Saturday 22nd August - All 25 seen

At 09:00 this morning, the seven Sussex cattle, along with steers 20, 219, and 220, were grazing at the Royal Pavilion end of the site. Cow 1396 was on the grassy patch, grazing contentedly, and was soon joined by cow 212 and steers 219 and 1640. Steer 1640's wound continues to heal nicely and was looking good today. Steers 20 and 220, along with the four remaining Sussex cattle, were grazing in the nearby bramble. All ten were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

At 10:10, older steer 21 was grazing among the bracken near ///rolled.fade.boil, while steers 30, 33, 35, 230, 270, and 271 were grazing further southwest, on the far side of the path near ///join.finds.adjusting. They were all contentedly grazing in the warm sunshine, making the most of the long grass and leaves. They all paused to say hello as I made my way around checking on them. All seven were happy, relaxed, and in good condition.

At 10:50, the remaining eight cattle were gathered at the southeast corner of James Bond Pond. Cows 72 and 940, along with steers 217, 222, 227, and 228, were lying down on the sandy area by the water's edge, relaxing and chewing their cud. Cows 214 and 234 were grazing in the thicket to the south, but after about fifteen minutes wandered over to join the others. Youngster 222 was soon on his feet and came over to say hello, greeting me with gentle head rubs before settling in for an extended neck and back scratch. Over the next while, the others took turns getting up and coming over to greet me, each thoroughly enjoying a long back scratch while relaxing in the sunshine. As I said my goodbyes at noon, they began drifting south, climbing the bank and heading off to graze. All eight were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

As I was leaving, the boys from the second group were resting among the trees and bushes to the west of Horse Pond. Youngster 230 must have been in the pond enjoying the lily pads, as he was soaking wet when he came over for some fuss. By 12:35, eight of the cattle from the first group were resting in the shade of the woodland just along from the cow shed, near the cattle grid, while cows 212 and 1396 were grazing to the east.

The cow shed has also been painted inside and out, covering all the graffiti and giving it a much-needed freshen-up.

The cattle were all good today.

Friday 21st August - All 25 seen

 Between 06:30 - 09:00

All seen in two groups this morning 

///harder.trim.washed this group of 20, including the Sussex’s were spread on and near to the path that runs parallel to the A325. All were good with a few being particularly annoying by getting so far into the gorse I couldn’t get to them. After moving around looking at all of them I eventually managed to view all individually. All were in fine condition.

The remaining five 072,940,227,228 and 222 were at ///countries.innovate.lamp which is close to where the closed off area meets the upper path. Like the rest they were all good and moving up the slope towards the path.

All the cattle were good this morning.

Staff Check - Wednesday 18th

 Belated post for a staff check yesterday. 16 cows and 2 water buffalo were found cooling off by Horse Pond, and the remaining 7 were a little way down the track, chewing the cud and looking well

Wednesday 19th August - All 25 seen

At 16:45 this afternoon, cow 940, along with steers 21, 35, 222, and 228, were gathered at their favourite Sandy Hill corner. They were all relaxing and chewing their cud in the sunshine, with older steer 35 preferring the shade of the apple tree. Cow 940 was the first to come over to say hello, standing beside me for a long neck scratch. Youngster 222 was patiently waiting his turn and, as soon as I was free, came straight over to greet me with gentle head rubs before settling in for a long neck and back rub. Over the next short while, steers 20, 220, 270, and 271, along with cows 72 and 234, came wandering along from the east to join the group. They were all very friendly and happy to be approached for their checks, with most happy to receive plenty of strokes and rubs. Gradually, most of the group wandered off to graze in the shade of the gorse bushes to the north, leaving cows 72 and 940, along with steers 20, 35, 222, and 271, on the corner. All eleven were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

At 17:20, steers 30 and 217 were grazing contentedly in the thicket near the top of Sandy Hill, further east from the first group near ///obey.jammy.retailing. At the bottom of the hill, steers 33, 227, 230, and 1626, along with cow 214, were resting in the bracken beneath a tree near ///tint.footsteps.churn. They were all being bothered by quite a few flies, but the bracken was helping to keep the worst of them at bay. They were happy to receive plenty of strokes as I spent some time with each of them, with youngster 230 especially appreciating a long neck and shoulder scratch. By 17:45, steers 30 and 217 appeared on the hillside to the southeast and wandered through the heather to join the others. All seven were happy, relaxed, and in good condition.

