Monday 26th August - All 25 seen - Steer 20 is injured & steers 35 and 230 have cuts

Steer 33 and cow 72 were found grazing around ///smug.recorders.stuff at 10:55 this morning.  There was a large military presence in the area.  They soon moved quickly to the trees near ///sits.else.query, seemingly searching for other cows.

Steers 219, 220, 222, 227, 228, 270 and 271, along with cows 214 and 234, were happily grazing near ///snipe.depth.basis at 11:15.  They were all very friendly and came over to say hello. They then continued grazing, slowly moving southeast and reaching ///polar.firms.honey by 11:30. Steer 33 and cow 72 emerged from the thicket to join them, prompting lots of mooing. The cows were all looking well, although there was no change to steer 219's eye today.

The seven Sussex cattle were happily grazing in the pasture near ///wink.cork.monkey at 11:45.  They were enjoying lots of heather.  Several came over to greet me, with cow 211 standing and enjoying a back rub in the sun.

At 12:05, steers 21, 30, 35 and 217, along with cow 940, were grazing in the thicket near ///grabs.slug.violinist. Steers 20 and 230 were grazing by the path to the north. Upon seeing steer 20, I noticed he had a large, deep, and fresh gash at the rear of his underside that was still bleeding.  He otherwise seemed okay and could walk normally. I promptly informed Chris at HIWWT and shared some photos.

After a while, the group of seven moved east along the path near James Bond Pond. They joined the eleven cows from the second group near ///mouse.tint.cans at 12:30. Initially, everything was calm, but a skirmish broke out between steer 20 and steers 21, 30 and 35. Steer 20 eventually walked off to the east, with the herd following behind. They reached ///blues.enjoys.ooze by 13:15.

Chris advised he would come out to treat steer 20 but needed to retrieve some equipment from the farm first. I chose to stay with the cows just in case any further issues arose. After grazing for a while, the cows moved down to the pasture near ///bucks.clubs.ignore and grazed north towards the covered reservoir. They then headed east, reaching ///cult.sticking.frail by 16:15, just as Chris, Emily, and Aria arrived.

Once help arrived, we set up a temporary corral to treat steer 20. However, he was too much on heightened alert to enter the corral, even with the lure of cattle nuts. He remained very cautious, particularly when the other older steers were nearby.

Throughout the afternoon, there were a few skirmishes between steers 20, 21 and 35. Unfortunately, youngster 230 got caught in the middle of one and ended up with a cut on his right rear side. Chris managed to spray the wound with antiseptic. While attempting to coax steer 20 into the corral, he and steer 35 clashed again, leaving steer 35 with a cut on his underside, near his front left leg.

Unfortunately, it seemed safest to let things de-escalate and have the Grazing Team deal with steer 20 tomorrow. Hopefully, the boys will settle down and keep out of each other's way, and have a quiet night. This is the first time I've ever seen any kind of trouble between them. (Sorry for today's blog being even longer than usual.)

Sunday 25th August - All 25 seen

Cows 214 and 234 were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud beside the pill box on Sandy Hill at 10:05 this morning. Steers 219, 220, 270 and 271 were all grazing close by. They were all happy, relaxed and looking well. The seven Sussex cows plus steer 35 were spread out munching on the grass growing at the base of the bracken around ///darker.lads.amps at 10:30. Several of the Sussexes came over to say hello. Cow 211 was very friendly and gave me some gentle head rubs and licks before enjoying a back rub. The remaining eleven cows were all found in the area surrounding the sandy bowl at the Royal Pavilion end of the site at 11:00. Youngster 227 was enjoying lots of fresh grass from one of the islands in the warm sunshine. He came and said hello and enjoyed a neck rub. Cow 72 plus steers 20, 222 and 230 were all happily grazing at the edge of the trees around ///dive.tags.legal. Cow 940 plus steers 21, 30, 33, 217 and 228 were all grazing among the trees on the other side of the path. They were all good. All six cows from the first group were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud at the side of the pill box when I saw them again at 11:45. There was no change in youngster 219's eye today. He was really getting bothered by the flies again this morning, more so than the other cows. It appears that they are constantly gathering in his eyes. He was fine with me sitting right beside him for a while, which kept the majority of them at bay.

The cows were all good today.

Saturday 24th August - All 25 seen - new photo of steer 219's eye below

A mixed group of nine cows were found lying down in the area around ///scan.likes.boots at 13.00 this afternoon.  Steers 35, 197, 219, 220, 270, 271 and 1640 plus cows 214 and 234 didn't seem at all bothered by the rain and were all relaxing and chewing their cud.  Despite the rain, there were still many flies around.  I've included a new photo of youngster 219's eye below for reference.

The five other Sussexes were found a bit further to the west around ///raves.trout.charts at 13:15.  Steer 210 and cow 211 were lying down together, sheltering under a large tree.  Cows 212 and 1396 plus steer 1626 were lying down out in the open.  We all ran for the trees that the first two were lying under when the heavens opened at 13:20.  Cow 211 came over to say hello and even though she was wet, she still enjoyed a neck and ear rub.  They were all happy for me to stand close to them under the trees.  The group of five were all good.

Cow 72 plus steers 33, 217, 222 and 230 were all standing close to the gorse bushes near ///riddle.maybe.whisk down near the Bourley Road at 13:45.  Steers 20 and 21 plus cow 940 were lying down nearby, relaxing and chewing their cud around ///speak.tweed.page.  Again, they were not being put off by the persistent rain.  Steers 30, 227 and 228 were all grazing in the thicket.  As I was saying my goodbyes just after 14:00, steer 227 wandered over to say hello.  He enjoyed a head rub, while chewing his cud.   The cows were all looking well.

The cows were all good today despite the wet weather.

Fri 23rd Aug - staff check

All 25 seen together at the eastern end of the site. 

Thursday 22nd August - 18 seen

The seven Sussex cattle plus steers 21 and 219 were found around ///trip.verve.entry on Sandy Hill at 16:45 this afternoon. Some were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud. While the others had recently got up and had started to graze. They were all friendly and came and said hello. When I left them about fifteen minutes later, they had all got up, and had started to wander east along the hill. They were all happy, relaxed and looking well. I've included a photo of youngster 219's eye below. Again, I've lots more if anyone wants to see them.

Steers 20, 30, 217, 227 and 271 plus cows 72 and 234 were all in the trees at the west side of Horse Pond at 17:05. Most were lying down, relaxing and chewing their cud. Youngster 227 was his usual friendly self and wandered over to say hello. He was happy to stand and receive a back rub. Older cow 940 and youngster 228 were lying down on grass at the edge of the trees. All nine cows were good today. After spending a bit of time with the second group, I set off east looking for the missing seven cows at the Royal Pavilion end of the site, including at the cow shed. There was plenty of army activity in the wooded area to the east of the sandy bowl, but no cows. I was passing by ///inert.slyly.lights at 18:00 and found the nine cows from the second group all happily grazing, despite the light drizzle. I then searched the western end of the site, all the way up to Beacon Hill Road, without any success, before giving up at 19:00. Despite a good search, I wasn't able to find steers 33, 35, 220, 222, 230 and 270 plus cow 214 today. The cows that were found were all good.