

Wed 25th

Found the heard just in from the gate.  All laid up cudding.  all seemed fine

Checked and all ok. Sprayed for fly and ticks as well.

24/07 12:30 Grazing in the gorse

All 4 cattle in the gorse West of the track in M12.  3 together as a group, easy to see, the last one off on her own hidden in the bushes.  This seems to be the same pattern I've seen before.

Today 9pm

All the cows seem fly free and calm in the too left corner of the heath field. X

At 0945 hrs all in L9/10.  Cronus browsing low hanging oak, others grazing.  All fit and well.  Trough OK too.

Looked at 11.30. All four grazing among the trees in J11, J12. looking fit and healthy. Trough full and signs they had been drinking earlier.

Tuesday 17th July

All four were out on the main heath this morning. All looking good.

Trough full and working ok.

At 0850 hrs all in M6.  Lola and 2 boys standing close together, Clever Clogs some way off lying down.  All very well; just coping with the flies.  Trough OK too.

I cycled through at around the same time as the previous post

and will add that the water trough was full

Today at 12.40

All four grazing happily in the open area in front of the group of pines. Seems very calm here today. Last night at 8.30 they were all in the heath field. X

Looks like i got an easy spot today, all around trough.

Looking thier usual, healthy, selves. Lola last to get to the trough.

Found Them!! - 2,00 pm . Laying under a lone tree in K11. Had to deviate from the main path to see them as the bracken and gorse is quite high around there. They looked OK, some fly trouble resulting in a lot of head shaking. Checked trough - full to top.

They were hiding very well early this morning, I had to give up
I’m afraid due to the time but water trough was all good.

None spotted but wate trough full

At 0740 hrs all in L10/11 munching grass and young heather.  All fit and well.

All spotted in the shade of trees together. All looking in good condition.

Trough full and on.

Checked at 3.00 pm. Could not find the cows! I walked the square around the heath field - no sign. Possibly keeping cool in the trees at the far end of the site around A5, A8 - I did not get that far. Maybe they were just hiding in the bracken. Checked trough, that seems to be working OK and was full to the top.

Today at 8.30 pm

All four standing in the center of the heath field, it's cooled download this evening so it must be more comfortable for them. They seem fine. Trough is fine x

Today at 0820 hrs; all fit and well in I11.  Despite the grass, Lola tucking in to fresh bramble.  Trough OK.

Thursday 28th

Mid morning the herd were all out in the middle of the heath.  All seemed fine.

Looked at 2.30. Found all four laying, very relaxed chewing cud, in the shade under trees by the path in H7. Checked trough - full and available for them when needed. No problems.

Today at 1.50

All four hanging out under the laurel by the first gate, looking very hot and flie ridden. There's these small flies with spotted with that seem to be feeding on their blood. Dry grass after none must be annoying x

At about 0945 hrs all 4 grazing very contentedly in M9 despite a constant procession of people and dogs all around them.  All cows look to be in excellent condition.

Wednesday 20th June.

All four were near to the last cattle grid down Bramshot Lane this afternoon. All looking good and happily grazing away. Trough working and ok.

At 0945 hrs this morning all 4 were lying together contentedly cudding in M11.  Trough OK too.

Today at 3pm

All 4 contentedly laying under the big oak where the hay was put xx

Checked at 1.30 and found all 4 in the heath area around J7, K8. All grazing quite happily no problems. Checked trough - all OK - water looks cleaner now.

All good Monday 11th

All 4 were grazing out on the open heath on Monday afternoon despite the heat and humidity and all looked very well. Checked the trough and that was fine as well.

10am this morning they were all spread out over I/J/K10 along the verge of the track grazing happily, they all looked fine but I didn’t get up close as both my dogs were preoccupied! Anyway moving on, trough checked all ok to.  Walked along much of the fence line and all appears good there too.  Noticed nearly all the gate signs have been destroyed now so not sure if they need replacing...
I’m on holiday now for 2 weeks so unable to covers tuesdays until 3rd July onwards, wish me luck as we’re going to Wales! Lol

At 1710 hrs all just lying quietly in the shade in L9.  All fit and well.

Sunday 10/6 @ 5.30pm all well

All ok, however Lola (who seems to have lost an ear tag by the way), was sitting down (for about 10-15mins) when we got there with one of the younger males nudging her, we were a bit concerned but she eventually got up and started grazing, she seemed ok if not a little listless, other lookers might want to keep an eye on her ...

