Staines: Call for animal-friendly methods after police car hits cow

A farmers’ union has called for humane and safe methods to be used when dealing with escaped livestock on urban streets.

The comment from David Barton, chairman of the National Farmers’ Union’s livestock committee, came after a video of a police car hitting a cow on a Surrey road sparked widespread outrage.

Mr Barton said: “There needs to be a protocol to deal with these situations humanely and safely.”

He said that while he was “deeply shocked and disturbed” by the footage, he understood that officers had a responsibility to protect the public.

Mr Barton added: “The NFU is working with Surrey Police and other forces across the country to ensure this situation does not happen again.”

The video showed a police car hitting the calf on a residential street in Staines-upon-Thames on Friday evening.

Surrey Police said the cow was being treated by a vet and was recovering. She has been returned to her herd, police added.

Police had previously stated that the matter had been referred to its professional standards department and that a voluntary referral would be made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.

Deputy Chief Constable Nev Kemp had previously stated that police had tried unsuccessfully to contact local veterinarians and identify the owner prior to the incident.

He added: “In addition to our primary duty to protect the public, the welfare of animals is important to us and we know people want answers about how this happened and what led to it.”

“I am committed to ensuring that we fully understand what happened and why, and we will fully support any investigation.”

Hugh Broom, chairman of the NFU’s livestock division for the south-east, said while he knew the situation looked “appalling”, officials’ options were limited and they “probably did the right thing at the time”.

He told BBC Radio Surrey that officers also had the option of shooting the cow or using a tranquiliser dart, although the latter would have required appropriate training.

According to Broom, a register of all farmers and livestock keepers in a region would be “perfect” for contacting people in such a situation.