Pastures, fields and farms: out in farmland

Cattle are large, heavy and fast animals. Most of the time they are curious or indifferent, but suckler cows defend their calves. They see dogs as a threat, much like a wolf. That is why many dangerous encounters happen when people walk with a dog through a field with calves. Bulls can also be dangerous.

Go around fields with calves if there is another option. If you must cross, walk calmly along the edge, not between a cow and her calf, and keep the dog on a short lead. If the herd becomes restless, if the animals come towards you or lower their heads, turn back or detour.

If you and your dog are chased by cattle, let the dog go. The Countryside Code from England and Wales advises exactly that: the dog can escape faster, and the cattle usually focus on it rather than on you. You yourself calmly take the shortest safe way out of the field.

Slurry pits, slurry stores and silos are life-threatening. When slurry decomposes, gases such as hydrogen sulphide form and collect in pits and enclosed spaces; there may also be too little oxygen. Never enter such facilities, do not lean in and keep children away. If someone collapses there, do not go in after them – call the local emergency number (112 in the EU).

Electric fences work with short, strong pulses meant to deter animals. For people they are painful. Do not touch them or climb over them, and explain this to children too. Many pastures have gates with insulated handles; use those.

Farm machinery is wide, loud and has large blind spots. During harvest work, keep your distance and make eye contact with the driver before passing. Stacks of straw bales can topple and are not a climbing frame. Farm buildings, barns and machinery sheds are workplaces, not shortcuts.

The land is the workplace and property of people who make their living from it. Whether and where you may enter private land differs greatly from country to country and even region to region – from the wide-ranging right of public access in parts of Scandinavia to considerably stricter rules elsewhere. Check the local rules and stay on marked paths. This text deliberately gives no legal advice.

One simple rule helps everywhere: leave gates as you found them. Close a closed gate again so that animals do not escape. Leave an open one open, because the animals may need to reach water on the other side. Do not walk on crops, take rubbish and dog waste with you and do not obstruct work.

Families with children and dogs often use farm tracks. Explain to children beforehand that calves are not cuddly toys, that fences are not to be touched and that machines have right of way. A dog on a lead is safer for everyone near livestock and wildlife.

In an emergency in the countryside, farms are often the nearest place with people, a phone and tools. Ring at the farmhouse and do not go into barns or machinery sheds. Good farm tracks, hedges and buildings also make farmland terrain in which you can usually find your way well.