Today at 7.35 pm

All 4grazing happily under the patch of oaks central left heath field , looking rather spotted black and orange where their winter fir has now gone. All seems very well. X

Today at 5pm

All four happily grazing in front of the group of pines. X

Checked at 11.00 given limited access due to Cadet Training in I11, J2. Found all 4 cows grazing through trees in G16, H16, all looked fit and well. Checked trough - full and working OK. On route back saw all 4 cows heading into the training area - they obviously did not read the "no entry" signs and were not bothered by the gun fire.

Lola and boys hoovering up the grass on the tracks North north east of site.

Zero ticks, zero cares, all character 😉

At 1645 hrs today all 4 lying in a tight bunch under shade of big trees in M6.  All calm and well, if a bit troubled by flies.  At one point Lola even had a magpie perched on her head.

Friday

On foot today I found the herd in the middle of the open heath.  All seemed fine, not sure why but they obviously thought I had something for them and they followed me back to the car park.

Found all 4 laying in the wet grass in J12 at 11.00 hours. All looking fit and healthy, chewing cud. Checked trough - full and functioning.

At 1015 hrs Lola was in I7 alone and grazing.  The boys were together in H8 grazing and browsing scrub.   All fit and looking very well.

FYI

I'm away from today til the 2/6 x

Today at 7pm

All four happily grazing to the left of the centre path through the heath field. X

Spotted

Spotted all 4 this morning just grazing the fence line over the cattle grid just over the railway bridge.  All appeared in good health.

Today at 3pm

All four laying around under the lone scotch pine top left of the heath field. They all look very well indeed x

23rd May

All cattle fly sprayed. All well.

Today 6pm yesterday 2pm

No sign either visit, trough is fine though. Have walked all round their area but can't see them x

Checked this afternoon at 3.00. All four laying in the sun in the dried out puddle in M4. Looking very relaxed, quietly chewing cud.

Although I’ve seen Guys post for this afternoon, I had checked on them earlier this morning. At 7:30am they were scattered around F4, 5 & 6, heads down, all looked fine. Trough checked ok too.

Lola and boys sheltering under oak off central track next to another portaloo on the deck.

Looking good. Trough full and on. 

All four laying about looking lazy, chewing cud at 3.30 in L10. No problems. Checked trough - filled to the top and looking OK.

All found in L4 at 0920 hrs.  All fit and well and grazing voraciously.  Army cadet instructor training about to start in the centre of the area.

Today at 4.40

Couldn't get close to the cows as it no entry because of army training, but the cows are all stood very near a white transit along the left path up the heath field, they seem fine, looks like they are queueing for the port loo. X

All in the scrub in E6/D6. Probably avoiding troops practicing.

A lot of troop activity on two thirds of the reserve today, pyrotechnics. Glad to see that I didn't see any members of the public within the zone.

Boys and Lola looking very well, glossy eyes, clean coats.

All in C6 at 7:30 this morning happily grazing in the shade, all looked fine. Trough checked ok.
In I7, there was a group of what looked like 4 lads (in their 20’s maybe) hanging around, had been camping out by the looks of it! Good job my JRT’s make a lot of noise so alerted me to them...just thought I’d mention this.  Also, was good to see a couple of folk out early picking up litter & dog poo!!  Well done to them!

At about 0945 hrs all well and all 4 grazing happily in M10, or thereabouts.  All fit and well. Had a long conversation with a lady who was very interested in the cows and why they are there.

Today at 12pm

All four happily grazing along the center path on the heath field x

All spotted laying up under a big oak just off the central track and portaloo

Another lovely day so they were getting some shade. All looking very well indeed.

All the girls were in J4 at 09:15 this morning, heads down eating whatever they could find.  Maybe it’s me but they don’t look as plump as they did during the winter.  Anyway, they all looked fine, one appeared bothered by the flies but apart from that all looking good. I checked the trough and all ok there too.

Found all four in C16, near the trough at 7.30. All quite relaxed and grazing alongside the footpath. Lola seems to prefer the brambles, the lads on the new grass. No problems.

