German Fugitive Cow, Yvonne, On The Run
A runaway cow has captivated the attention of the media, police authorities, hunters, animal rights activists and even the Hindu community.
All eyes are on Yvonne, the six-year-old fugitive cow.
The mayhem began in May when Yvonne escaped from a farm in Muehldorf, Germany, where she was being prepared for slaughter, reports Der Spiegel.
Making a new life for herself, the cow settled into the woods, grazing the Bavarian countryside, until she jumped in front of German police cars. Authorities deemed her a traffic threat and permitted hunters to shoot her, which outraged animal rights activists, reports the Guardian.
Spurring a conflict between animal rights activists and hunters, an Austrian animal protection group jumped into the mix. Conflicting reports suggest that the group either has offered, or has already bought the cow from her original farm for 700 euros, according to The Local.
Animal rights activists have done everything they can to save her. Unsuccessful attempts include sending her best friend and her own family members into the wild. But, according to Reuters, "Yvonne only took a look at them from a distance before running away again."
Animal activists recently even brought in a bull named Ernst to try to romance the clever animal. But, according to the Mirror, they soon discovered that the bull had been castrated, and the idea was a flop.
The Guardian reports another one of their endeavors entailed consulting an animal psychic:
Franziska Matti, an animal communication expert from Berne in Switzerland, said she had managed to contact Yvonne using telepathy. "I spoke to her yesterday and she said that she was fine but didn't feel ready to come out of hiding," said Matti. "She said she knew that Ernst had been waiting for her but that she was scared. She said she thought that humans would lock her up and she would no longer be free."
The Hindu community recently issued a statement calling for German authorities to withdraw permission for hunters to shoot her, saying the decision was ill advised, according to ANI.
After grabbing headlines, MSNBC reported that a German newspaper created a Facebook page and offered a reward of over $14,000 to anyone who can capture Yvonne.
Earlier this month, a bull broke free from a slaughterhouse in New York, but was later captured. In 2006, the "Unsinkable Molly B" made headlines as a cow who leapt a slaughterhouse gate and escaped death.
In 2008, the Humane Society uncovered animal cruelty at a major beef supplier's California slaughter plant:
In the video, workers are seen kicking cows, ramming them with the blades of a forklift, jabbing them in the eyes, applying painful electrical shocks and even torturing them with a hose and water in attempts to force sick or injured animals to walk to slaughter.
According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, over two percent of total heat-trapping emissions in the United States are due to beef production alone. This process produces emissions equivalent to what is emitted by 24 million cars, or 33 coal-fired power plants in a year.
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The Huffington Post Tara Kelly First Posted: 08/16/11 10:59 AM ET Updated: 10/16/11 06:12 AM ET