I have helped herd lost cattle many times in my life including 3 nights ago when 7 Angus escaped from a farm a mile away and were having a great tome in town, running through nice yards. I have an atv and many years pushing them horseback and on atvs and of course by foot. The guys trying go push them with cars and trucks had zero control. These were steers, none over about 1000 pounds.. However, a couple of them tried to test me but jumping the atv at them kept them off of me. About a half hour later I pushed them back to where they came.
I do not think most people have a clue how strong they are. I steer wrestled a bit as a young man. One rodeo, after my event I was asked to work the stalls for the bull riding event, at a rodeo in Abilene, Texas. After a ride, the two pickup men would push the bulls to one end of the area where they would exit and we would push them back to holding pens. Something went south and they had two bulls in the area at one time and a rider dumped on the ground. Two pickup men and one clown could not control two angry bulls after some poor cowboy just hit the ground hard. So I opened an end gate and yelled for them to bring the bulls my way, well one big Brahma, well over 1700 pounds came in and I waited for the other to close the gate. It did not work. The big guy turned around and started back out. So the runs to the holding pends were about 5 feet wide, heavy wood fences, with a post about every 4 feet. I took a 2 inch pipe about 8 feet long and ran it through the run, the bull hit it hard, there was about 3-4 feet of gap between the pipe and the next two posts. And I was on the wrong side. That 2 inch pipe caught me in the belly and threw me like a rag doll. Another cowboy was trying to help and opened the gate behind me, bad move, in the frantic move of angry bulls. Others in the holding area burst into the chutes and two were headed my way, about to trample me. Another cowboy interviened and shut that gate in the nick of time. I just laid there breathless and hurt. Pretty funny really. The cowboy in the arena came out fine, because both of the bulls were coming after me, one still in the area, the other one that hit the pipe. So, I learned a lot about handling bulls that night, at age 19. It is easy, you just stay out of their way and do not ever trust anyone else to know what to do. It was my mistake to try and block the bull as I did .When I was younger my father owned a meat processing plant. On Tuesdays and Thursdays we would slaughter. There were a few times that I remember where some Rancher would wrangle a steer or two that broke away from the herd and became wild. We had one break out of the stock pens and go on a rampage through town and by the time they caught up to him he was headed towards an Elementary school with children at play. He was put down and brought back by a Front loader. Another time there was a steer that got loose inside the plant and wreaked havoc on the kill floor injuring a few of the employees. He broke through the bollards bending the galvanized steel posts to get out of the Kill stall. After that larger ones were installed and filled with concrete.
When I hunted this Bull it was on foot but we were able to drive a truck within about 50yds of him where he fell. If I had my side by side there it would have been an easy drive right up to him and work on him. We cut him up and would carry out the quarters. The rear quarters were the challenge and took us both to lift them to where you could shoulder him, breaking your back in the process
I used the 375 Ruger because I wanted something that generated some serious energy in the 5,000ftlb range and would stop him quickly. The friend I was with used a 45-70 to kill his a year prior. He said he had to take multiple shots to drop it and it kept moving further and further away from where they could get a vehicle to. He told me if I had something big to bring it so it wouldn't be a repeat of his pack out.
I'm not saying that the 45-70 isn't capable if killing a Bull or large animal so don't anyone think that's the case.
I have a Boone and Crocket mule deer on my wall thanks to cows. I was hunting in the national grasslands near Gillettte, Wyomng. It is open range with local cattle there by lease. About 50 cattle started following me. Throwing rocks at them did not help, they just keep following and bellowing for a feed sac. About a half mile from the ruck I could see a big buck standing about 150 yards off just watching me and my 50 cows try to sneak down a gully.. He left, but a 180 grain core lock broke his neck from behind before he got far. So I dressed him,, then went an got my truck and all the while these 50 cows were there. By the time it was over that 50 cows had probably doubled. Pretty frustrating, but their cover probably was what sealed the deal...
