Sunday 31st August - All 25 seen

At 09:50 this morning, all eighteen members of the Caesar's original herd, along with Sussex cow 1396 and steer 1626, were spread out grazing in the pastures northeast of Horse Pond. Steers 21, 35, and 227, were grazing near ///rejects.blip.reds, while cows 72 and 940 were much further northeast near ///heckler.bars.waged. The rest of the herd was scattered in between.

The cattle were very friendly as I made my way around them, with most stopping to greet me and enjoy some strokes. Many settled in for long neck and back rubs before lying down to relax and chew their cud. It was lovely to spend some peaceful time with them.

By 10:50, most of the herd had moved north to lie down and chew their cud near ///play.salmon.grief. Steers 20, 21, 270, and 271, along with the two Sussex cattle, stayed in the southern pasture, settling near ///defaults.rushed.deaf, with the yearlings tucking themselves away in the bracken. I happily divided my time between both groups for another hour. They were all happy, relaxed, and in excellent condition.

At some point, youngster 230 had wandered off alone towards Horse Pond. I found him just after 11:50 grazing east of the pond near ///agency.jigging.aced. While he was enjoying plenty of grass, he was also crunching on acorns. After a long back rub, I encouraged him to leave the area and head back to the others with me. He wasn’t exactly enthusiastic—stopping for a drink from a deep puddle and then stopping to graze every few metres. It felt very much like, “If you won’t let me eat what I want, and you’re going to babysit me, so I don’t sneak back, I’m going to move as slowly as possible!” 🤣🤣. We finally rejoined the others at 12:30, by which time most had returned to grazing.

At 12:45, I found the remaining five Sussex cattle at the Sandy Bowl. As I made my way down, a heavy shower passed through, but by the time I arrived there was glorious sunshine. Cow 211 was grazing in the woodland to the east, outside the Nofence boundary, while the other four soon settled down near ///offer.list.meant to relax and chew their cud. They were all very friendly, enjoying plenty of strokes to keep flies off their faces. I said my goodbyes at 13:15, leaving them all resting peacefully.

The cows were all good today.