Cornish farmer fined after cow attacks left walkers fearing for their lives
A farmer has been fined after a series of cow attacks on walkers in Cornwall; In this attack, one man was hospitalized for five days with multiple serious injuries.
Brian Gregory, 75, was on a caravan holiday in Porthcothan in June 2024 when he went for a dog walk with his labrador Molly along the West Coast Path.
He was attacked by a herd of cows with calves and trampled and butted while his dog escaped unhurt. After other hikers helped him to his caravan, his partner called an ambulance and he was taken to hospital with injuries that required surgery, including a severed artery, horn scars and wounds extending to the bone.
Responsible farmer Beverley Chapman of Tembleath Farm was informed of the attack the same day and advised to remove the cows. However, to increase the size of the herd, he added more cattle to the herd; some calves were as young as 42 days old.
A month later, two residents were also attacked and they managed to escape unhurt by taking shelter in gorse bushes at the edge of the cliff, but one of their dogs was seriously injured and required surgery.
Ms Chapman was again informed of the incident but only removed the cattle four days later on instructions from Cornwall Council’s public rights of way officer.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Inquiry found the cattle were being kept in an area over which there was a public right of way, posing a “significant risk” to walkers.
There were also other enclosures that did not include public rights of way and could be used to house cattle; cows were known to be protective and unpredictable around calves.
At Bristol magistrates court Ms Chapman admitted breaching Section 3(2) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £5,260 and ordered to pay prosecution costs of £4,650 and a court surcharge of £2,000.
Following the hearing, HSE inspector Simon Jones said: “Cattle are extremely protective of their calves and even calm cattle can become aggressive if they think their calves may be threatened.
“Given the nature of the cattle attack, it is fortunate that Mr Gregory’s injuries were not fatal. “In this case Mr Gregory took all the correct precautions when walking outside.
“Despite being aware of attacks on walkers on two separate occasions, Ms Chapman did not take action to control the risks by removing the cattle or separating them from walkers on the South West Coast Path. She only took action when formally instructed by a public rights of way officer from the local council.”
