How Not to Be Afraid of Cattle (with Pictures)

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 09:13

Fear of cattle, or bovinophobia, is a type of fear that causes extreme anxiety when approaching these types of animals, or even just thinking about being near them on a farm or herd. It is likely that, like most phobias, this fear stems from a lack of understanding and knowledge of bovine behavior. With the increase in life within cities, far exceeding the rural population (over 80-90% of people in fact live within cities in many industrialized nations) many people have never had the opportunity to interact with life in the fields and, as a result, have no experience with how cattle behave around people. Others, on the other hand, are all too ready to extrapolate the rare reports in the media about accidents involving cattle and are self-convinced that the danger is much higher than it is.

Obviously the size and weight of a bovine make it more threatening than a dog or cat, so it makes sense to be careful around them, especially with bulls and cows with calves. What is absurd, however, is the belief that if you see a group of cows approaching, you will surely be crushed to death under their hooves because the herd is clearly "charging" on purpose. People do not understand that a herd of cattle has often learned that if someone approaches their enclosure, it is to give them something to eat. Whether you want to learn how to make friends with a herd of cows, learn how to behave among them or simply overcome your fear of these animals, the following tips are a good starting point to get rid of your phobias.

Steps

Step 1. Remember that phobias are common and easy to treat

Avoid visiting a farm, approaching animals or having nightmares about them - this is not necessary, as your anxiety can be treated. Consider following treatment with a mental health professional, as well as taking the steps suggested in this article seriously. Some of the therapies that have proven successful in treating phobias include cognitive-behavioral therapy and virtual reality exposure therapy; others, on the other hand, respond better to a combination of therapies and anti-depressants or anxiolytics. In addition to professional help, however, it is above all about facing your fears: the rest of this article will help you do so.

Step 2. Learn about cattle behavior and body language

Knowledge is the best way to let go of your fears. Most of the time a cow approaches it is just curious, or thinks you are going to give it something to eat, (such as a handful of grass).

• If a cow grunts, growls, scrapes the ground with its paw or pushes its head towards you, or looks at you with glare, move away from the fence and avoid eye contact. In the animal world, when you maintain eye contact with another animal that is visibly challenging you, this gesture is perceived as a threat. If you do not move away or, worse, if you take an aggressive attitude towards the animal, an attack will most likely follow.
• The situation where you need to be more careful is in the presence of cows protecting the calves or bulls that growl at you. Tilting your head, hitting the ground, showing your hips, growling, etc., are all warning signs: if you don't get out of the way or out of their space, they'll charge you. If an animal does not show any of these behaviors, there is no need to worry. Often even negative thoughts could lead to a corresponding behavior on the part of the animal.

Step 3. Imagine finding yourself near a cow in different situations, counted from one to ten

Ten represents your worst fear, while one represents the situation that makes you as less anxious as possible. Imagine the following possible hierarchy of gradual situations:

1. Call a farmer or rancher and ask him to visit his farm.
2. Get to the farm and see the cows in the paddocks or pastures.
3. Enter a barn where there are cows in the stables, or in the pastures where the cattle are grazing the grass.
4. Watch the farmer feed and interact with the animals as he tells you about them.
5. Watching the cattle being moved from the barn to the fields, or from one pasture to another.
6. Approach the corral where the cows know grazing.
7. Draw the attention of the herd by sticking out some delicacies through the fence.
8. Watch the herd approach.
9. Allowing cattle to take food from your hands.

10. Touching or stroking a cow that the farmer explained to you is friendly to humans.

    Remember that this is just an exercise of the imagination, but it will allow you to work through different levels of fear, especially in conjunction with the thought of relaxing or peaceful images, and then think about the image that scares you and so on, of visualization in visualization, until you are comfortable with all the steps of the process

    

    Step 4. Visit a farm or herd with cattle that you can start working with to get rid of this fear

    Nothing works better than facing your own fears. Doing so will make you a stronger and more confident person! Call a local farm or livestock and let the owner know what your goals are; be courteous and explain clearly, so as not to leave him in doubt as to your true intentions. Arrange for a visit to the farm or choose a farm where there is a breeding and spend a few days of vacation there. Be sure to ask the producer if he can spend a few moments with you while observing the cattle; may tell you and teach you about the behavior of these animals, in order to help you relax.

    • Visits to the farm or herd should last at least 40 minutes. Longer would be even better.
    • If you can't tackle a farm or herd, wait for an agricultural fair to be held in your area or in a nearby area and visit the cows in their barns.

    

    Step 5. Relax and stay calm

    There are two strategies for staying calm. First of all, any anti-phobia therapy teaches you to relax and breathe. Using relaxation and breathing techniques will allow you to breathe on command and relax more effectively. Furthermore, animals are much more sensitive to moods than you think! You need to be calm and relaxed when you work and are in their midst.

