At 08:50 this morning, cows 72 and 940 were grazing on fresh grass on the slope southeast of James Bond Pond, near ///rant.binder.fried. It was a foggy start, but the sun soon burned it off. The girls were both very friendly, stopping to greet me and enjoy plenty of strokes. They were both happy, relaxed, and in good condition.
By 09:05, youngster 222 was grazing along the edge of the woodland at the southeast corner of the pond. He was very affectionate, offering gentle head rubs after an extended neck scratch. Older steer 21 was browsing gorse along the northern edge of the woodland, while youngsters 220, 227, and 230 were enjoying leaves in the thicket along the raised eastern side of the pond. Cows 214 and 234, along with steer 33, were browsing gorse at the northeast corner. Cow 234 had obviously been rubbing against a tree at some point, as the left side of her head and body was covered in grey dust.
After a while, most of the group began to gather on both sides of the main path further west and settled down to chew their cud in the sunshine. There were plenty of people and dogs about, but the cattle were largely left undisturbed. By 10:00, youngster 228 and yearlings 270 and 271 joined the group, having been grazing further northeast. Youngster 228 stopped for a drink from the pond before deciding it was the perfect place to enjoy a neck scratch. All eleven were happy, relaxed, and looking well.
By 10:10, I moved into the pasture north of the pond to check on the remaining cattle. I was pleased when the group by the path followed me, moving them away from the busy area with many dogs.
The remaining twelve cattle, including the seven Sussexes, were spread out across the pasture, either resting or grazing. Stteer 35 was further north near ///sizing.attic.receive, browsing gorse. After a while, the combined group drifted west to the far side of the mound, where they grazed briefly before settling down in the heather to rest and chew their cud in the sunshine. They were all very friendly, happily accepting strokes and rubs as they relaxed.
By the time I said my goodbyes shortly before 11:30, all but steers 21 and 30 were lying down, with the two boys continuing to graze among the gorse. Several of the cattle had dozed off in the warm sunshine, some even lying stretched out on their sides. They were all calm and content as I left.
As I was leaving the site shortly before noon, I checked on cows 72 and 940 again, who had moved to the far western end of Sandy Hill and were still grazing on the lush grass.
The cows were all good today.
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