Mustering Wild Cattle In King Country Bush: Several Large Herds

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 85, 23 August 1948, Page 3

Mustering Wild Cattle In King Country Bush: Several Large Herds

Wild cattle roaming in the Rangataua State forest, which contains several thousands of acres of heavilytimbered country in the Ohakune district, King Country, were being mustered at the end of July. Permits were granted f® allow trabranded cattle to be rounded up, but until then any persons whose cattle have strayed into the forest were allowed to retrieve them. Several large herds, the progeny of beasts that have wandered into the bush and bred, are known to exist, but mustering them is not likely to be an easy task. Large-scale mustering has never been undertaken in the bush, but officers of the State Forest Service consider a reliable pack of dogs, an abundance of initiative and not a little patience are the essential requirements for such an undertaking. All the cattle are wild, some to the degree of being dangerous. However, it is generally agreed that one could walk through the bush in comparative safety, but once the cattle were cornered there would be a different tale to tell. Easily frightened, the cattle usually plunge into the undergrowth when human beings appear on the scene. It is estimated that about 200 cattle wander at will through the forest, but because few head are seen at a time it is not possible to make an accurate estimate. According to the State Forest Service officers,. the cattle do very little damage to the forest, but sometimes they devour young trees. It is considered that it would be impossible to rid the forest completely of cattle, because when herds are rounded up it will not be possible to chase individual beasts that break away from the herd.