Wild Cattle Review

Thank you to the Northern Echo for including us in its list of attractions for families to visit this summer. It wrote a very nice review of the visit:

“Young ones will, however, love to visit the rare Chillingham Cattle on the site next to the castle.

We were taken to visit the herd of around 100 in the back of a Land Rover by a warden with the warning that they can attack and we may have leave quickly to avoid a very real threat of death.

It was like being on safari. I imagine.

What makes them so interesting is they are the only wild cattle in the world, sole survivors of herds that once roamed the forests of Britain with a gene pool dating back 800 years.

We managed to spend an hour viewing these creatures from a couple of hundred metres away using field glasses while our guide told us about their daily rituals and battles, their history and life cycle.

They are not managed in any way by the wardens, other than to put an animal out of its misery if it is injured during a contest and is suffering.

Who would have thought standing in a field looking at cows was interesting?

But trust me, it is.”