Well that was disturbing, what would you do?

[jiminbogart]

I was driving down Old Farmington Rd in Oconee today. It's a little traveled gravel road.

As I crossed the creek, I saw a calf laying at the edge on the creek in the mud. It appeared to be in a bad way(not moving).

I got out of the truck and yelled a couple times and it barely kicked it's feet and moved it's head. It was in some sort of distress.

There are no houses in the immediate area, but I drove up the road just to make sure. When I turned around there as a truck coming the other way and I flagged him down and told him the situation and asked if he knew the land owner. The guy said he knew the man leasing the land and he lived in Farmington, a couple miles away. He said he had the guy's number so I asked him to call. The guy then drove off.

About 45 minutes to an hour later I decided to drive back by and check on the calf. It was still laying there and there was vulture about 10' away. The calf barely moved it's head and I could see it blink(I was about 50' away on the edge of the road up on top of the culvert.

I try to mind my own business but I also hate when folks don't help other folks.

I don't know anything about cattle, so I don't know what to do it that situation.

The owner may have already come out and decided to let the calf lay.
The other guy might have not called him or been able to get ahold of the owner.
The owner may not care.

I considered climbing over the fence but I did not want to trespass. I don't want folks trespassing on my land. My neighbor calls me when cows get out and they come on my land and I'm ok with that.

I considered shooting the calf, but it's not my property or my land. The calf may just need some help.

I called animal control to see if they wanted to help it and got a VM. I left a message.

I considered calling the Sheriff's none emergency number but it really is not a LEO deal.

What would ya'll do? The calf looked like it weighed 150-200 lbs so I doubt I could have got him in the truck and If I did I don't know what I would have done with him.

I decided to just let it go. I hope the owner comes out and checks on him.

I hate to leave him laying there but the calf is someone's property laying on someone else's property.

 

[Cmp1]

Tough call,,,,

 

[Core Lokt]

Shoot it or let it lay. Your call it’s a rough life in the wild.

 

[jiminbogart]

I went ahead and called the Sheriff's non emergency number and let them know the deal.

Hopefully someone takes care of it.

 

[Core Lokt]

That was strange that the guy just drove off on you though.

 

[NCHillbilly]

If it was somebody else's calf, and there was nothing immediate you could see to fix it, you did the right thing. It's the business of the guy who owns it. Not the sheriff, the neighbors, animal control, or anybody else. All kinds of things happen to cattle. It's just life.

 

[treemanjohn]

Wonder if it fell out of a trailer

 

[NE GA Pappy]

It probably got stuck in some mud in the creek, and exhausted itself trying to escape. I have had this happen before. It looks like they are laying there, but really, their legs are mired up in mud and they can't get them free.

My calf was lucky enough to be found by my Dad and pulled out of the creek before she died. It took a couple of hours for her to start moving around the pasture again, and 2 or 3 days to act normal.

 

[trad bow]

As long as you weren’t trying to steal it any farmer I know would be mighty appreciative if you pulled the calf up on solid ground.

 

[NCHillbilly]

It probably got stuck in some mud in the creek, and exhausted itself trying to escape. I have had this happen before. It looks like they are laying there, but really, their legs are mired up in mud and they can't get them free.

My calf was lucky enough to be found by my Dad and pulled out of the creek before she died. It took a couple of hours for her to start moving around the pasture again, and 2 or 3 days to act normal.

That's what I was thinking. I've pulled a couple out over the years that I found, but they were ones that belonged to my relatives or neighbors that I knew.

 

[sinclair1]

I wouldnt go on the property in these lease days. Back in the land owner days you would get invited for a steak dinner for helping. no such thing as neighborly anymore.

 

[jiminbogart]

It probably got stuck in some mud in the creek, and exhausted itself trying to escape. I have had this happen before. It looks like they are laying there, but really, their legs are mired up in mud and they can't get them free.

My calf was lucky enough to be found by my Dad and pulled out of the creek before she died. It took a couple of hours for her to start moving around the pasture again, and 2 or 3 days to act normal.

I hope it wasn't just stuck(unless he owner came by and unstuck it).

It didn't occur to me it could be stuck, but all 4 legs were above the mud.

 

[cowhornedspike]

Only thing I may have done different is get the number from the guy and call the owner yourself...never assume someone else will do it.

 

[jiminbogart]

Only thing I may have done different is get the number from the guy and call the owner yourself...never assume someone else will do it.

Probably should have. The guy didn't seem too friendly or too concerned.

I've only been here 20 years so I guess I seem like an outsider(although I was driving a dually not a Subaru).

 

[buckpasser]

I commend you for the care you have most certainly shown, but man, I’d have to take “shooting it” off the list of possible options. No matter how bad the situation may look, that is one action that might not be appreciated.

 

[jiminbogart]

I commend you for the care you have most certainly shown, but man, I’d have to take “shooting it” off the list of possible options. No matter how bad the situation may look, that is one action that might not be appreciated.

Agreed.

It was just one of the options and I didn't go there.

The main thing is I do not know cattle raising ettequite.

I know my neighbors cows get out every now and then and I get a call from another neighbor telling me that I have cows on my place and the first neighbor is going to get them. No problems.

I also came up on a grown cow grazing in a bling curve next to the road one Sunday morning about 3 miles from my place.

A pasture about a mile away had the same color cows with the same color ear tags. I drove up to the house but is was vacant and for sale.

I called the Sheriff's non emergency number to let them know there was a loose grazing at the fog line in a curve.

I figured my safest option today was leave the calf alone.

If it was my calf I would want someone to hop the fence and help it though.

It was private property(the calf) on private property(the land) so I figured if I tried to help it I would probably end up either beat up, shot, arrested or all 3.

It would suck to find out someone shot the calf and then the owner pulls up and I'm standing next to it with my truck on the edge of the road.

 

[JustUs4All]

After doing what you did to locate the owner and if there were no Posted signs, I would probably have hopped the fence to get a closer look to see if there appeared to be anything I could do to help the calf.