Cows and their calves graze in a pasture on a farm near Cremona, Alta., Wednesday, June 26, 2019. A herd of runaway cattle that has evaded capture for months has been wreaking havoc in farmers' fields near a small Quebec town — which recently resorted to cowboy tactics to try to round them up. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
QUEBEC – A small Quebec town is resorting to cowboy tactics to round up a herd of runaway cattle that have evaded capture for months and have been wreaking havoc in farmers’ fields.
The mayor of St-Sévère, in Quebec’s Mauricie region, says the 20 or so young animals jumped out of their field at the end of July and have been on the lam ever since.
Jean-Yves St-Arnaud estimates the animals have caused between $20,000 and $25,000 of damage by flattening crops and chewing up ears of corn in farmers’ fields.
St-Arnaud says residents and officials have tried everything to catch them, including enlisting the cowboys of nearby St-Tite – a town known for its annual western festival.
He says the eight cowboys almost succeeded in corralling the herd at the end of October, but the animals evaded capture at the last minute and fled.
St-Arnaud says the cows are currently somewhere in the woods, but he’s not sure exactly where, adding that he hopes cold weather and hunger will encourage them to return home.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 23, 2022.