Today at 11.30

Can't find them today but trough is fine and water in it looks really clean x

All fit and well at 0930 hrs in M4  and 5. All grazing; Lola in the shade, Cronus "paddling" in the wet scrape, the other 2 out in the morning sun.

Wednesday Afternoon

All four were browsing bramble and grazing the woodland grasses near to the car park.  They were al relaxed and fine.

Ckecked today at 3.30. Army were practising around J8,J9 - lots of gunfire noise. Checked trough , all OK. Found cows hiding in D4, D5, somewhat spread out but quite relaxed grazing on new grass and brambles.

All spotted in F and G14

All spread out across F and G14 grazing or browsing young bramble growth at 1215 hrs + Lola doing a 50m "sprint" at one point for some unknown reason.  All well, though Cantor has what looks like a very minor graze at the very top of his left rear leg.  Trough OK.

Visited today at 7.25.

All four grazing top right hand corner of the heath field, there was a dog barking at the but left fairly quickly after I explained to the owner that it will get hurt. X

Today at 5.45

All four over at the path that leads up from the trough in the woods about half way up. Lola munching away on young bramble leaves, two of the boys rubbing /butting heads and the other over by the fence. Trough is fine. X

Today 5.45

Just spotted them  at the end of the path that runs along the bottom of the heath field. From a bit of a distance all looks well but am in a hurry to leave now so not going over x

Today at 5.40

Can't seem to find them again today
X

Today at 10.15

Couldn't find them yesterday today they all seem very contented heads down munching away in the left of the heath field x

Spotted them in the woods off I9 so left them thier lick there.

All looking well and happily not showing as much tick activity as other sites, so far so good. All the herds will be dosed between now and 3 weeks time in any event.

Checked today at 3.30. All four laying down in the gorse bushes in I8 looking relaxed, chewing cud and basking in the sunshine. No problems. Trough is full and working OK.

All fit and well and grazing in M4 at 1645 hrs.

Late post,

Visited yesterday 19/4,at 11am. All four grazing happily, just in front of the group of pines, clever clogs did come over to me and shook his head up and down, in a go away fashion, I said no. He was also trying to mount lola, power struggle perhaps.
Trough is full and working fine x

Found all four spread out in the gorse bushes around L4, M4. All moving well no problems. Grazing on the gorse and whatever they find in the dry grasses. Saw Cantor drinking form the puddle of water in N4, no need for a trough for him. Checked the trough - looks to be working OK and is full.

The lads and lady were in the middle and Sun bathing.

Ivw given them a lick off the main track that divides the site in 2 down the middle. I was then followed for most of my reptile felt re'vamp!

All looking very well. 

In L and M10 at 1445 hrs.  Lola lying cudding, boys grazing.  All fit and well.

Today at 5.45

All four grazing around the center right of the heath field, all seems calm and well. X

Today at 1.15

All four grazing by the first gate to the green field. All seems well. Trough is very full x

Checked at 4.30. All four grazing on gorse and young saplings in G5. looking quite relaxed - no problems.

All laying up against the fence in C4.

Looking very well. No issues to report.

I'e also revamped several of the Reptile felts and while doing so, saw 3 adders! 😊

THursday 5th April (belated post)

Saw all four in H6 yesterday afternoon. All looking fit and well.

Today at 6.15 pm

All four munching away, 75 approached me but no problems, they seem happier and more interested. All at the middle right of the heath field. Xx

Checked the cows at 4.00 pm. Found all 4 on their feet grazing the gorse in I7. They looked quite relaxed, no problems. Checked the trough - all working OK.

Today at 7.15pm

All four grazing in the heath field, bit of mooing going on but seem generally OK x

About 1030 hrs all in N/O14.  All fit and well.  Cronus almost hidden in high gorse!

Looked at 2.30. Found all 4 in K14, laying together in a close huddle, looking quite relaxed, chewing cud. No sign of any problems. Checked trough, full to brim (rain water?).

Today at 4.40

The three younger males seem really agitated, lola is nowhere to be seen, clever clogs was running around and 71 baying. Where's mum. X

Cattle Wellbeing and Monday Check.

With regards to previous posts raising concerns about the cattle - obviously this time of year is quite hard on them due to lack of lush vegetation. However, please rest assured that we keep a close eye on them and are constantly monitoring their condition and general health.