    • If you are nervous, tense, excited, anxious, angry, frustrated, depressed etc., the animals will respond to your behavior. An animal will make you understand immediately what you feel because it will reproduce it in its behavior, since they live in the present and never in the past or in the future.

      • Humans are the only animals capable of living in the future or the past. Most phobias are potentiated by a person's worries about their future, thus causing tension, anxiety and fear. If you learn not to anticipate what will happen in the future, nor to think only negative thoughts, things will work out better than you expected.

        The key to relaxing, then, is not to expect bad things. Try to always have happy thoughts or not to think at all and live in the moment

      

      Step 6. Breathe

      As noted earlier, proper breathing is an important part of controlling one's fears. If you start feeling tense or anxious, take a deep breath. Stop for a moment and try to relax.

      Practice deep breathing practices, they will help you stay calm

      

      Step 7. Observe the cattle and their movements

      You have learned something about their behavior: this is the perfect opportunity to test your knowledge. Are they standing and staring at you or are they ruminating? Do you see a specimen near the fence behaving aggressively (the signs of this type of behavior have been listed above) or are there several that do not threaten you and follow you calmly as you walk near the fence?

      • If you see a herd of cows standing near the fence and following you as you walk away, remember that they are not behaving in a dangerous way. They just want you to give them something good to eat!

        Such a herd will usually quietly swing its head to ward off flies or lick itself, wiggle its tail nonchalantly, scratch a fence or, if relaxed enough, will even begin to chew. After 15-20 minutes, if you haven't given them anything interesting, they'll start walking away and picking up on what they were doing

      • If you see that there is only one animal (such as a bull or a single cow) that behaves as if it were agitated by your presence, ignore it and move away from the fence. Once you have moved to a safe distance (both for them and for you), they will turn around and return to the "starting" position.

        Remember that such an animal is more likely to harm you if you are in the same pasture or pen as theirs. By standing on the opposite side of the fence from the threatening animal and practicing the evasion techniques, they will eventually leave you alone

      

      Step 8. Try to give them (at least, the animals that behave well) something good to eat, such as a handful of fresh grass growing on the other side of the enclosure

      They are unlikely to eat right out of your hands, but they might as well if only you are patient enough. If not, throw the grass on the ground where they can see it and move a little to let them eat.

      Don't hand them grass as you would a horse. The cows grab the grass with their tongue, not their cheeks, then reach out and hold your fist on the roots of the bunch, since in this way you will make it possible for the animal to comfortably grab the grass and avoid being bitten. Remember to let go of the grip as soon as you think the cow has grabbed it

      

      Step 9. Try petting one of the animals that approached to be fed

      Scratch them under the chin or under the jaw, on the cheeks or even on the neck. Other places they like to be scratched are the lower part of the ears or behind the attachment of the horns. If they walk away from seeing your hand or jump at your touch, you can stop or try again. If the same happens on the second try, don't try again.

      

      Step 10. Walk away proud of your progress

      You might even think about coming back and trying again! In this case, repeat the experiment with the same herd, or even with a different herd, until you are no longer afraid (but hopefully a great deal of respect) for cattle.

      Advice

      • Knowing the behavior of cattle will help you in the long run. The more you understand their body language, the less you will have to be afraid.
      • Don't be frightened by the horns. More often than not, cows with horns can be just as calm as those who don't.
      • Remember that your state of mind is important. If you are calm, animals will also be calm.
      • Cattle will get fed up if you don't do something that gets their attention or give them something to eat. Typically after 10-15 minutes they will walk away and resume doing what they were doing before you approached them.

      • A key point in gradually overcoming your fears is to take one step at a time. Face the different levels of your fear, until you can manage it without panicking.

        An easier step than calling a farmer to make an appointment (which also involves a dreaded date) is to start looking at photos of cows. Start with images that are clearly paintings, such as impressionist paintings or cartoons. Then move on to more realistic paintings and photographs

      • Don't be intimidated if they look at you. Animals that are naturally prey always stare at humans or predators, no matter what you do. Have an eye contact contest with them, just to pass the time, and check who looks away first. If you are confident, you will always win!

      Warnings

      • Do not confuse the act of charging with a simple approach. A charging animal will have its head lowered, ready to strike upon impact. An approaching animal will have its head raised and stop before it reaches you.
      • Do not provoke the cattle. It will only make them agitated and nervous, and if you push yourself too far, one of them might just walk over and buttfuck you.

      • Bulls are dangerous. If you see one at the fence threatening you, move around and don't look him in the eye. In the long run he will get bored and go away.

        • If you are unlucky enough to find yourself in a field with a charging bull, you need to know what to do. Search the internet for information on how to escape a raging bull as part of your research.

        • Even if yours may be a simple fear, be smart and avoid going into an enclosure where there are also bulls, or where there are cows that you do not know and are unable to manage. The best thing to do when entering an enclosure or pasture is to ask the owner before approaching.

          If for any reason you were forced to remain closed in a corral with cattle, try not to attract attention by crossing the field, stay away from the herd and avoid making eye contact