Sunday 19th April - All 25 seen

At 10:00 this morning, a group of nine steers were gathered near their favourite Sandy Hill corner. Steers 30, 217, 220, 222, 228, 270, and 271 were resting and chewing their cud in the sunshine, while older steers 21 and 35 had wandered west to graze among the gorse. The boys were all friendly, coming over to say hello and enjoy some strokes. Youngsters 222 and 228 were especially friendly, taking turns to enjoy long neck and back scratches, returning the affection with gentle head rubs. They would go and lie down while the other received attention. Youngster 227 had been grazing at the far eastern end of Sandy Hill, and youngster 230 was near the pill box. By 10:35, both had wandered along to greet me and enjoy some strokes. Before I left at 11:00, several of the cattle had moved into the gorse to graze in the shade. All thirteen were happy, relaxed, and in good condition.

At 11:05, the seven Sussex cattle were found further west along Sandy Hill, near ///dissolve.fast.regaining. Cow 211 and steers 210 and 1640 were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud, and were happy to be approached for scratches. The other four continued grazing for a while, before cow 212 and steers 197 and 1626 lay down to rest. Cow 1396 wandered over for a back scratch, wriggling from side to side and stretching her neck, clearly loving every second. All seven were happy and healthy.

By 11:30, the final seven cattle were found northeast of the water tower. Steers 20 and 33 were grazing under the shade of the trees, enjoying leaves and grass growing around the bushes. Cows 214 and 234 were resting together on one grassy island, while cows 72 and 940, along with steer 219, were resting on another behind them. They were all very friendly, allowing me to approach and give them plenty of strokes. There were a few flies around, and they were happy for me to sit close, helping to keep them away. Youngster 219 stretched out on his side for a long belly rub, before cow 940 got up and approached for a back scratch. All seven were happy and healthy. As I was saying my goodbyes at 12:05, they began to get up and drift off to join the boys.

As I was leaving, I passed the Sussex cattle again, now all lying down on both sides of the main path, relaxing in the sunshine.

The boys were all lying down at their favourite corner, with most resting on the grass bund, either chewing their cud or snoozing, while a few rested on the harder ground below. After a short while, youngster 222 came over for more strokes and eventually rested his head on my shoulder as I knelt, dozing off. I said my goodbyes at 13:05, leaving them all content.

The cows were all good today.

Saturday 18th April - All 25 seen

At 09:20 this morning, a group of seven cattle were gathered near their favourite Sandy Hill corner. Cows 72, 214, 234, and 940, along with steers 33, 219, and 1626, were resting and chewing their cud in the sunshine. They were all very friendly, coming over to say hello and enjoy some strokes. Cows 72 and 940 both enjoyed long neck and back scratches, while youngster 219 particularly enjoyed standing in the sunshine and having his neck stroked. By 09:55, older steer 20 emerged from the gorse a little further east and wandered over to say hello. All eight were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

At 10:10, youngster 270 was grazing in front of the cow shed, while older steer 35 was scratching himself against a post in the woodland on the far side of the wooden footbridge. Youngster 227 was grazing nearer the Bourley Road car park and soon stopped to greet me and enjoy some strokes. As I made my way back to the other two, he followed, then went into the cow shed to rest in the shade. The boys were happy and healthy.

By 10:30, steers 217, 220, 222, 228, and 271 were resting in the grassy area at the Royal Pavilion end of the site. They were all very friendly, allowing me to approach and give them plenty of strokes. After a while, youngster 222 got up and came over for a long back scratch. By 10:50, youngster 230 and older steers 21 and 30 joined the group, having finished grazing in the thicket to the southeast. They all came over to say hello before lying down to rest. All eight were content, relaxed, and in good condition. As I was leaving at 11:05, the group of three steers were making their way through the woodland to join them.

At 11:15, Sussex steer 210 was lying down, relaxing and chewing his cud in the shade to the south of the covered reservoir, near ///ship.hiker.irritate, while steer 1640 grazed nearby. A short time later, steer 197 emerged from the thicket to the northeast and came over to greet me and enjoy a neck scratch. The boys were happy, relaxed, and in good condition. By 11:35, cows 211, 212, and 1396 were resting in the bracken on higher ground about 110 metres to the southeast. They looked very comfortable, with the bracken helping to shield them from the flies. They were very friendly and happy to be approached for strokes and rubs, with cow 211 returning the affection with plenty of licks. The girls were content, relaxed, and in good condition. As I was saying my goodbyes at noon, the boys had climbed the hill and were grazing to the west of where the girls were lying.

The cows were all good today.

Friday 17th April - All 25 seen

 Between 08:30 - 11:00

All have been seen this morning in roughly two areas.

The original herd of 18 were all at the Aldershot end of the site…

///calm.intro.spin (pavilion end of Sandy bowl) 072,940,219,214 and 234

///chained.farms.polite (between cow shed and pavilion) the remain 13 members of the original herd.

///unfilled.approve.fortunes (path alongside Sandy Hill Road) 212,197,211,210,1396 and 1626.

///officials.fewest.tortoises (lower path parallel to Sandy Hill Road) 1640

I noticed that Sussex 197 had a cut on his side but it looked to be a few days old and had no signs of bleeding. Apart from that all the cattle were good this morning.