Hi everyone:
A couple of evenings ago, Wayne went out to check the cows and saw a very strange sight and was able to photograph the event. A black bear approached our cow herd which turned out to be a very big mistake on his part.
The blonde and white Simmental cow we know as I-12. She is a very good cow, a very attentive mother and about 12 years old. She's in her prime and knows that bears are bad news. She went right for him and tried her best to mash him into the ground. A younger cow, R-55, an Angus-Cross cow, age 7, is helping her out as best she can. It is an incredible photo to see two cows at once trying to crush the bear. There are a couple of photos where the bear is biting I-12's leg and clawing her face but she is not giving up. Her stiff tail shows how agitated she is. Wayne said all the cows were bawling, the bear was squealing, the calves were running around with their tails in the air. Finally, the bear decided to vacate the area. We thought he'd be dead for sure, but there was no sign of him the next day. We'll have to keep an eye out for eagles in the trees or flocks of ravens flying up. We're sure he's got some broken ribs out of the deal at the very least.
I looked up the calving records of both cows who are so aggressive in these photos and they are both good, calm cows around us and have given us no troubles whatsoever. I'll have to add in my notes that they have a very distinct dislike of bears.
We'll be watching I-12 over the next few days to see if she needs treatment for infection. I don't know how willingly she'll come to the corrals for treatment, but she might not have a choice.
Wayne couldn't believe his eyes when he witnessed this ruckus. This is another once-in-a-lifetime photography event to add to all the others he managed to document this summer. It is amazing
Thanks for posting the e-mail.
Man, those are some big cows!