Research shows that cattle spend around 14 hours a day lying down and approximately 6 hours a day chewing the cud (dependant on forage type). It is important for cattle to have this downtime as it is when they ruminate and also their opportunity to rest and dry off etc. Bearing those figures in mind it is more likely that you'll see the animals at rest on your visits. Understandably if you experience this this over several consecutive visits it can start to appear that the animal(s) are potentially listless or out of character.

However, this is not to say that some of the behaviour you see and report is not out of the ordinary and we always investigate such reports. With this in mind I checked in on the cattle yesterday afternoon after several blog posts about lethargy etc.

All four cattle were actively grazing when I found them and after a quick investigation of me they resumed their browsing activities. Two of the youngsters were grazing the first small grasses coming through while the other youngster was grazing heather. Lola, meanwhile, was happily browsing on birch scrub. Condition wise Lola is looking as good as ever and the youngsters are looking as one would expect for this time of year. They're not thin but are obviously slightly down in condition but that is understandable given the rougher forage that they are tackling at the moment.

With the first of the grasses beginning to come through now they will start to get more opportunity to graze on more lush forage. In the meantime we will continue to monitor them and will take appropriate action if the need arises.

I hope this goes someway to helping you all feel better about the cattle but if you have any follow up queries or concerns then feel free to get in contact with me.

Regards

Rich.

Just 30 mins after Joanne.  All in M11.  Lola and Castor licking a "brown dustbin" on the ground with gusto.  Assume its a cattle lick?  Cronus and Clever Clogs browsing heather and young gorse.

Today at 4.00pm

All four spread out in the clearing, top, right of the heath field. Seem much happier today. X

Today at 5.30

All four laying down in amongst the young birch trees not far from the main carpal side gate. Me three kids and two dogs didn't make them even twitch. Hope they are OK. Honestly sounds like there a t rex in the woods, it's heart wrenching, tell me off but I'm going to gather some grass for them Xx

Today 6.30

Lola eating Heather

Today at 6.25pm

All cattle mid heath field. One baying very loudly indeed. Bring on the grass. They are eating the Heather x

Looked today at 2.00. Found all 4 cows in G15, laying down chewing cud. As Joanne reported they do look a bit listless although no sign of any problems. Checked trough which is working OK.

Today at 3.20

I've come past them again very near this time, they seem totally lethargic, I'm a bit worried they have barely registered me or the dogs. Are they conserving their energy thro lack of food. Are they OK?? There poos are really small x

Today at 3.20

I've come past them again very near this time, they seem totally lethargic, I'm a bit worried they have barely registered me or the dogs. Are they conserving their energy thro lack of food. Are they OK?? There poos are really small x

Today at 2.40

All four lying in the clearing at the to right corner of the heath field. They seem to be very calm and soaking up the sun. X

All among gorse around 4pm today

All looking well as per Alan's post. Dropped them off a lick. You have to guess where from the below pics.

All fit and well in M3 at 1500 hrs today.  Lola lying cudding, the boys browsing on some feeble looking heather.  Snow fast disappearing, so better forage should appear soon.  Surprised they were not taking nearby gorse that is in abundance there.

All fine today.

All four were in the woods near the railway this morning. All looking fit and well.

Looked at 3.30 (just missed Joanne!). Found all 4 in the trees in C8, C9. Not a lot of forage. Lola was working on the holly bushes, the three lads scrimaging about in the dead leaves and litter. No problems. Checked trough, seems to  be working OK again - full to the brim.

Today at 4.15

All four heads down amongst the gorse bushes just off the bottom path of the heath field. All quite and calm

Today at 2.40 pm

All the cows are by the main gate from the first car park, once again no 71 is mooing loudly. They are standing where there is nothing what so ever to eat. Looking quite tall and slim. Roll on new growth x

After a long walk around eventually found all 4 in E6 at 1000 hrs.  Not much for them there but browsing some bramble.  All are fit and well.  Trough OK too.

Today at 4.40 pm

The three younger cows are still hanging out by the hay bale (don't blame them), lola was a little further down the path but still keeping a watchful eye. X

Bored with hay now; browsing felled pine needles in I12 at 1345hrs.

Not moved very far from last blog haha.

All laying up not 10ft from hay. Looking very content. Trough full. Back to business!

Today at 5pm

The cows looking very contented with their hay bale, staying very close to it, even laying on it. The trough is now very full and on testing is working well x

Friday 2nd March - Water Situation.