At 18:00, Sussex cow 212 was grazing in the bracken just off the main path near ///guards.span.yard, around 330 metres northeast of Horse Pond. She spotted me approaching and came over to say hello, happy to receive plenty of fuss. The remaining five Sussex cattle and youngster 219 were grazing among the grass and heather in the pasture on the opposite side of the path. I spent a good while with each of them, with cow 211 being especially affectionate and offering plenty of licks after her neck and back scratches. Steer 1640's wound looked much better today and continues to heal nicely. By the time I said my goodbyes at 18:55, all but steers 197 and 219 were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud. The two boys continued grazing in the sunshine. All seven were content, relaxed, and looking well.

The cattle were all good today.

Tuesday 18th August - All 25 seen

At 17:00 this afternoon, a group of seventeen cattle, comprising sixteen members of the original herd along with Sussex steer 1626, were spread out in smaller groups, grazing around the covered reservoir. It was wonderful to see them all looking far more comfortable in the cooler conditions. The hillside just to the northeast of the reservoir was favoured by the five older steers, youngster 217, and cow 214, who were thoroughly enjoying the grass growing around the dense bracken. Cows 72 and 234, along with steers 222, 227, 270, and 1626, favoured the slope to the northwest of the reservoir, where they were happily grazing in the swampy areas close to the Gelvert fence line, with mud reaching all the way up their legs. Youngster 222 was eager to come and say hello, but there was a large, deep swampy area between us. We ended up in a little stand-off, looking at each other for a while as we wondered who was going to brave the mud, but in the end, neither of us did.

The cattle were all very friendly as I made my way around checking on them, happily accepting plenty of strokes and rubs, with back scratches while grazing proving especially popular. All seventeen were happy, relaxed, and looking well.

At 17:55, Sussex cows 211, 212, and 1396 were resting in the bracken on the higher ground to the south of the covered reservoir, near ///candles.stub.freedom. All three were being bothered by large numbers of flies, so were happy for me to sit down beside them and help keep the flies at bay while they relaxed and chewed their cud. Cow 211 was her usual affectionate self, thanking me for a long neck and shoulder rub with gentle head rubs and plenty of licks.

Sussex steers 197, 210, and 1640, along with youngsters 219 and 230, were grazing contentedly further east. They all stopped to say hello and enjoyed plenty of strokes and rubs. Youngster 219 briefly came over to say hello, but it was clear he had more important things on his mind, quickly positioning himself for an extended back scratch, which he thoroughly enjoyed. Steer 1640's wound was looking better today, and it wasn't attracting as many flies. He was keeping it fairly well shielded while grazing in the bracken, which made it difficult to get a close-up photo. The boys were all happy, relaxed, and in good condition.

By 18:50, the majority of the first group had moved further northeast into the pasture near ///printout.snap.duet, where they continued to graze, browsing on leaves from the trees and bushes as well as enjoying plenty of heather. Youngster 222 spotted me approaching and came straight over to greet me with head rubs before enjoying a long neck and back scratch. I said my goodbyes at 19:15, by which time the final members of the group had joined them, leaving the whole group peacefully grazing together.

The cattle were all good today.

Monday 17th August - All 25 seen

 Between 06:45 - 09:15

All seen in three locations this morning 

///incoming.chum.recent (slope leading down to Gelvert fence)  the Sussex’s 219 and 035 they were gradually making their way up the slope towards James Bond pond. 211 and 219 were very friendly this morning enjoying long back rubs and covering my arm in cow dribble!

///driving.etchings.cattle (north west of horse pond) 940,033,021,020 and 072 they were all grazing on what they could find, mainly heather.

///grin.weeks.state (near main path north of horse pond) 214,217,234,228,222,271,230,270,030,220 and 227. This group were more scattered but not far from the main path spread over about 100 metres. 

All the cattle were good this morning.