By Max Davies
Volunteers from multiple emergency organisations and wildlife groups came together on June 10 to rescue a sick cow that was stuck in mud on a Wollert property.
The cow was riddled with parasites and unable to move when she was found on a property on Merriang Road, while her small calf was located nearby.
The cow is thought to have been in the mud for at least two days before being rescued.
The pair were first spotted by wildlife rescuer Krysti Severi from Rescue Rehabilitate Release, who was travelling along Merriang Road on the way to a callout in Kilmore.
“I went past the property and saw a cow lying down, and I rewound a little bit and remembered that I had seen her two days prior,” Ms Severi said.
“I came back and saw her two front legs were quite deep in mud, but it was more than that. She wasn’t moving at all so I thought I’d get her calf and maybe entice her to get up … she was still just not interested at all, and I thought, ‘obviously this is a lot bigger than me’.”
Ms Severi contacted Wollert, Arthurs Creek and Strathewen fire brigades, Whittlesea State Emergency Service, and Edgar’s Mission, who sent volunteers to free the animal and care for the calf while the rescue was underway.
Volunteers worked to put the cow on a slider to help move her to a waiting horse float, while members of Whittlesea SES spoke with the property owner to surrender her and her calf into the care of Edgar’s Mission.
“It was just amazing, all the people just kept coming and coming to help this cow get out of the mud. Everything was done so gently and so beautifully with no stress to her at all,” Ms Severi said.
“It just shows the importance of checking livestock everyday, especially at this time of year when you’ve got calving or lambing and a lot of rain can make areas quite boggy. All animals – whether it’s horses, cattle, sheep, anything – should be checked everyday.”
Edgar’s Mission has now been caring for the pair since they were rescued, with volunteers still working to assist the sick cow.
Sanctuary founder Pam Ahern said while the calf was in good spirits, its mother still needed urgent care.
“The calf is doing a lot better, she honestly wouldn’t have survived the night. They were really dehydrated and incredibly hungry and we’d actually taken formula down, which we gave to the calf straight away,” she said.
“Mum is still absolutely critical, she’s not able to stand and bear weight so we’re getting her up several times a day with a tractor and a sling … we’re just looking at the underlying conditions that actually caused her to get stuck in the bog in the first place.”
The sanctuary has named both animals – the mother now Cher, a name meaning ‘dear’ or ‘beloved’ that reflects the joint effort to save her, while the calf has been named Cherish to remind everyone to cherish life.
“We don’t know whether Cher is going to make it or not, but we’re going to cherish every moment that we have with her,” Ms Ahern said.