After Jo's call to Guy I went over to Bramshot Heath to sort out the water situation. I scooped a load of the slush out of the trough which left them quite a bit of water available.

There is also a large scrape around L6/M6 which holds a lot of water at this time of year (more like a pond!) so I broke up a load of the ice covering this so that the cattle could access the water.

There's now plenty of water available for them and I'll be out again to double check and re-break the ice if required. Looks like it is going to be mild tomorrow with rain moving in tonight so hopefully it'll all thaw out quite quickly.

Jo, thanks for reporting the water shortage. It shows how quickly they can deplete a trough full once the supply freezes up.

Today at 4.20

Water trough has about three inches of green water /slush /ice in the bottom and the ball cock have a huge mass of ice around it. Its not working. Have called guy x

Today at 3.50

All four huddled around the hay bale munching away, they must think all their Christmas's have come at once xx

1.3.18 - 3.30pm

Given the snow and weather forecast hay has been put out for the cattle this afternoon - enough to last them into the week-end.

Today 27/2 2pm

All four cows laying down by the side of the main path running thro the heath field could hardly see them as its white with snow out here and still snowing. The trough is fine

All fit and very well; gathered around the trough at 1100 hrs today.  Trough OK, ice had been broken.

Late Post - Thursday 22nd February.

I spent the day working with a team of volunteers from one of our corporate supporters (Siemens) yesterday. We concentrated on cutting down some young pine and burning the arisings.

The cattle spent most of the day with us conveniently munching the young branches off the pine trees as they were felled! They then spent the last hour of the day gathered around the fire and as you can see from Jo's earlier post - they like to get nice and close!

They're all looking well and they provided some entertainment for the day.

Today (22/2) at 3.30

Very strange the 2 are standing really close to a fire, one set by the guy chopping trees in the bottom right corner of the heath field,
Keeping warm I guess.

looked at 12.30. Checked trough. Working OK but a dogwalker with 6 charges had dogs bounding around the trough and drinking from the doggie bowl. One large labradore jumped into the trough and took a bath. Suggested to the dogwalker that this should not happen and was assured it will not again! Found the cows among the trees in C12. They looked quite relaxed, not making any sounds. Cantor and Cleverclogs were lying down, Lola and Cronus just standing chewing cud.

Today (19/2) at 2.20

No sign today, didn't have long enough to do a full scale search. X

At 1345 hrs today, all lying cudding in L11.  Lola close with Cantor and Cronus, and Clever Clogs a bit further off but all looking fit and very contented.

Today 3.30

It's cow number 75 (can't remember his name) that's making very high pitched screech sounds. I must say it does sound odd coming from a cow. Perhaps his voice hasnt broken yet. X

Today at 3.30, 15/2

All four in the clearing at the top right hand corner of the heath field, all calm x

Looked this morning at 11.30. Found cows in L5 grazing on heather and gorse. They looked quite calm and content. No strange noises. Missed the trough but it is warmer now so no ice problems.

(belated report from yesterday by a local dog walker). Reported to Fleet Pond by accident.

Just had a nice chat with a lady from the Fleet Pond team regarding a lady walker her dog witnessing one of the 'cows' (could just be Lola) making very strange and unusual noises? Apparently this person had a farming background.

We get these reports a lot during this time of year. Its either about the 'lack of food' which I am hoping you guys understand is NOT usually an issue e.g. all of our herds changing diets to woodier vegetation during winter instead of the grass everyone expects them to eat), or 'charging' or disgruntled cattle which make noises.

I suspect the herd were attracted in one way or another to the person hoping for a snack, especially if said person had a plastic bag on them. They can get quite excitable and will definitely make loud noises, with a bonus skip and a jump. This will all look very out of place to anyone walking. Come April when the grasses start to grow again, these problems start to fade.

Please be aware of these scenario's and by all means advise accordingly, I can trust you guys to do us proud! And by all means pass on our number 01256 381190 for more information.

All the best,

Guy

Monday afternoon

Found them all out int he middle of the heath, they all came over to my van expectantly.

All looked fine.

Today at 3.40

All four eating gorse along the top path of the heath field, all seems well x

All fit and browsing heather and gorse in L7 at about 0920 hrs.

