Neighbor's cattle in yard

[ultrarunner]

Hot wire works well in Alpine countries…

Not expensive compared to other alternatives.

One day my brother wakes up and finds a happy herd of cattle on his back 40 and sends me pictures.

The cattle escaped from parkland where they do fire suppression but some don’t like and cut fences to make problems.

My brother called the rancher and he came right over with a quad and my brother saddled up and moved the cattle back.

Rancher fixed the breach in the fence but said it’s an ongoing problem…

 

[Hay Dude]

I am a township supervisor. We have a complaint from a resident whose yard keeps getting messed up by cattle from the beef farm across the road. We're not talking about a large farmer, about 20 beef cows and their calves. I've checked his fences and from what I can see without going on his property, they are very good meeting fence guidelines. That the cattle get out is no question. The resident complaining has called the county sheriff about it. The deputy who visited agreed, cattle from the neighbor, but there is nothing the sheriff's department can do about it. A little more about this farmer - he is in his upper 50s and lost his main job as an equipment operator due to a DUI. Last planting season, I was driving down the county road past his place and saw him lying in the middle of the road arms and legs flailing. His tractor was in the ditch alongside. I stopped to go help and he told me he was okay, go on. He had a 12 pack of beer in one had and a single can in the other, had fallen off the tractor which stalled in the ditch, and was trying to get up. Needless to say he has a bad drinking problem. My suspicion is he forgets to close gates when he feeds his cattle. The cattle go out across the road where although mid-winter, we still have no snow and the standing second crop is much better than the hay this cattleman is trying to feed them. Has anyone run into something like this before? The home owner (who also owns the hayfields around her house) has talked to the owners wife several times and has been told that that's the way it is. Does anybody have any suggestions?

He needs an intervention from his loved ones with a writ from the supervisors warning him that he will be fined or sued if he does not keep his cattle contained.

My neighbors cattle (and mine) have been in my front yard maybe 3 times in 15 years.
It’s always because kids let them out at night to be punks.

 

[Langanobob]

Depends on where you live. Here in Nevada the law states that if you want to keep livestock off your property then YOU need to put up a fence. One of the first things I had to do when I bought my place because I had cattle all around. Other people have problems with the "wild" horses:
View attachment 837965

We are probably neighbors. Years ago some of the Callahan’s cows would get loose and visit our garden, not very often though. Same case here, it is or was open range and my job to keep the cows out. I never complained and it didn’t happen often enough to be a problem. The old ranch area is now mostly a housing tract. I preferred the cows.

 

[John0829]

We had an issue with cattle about a year ago. Woke up one morning with 13 head roaming around our pasture. What used to be pasture before we took all the fences down after the last horse died to make mowing easier. Tried to locate the owner but after them roaming over the fields (mine and my neighbors) for a little over a week and with no one acknowledging ownership the county animal control, which we had tried to get involved, finally told a farmer he could have them if he would get them up.

What really PO'd me was I was the only one during that whole time they were roaming around doing anything. Animal Control never showed up, their involvement was all over the phone. Claimed they were to covered up since there were only two people that worked there. I was mainly keeping them off the road to prevent an accident since people drive the narrow, hilly, curvy county road like it is a race track. It is not unusual to see a car or truck pass doing 50 or 60 on a road barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass each other. Plus a black cow on the road at night...

I also wanted someone to pay for the damages the cattle did to my buildings.

Someone lost quite a bit of money and apparently didn't care although I have a sneaking suspicion they actually did belonged to the farmer they were "GIVEN" to.

 

[oosik]

LONG ago - neighbors cattle broke thru my barbed wire fence and caused damage. Easily got them back on neighbors property and repaired fence.

Contacted neighbors insurance company. Short discussion - they paid for all damages - no problem.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

If you have a fence, and they escape. You are not letting them roam free, they just got out.
I’d much rather have my neighbors cows get out in my yard, than the neighborhood kids on 4 wheelers riding on my property. Both has happened.

 

[buckeyefarmer]

When I see talk of cows getting out, and I see responses involving sheriffs, rustling, shooting, and insurance getting involved, I’m so thankful for the great neighbors I have.

 

[WM75Guy]

Good fences make good neighbors. Everyone with acreage around me have livestock. Occasionally some gets out, including mine. You work together to get them back in and repair the damage. Lately it is the herd of 9 Boer goats that cross 4 fences to get to our place. About sundown they head home through the fences to get fed.

 

[dodge man]

I remember one time the neighbors cows were in my yard. I did something to startle them, not on purpose either. They took off running like crazy. The last I could see of them after they crossed the road they were about a half mile away and still running.

 

[CliffordK]

It used to be that if the neighbor's cattle got onto one's property that one would find a coral or pasture and lock them up until one found the owner.

Keep them safe, contained, and out of trouble.

At my house, I no longer have fences that are secure enough to hold a herd of cattle. Mom has the fields, but she is too old to handle somebody else's cows on her own.