Large animals running loose on a roadway is never a good thing.
It is a relatively rare occurrence but can provide humorous and challenging moments for those involved.
Horses, cows and other large animals loose on roadways provide major challenges to county humane agents, sheriff’s deputies and Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers. The humane agents are commissioned to deal primarily with abuse and neglect but do respond to cases related to large animals on the loose.
A pair of motorists, and their friends, spent four hours corralling four loose cows in North Bloomfield Township on May 7. They couldn’t find the owners and waited with the animals until the owners showed up.
OHP Lt. Jerad Sutton said incidents of farm animals heading to the roads are isolated but can be dangerous. He said normally it is not difficult to find the owners but sometimes it is an issue.
“Usually, we find a local farmer who is willing to hold them until we can find the owner,” Sutton said.
There is room in the Ohio Revised Code to cite repeat offenders.
“If it is an ongoing problem … we would cite them,” Sutton said.
Linda Fogus, a county humane agent, said her agency is called at least once a week; usually twice a week.
“Usually, it is the same repeat offenders. … Somehow it turns into a neighborhood war,” she said.
Fogus said she has not seen any citations issued during her time as an agent. She said it is getting to the point that it will take someone getting hurt or killed to see any action.
There is a small number of repeat offenders.
“It is the same people over and over and over again,” Fogus said.
“We’ve had cow and horse-related crashes this year,” Sutton said.
“It certainly is dangerous if there are large animals loose on the roadway,” he said.
Chief Deputy Ronald Fenton of the County Sheriff’s Department said it is rare to have large animals loose on the roadways.
“We have only one or two a year,” he said.
Fenton said there have been more people hit walking on roads than large farm animals loose but admitted many animals are removed from the road by neighbors or motorists before a call can be made to the sheriff’s department.
“We try to find who the owner is and keep (the animals) off the road,” Fenton said.
“It is hard to capture (a) bovine when they are not in a mood to be caught,” Fenton said.
That was especially true recently when draft horses got loose from an area where they were being used to clear trees from a property and they ran loose for hours, said Fogus.
“They just alerted the neighbors on either side of the road (and waited until the owners came back for them),” Fogus said.
Humane agents must get permission to go on any private property where the animals may end up.
“We cannot go off the driveway unless it is an emergency,” she said.
Fogus said there are incidents when a damaged fence or a gate left open cause animals to roam free. She said humane agents are willing to work with people who are interested in solving the problem.
An Orwell woman, who asked not to be identified, shared a more humorous side to the large animal problem. She said she was driving south on Route 45 from downtown Orwell when a slow-moving buggy appeared in front of her vehicle. The woman said they passed the buggy and realized there was no driver. She said they were able to get a car in front and behind and stop the rampaging buggy.