Friday 9th 18.45

All 4 fine and well this afternoon - unusually they were split up and took a bit of finding but all fine.

Today at 2.20

All three munching away in the gorse bushes in front of the group of pines at the bottom of the heath field. It's great they all still look quite fat consider the time of yr x

Today at 3pm

All four busy in amongst the gorse bushes by the path running through the center of the heath field. All peaceful and well x

Found all four in N5, grazing on gorse. All looking healthy. No sign of the cut on Lola's neck, must have healed OK. Took ice off the trough and noted water was flowing OK, full to the top.

Today at 5.30

All seems fine, but very cold. All four scouting around for food in the central area of the heath field x

Bit late posting! Seen at 1000 hrs.  All well. Lola's neck OK.  All browsing bramble in H11

Sunday 4th Jan @ 16:00 - all looking well

All 4 looking ok, all together healthy and happy no problems seen. Mike

Josh just had a good look at Lola and its as if the wound was never there. Awkward..

Bit of luck, no more problem. But if there is another bleed in the same area, we now know it'll more than likely be ok and sort itself out.

Had a good look over Lola's neck by sticking her head in a bucket if nuts..

The only way i was getting close  enough this morning was bribery. Closer inspection revealed a lump as reported earlier. The wound must have opened up again but was no longer bleeding by the time i got there. Sent pics and description to the grazing team who have concluded the following:

Caught / burst abcess from TB check (thus the lump). No concern if bleeding has stopoed. Please monitor for further bleeding. 

Lola doesn't appear bothered in the slightest. 

Thanks all. 

Neck injury reported on heifer at Bramshot

Just to let you all know that we have just had a report come in of an injury on the neck of one of the animals at Bramshot (looker reported that it was the heifer, but she could not see any ear tags).

A mark has been noted on her neck in the past few days, so it is possible that she has just knocked the scab off, causing a fresh run of blood.

We will be checking on her this morning and will follow up with the grazing team if required.

Thanks

Susanne

Wed 31st

Out on Bramshot all day today with NERT clearing scrub - the 4 came to inspect our work. All 4 looking well.

Found all 4 in L11 grazing in rough grass and young gorse. Noted the mark on Lola's neck which seemed to be dry. No problems - they all looked quite happy. Trough OK.

All 3 boys and Lola in the middle among the gorse around K9

All looking well. The boys are catching up with Lola! Thought she looked smaller, but think it might be the boys looking bigger! Regardless, all doing well.

Clevor Clogs being all confident and brash in complete contrast to Cantor who's a bit of a wuss haha!Lola has her hands full.

All in I10 at about 1145 hrs.  The young lads all OK but Lola seemingly has no ear tags at all and has a one-inch but superficial cut on left side of her neck on a slight lump there.

Found all four standing together in G5 quietly chewing cudd. They looked a bit sorrowful but no obvious problems. We had very high winds and heavy rain yesterday so they are just recovering.
Trough full and working OK.

All shwlterig in the small copse M5 / N5.

Gave them some cattle nuts and had a good look at them. Theyre all doing very well and in great condition for this time of year.

She's looking after them isnt she. They're getting bigger mind! Wont be long before she struggles to keep order!

BIG FLYTIP (truck load) of tree cuttings at entrance/car park to area.  Cows grazing and cudding in K12 at about 1230 hrs.  All fit and well.

Tuesday Early afternoon

All four were grazing out in the middle of the heath and came over at the site of the van which was handy! Gave them a few nuts for their trouble.

All looking fine!

At about 1230 hrs today all fit and well in H7. Lola browsing holly, Clever Clogs and Cantor browsing bramble whilst Cronus had a large mouthful of juncus.  Trough OK too.

WEDNESDAY 10th.
Saw the cows at 3.00 pm today grazing in K10. No problems all looked fit and healthy. Trough full and  OK.

Tue 9th Jan

Checked them today and all four looking well, unusually up towards the railway line. Checked water trough and it was full, so all good.

Checked cows at 2.00 pm. Very windy. Clever Clogs lying in the trees in H14 (out of wind), Lola and other two grazing along path in J13, H13. All seem quite happy. Checked trough, full to top - seems to be working OK.

Tuesday 2nd January.

All seen today in I10. Lola was on the edge of the woods while the three youngsters were amongst the trees.

All looking fit and well, trough all good.