Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Until the cows come home: Overnight search party wrangles escaped Nativity scene calves from CF River

A cow being guided out of the water. (Courtesy Carolina Beach Police Department)

CAROLINA BEACH — A pair of calves posing for an immersive local Nativity scene took an unexpected overnight adventure through Carolina Beach before being rescued.

Dana Vess, wife of Seaside Chapel pastor Jerry Vess, told Port City Daily the young cows escaped the church’s Nativity scene at 105 Dow Road at about 10:30 p.m. on Saturday and they weren’t rescued until 16 hours later from the Cape Fear River.

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Vess said the church is unsure how they escaped. Upon inspecting the pen, it was locked and there was no sign of a hole or damage that would allow the cows to get loose. She said the church has hosted larger cows in the same shelters previously without issue.

The church recognized the cows went missing shortly after feeding time. Volunteers and police saw them traversing on Dow Road near Mike Chappell Park Saturday night.

Fifteen church volunteers, police officers and drones attempted to track them down, Vess said, until about 4 a.m. on Sunday. Small searches continued throughout the night and Vess reconvened with the party at 8 a.m. Two hours later, the cows were spotted in Carolina Beach State Park.

Zoe the Dutch shepherd. (Courtesy Carolina Beach Police Department)

The search party attempted to surround the animals, but the young cows were skittish compared to older bovines who are more accustomed to people, according to Carolina Beach Police Chief Vic Ward. The cows would bolt before wranglers were close enough to lasso them.

Ward said the tactic, eventually, was to surround them so they were forced to wade into the Cape Fear River and could not run. Ward was one of two officers shoulder deep in the water to pursue the livestock. He brought in the help of his Dutch shepherd, Zoe, who dove into the Cape Fear to herd the cows.

A one-time K9 handler with the North Carolina Highway State Patrol, Ward said Zoe did not have formal herding experience. With ancestors imported from Holland, her bloodline is made up entirely of police and bomb squad dogs. 

“Man, I figured I could put her to use because they had been chasing these cows for almost a day,” Ward said. “It was getting to the point where we were concerned about them getting out in the road, getting hit by a car and injured.”

Ward loaded Zoe onto the back of an ATV and brought her out to the beach front at the state park where she routed the cows twice and forced them into the water.

Vess said it was clear the cows would be apprehended when Zoe got involved.

“She was pretty amazing,” she added.

Cpl. Ashley Brandner and state park ranger Jesse Anderson were the ones who lassoed the bovine; a video posted to the department’s Facebook page shows the animals then being guided out of the water. 

They were loaded onto a trailer at 3 p.m. Sunday and returned to their farm.

Zoe’s antics even have earned her some local celebrity as well.

“Last night I was walking her [at Kure Beach] and people came up to me as they were walking into a restaurant,” Ward said. “They said, ‘Oh, is that the dog that herded the cows?’ So she’s got a little following now.”

As far as incidents go, this is the first cow rescue the police department is aware of performing. Spokesperson Sgt. Colby Eden said he has never encountered an incident like this in his nine years with the department, and neither have officers who have spent more than 20 years in Carolina Beach.

One of the calves after being guided back onto the beach. (Courtesy Dana Vess)

“It was like something out of ‘The X Files,’” Ward said. “I mean I was expecting Mulder and Scully to come out of the woods and say the cows were aliens. You never hear about this stuff.”

For Seaside Chapel, the show must go on. It has been hosting live, interactive Nativity scenes for the past three years, complete with a tour through Bethlehem. This past weekend was its first date, and the next scene will run from 5 p.m. to 9 .m. Saturday and Sunday. The event is free, and will still feature donkeys and sheep. The cows have gone home to Maco, west of Leland, and may not be coming back on Saturday after last weekend’s escapade.

Vess thanked the volunteers, police department and state park service for their help rescuing the calves. She said the Nativity scene has run into unexpected issues in the past. After months of volunteers building the scene for the original show two years ago, hurricane force winds destroyed it. Duke Energy sent some workers to help rebuild in a matter of days.

“We continue,” Vess said. “We don’t let anything stop us from sharing the meaning of Christmas.” 


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