Urban cowboys round up adventurous cattle on the run
SMACK bang in the middle of a residential zone flanked by 35-storey buildings is not the most idyllic grazing spot for cattle.
Yet a small herd of eight yesterday seemed to have adapted to their new environment on a half-enclosed New Territories development site.
The strays, including a six-month-old calf, were seen by a passerby on Tin Ching Road, Tin Shui Wai, at about 7 am.
Believed to have wandered from a farm several days ago, the four black and four brown cattle of an Asian breed were oblivious to those around them.
But their presence sparked a round-up which turned into an all-day adventure for Agriculture and Fisheries Department staff.
Just like in a military operation when tanks are ordered in, trucks filed on to the site to carry away their loads - albeit without casualties.
Sniggering onlookers and bemused photographers watched the strained faces of the workers as they frantically waved arms and sticks in a bid to move the beasts.
Vet Dr Thomas Sit Hon-chung, after an initial inspection from a distance, pronounced the cattle healthy.
'We couldn't approach them though because they would have kicked . . . they are wild creatures which don't have good temperaments.' Tranquilliser shots were used to sedate the seven grown cattle.
As the herd's owner had not been identified, the animals were being taken to a department kennel.
