British Police Deliberately Ram Cow Off The Road With Pickup Truck

A 10-month-old cow escaped from a farm in Surrey in the UK this weekend. But instead of leaving the young animal to explore a bit before making its way back home, police in the area decided the best thing to do was crash a police pickup truck into the animal.

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Police officers in Staines-upon-Thames, which is to the south west of the UK capital, were left chasing a young cow for “a number of hours” on Friday evening, reports the BBC. After they were unable to control the calf, the order was given to try and capture the cow using one of the squad’s vehicles. As the BBC reports:

Footage shared online shows a marked vehicle ramming into the cow, which appears to be stunned and tries to get to its feet, before being hit a second time.

In the 26-second video, bystanders can be heard reacting in shock as the cow is struck by the vehicle.

An eyewitness told BBC News the incident was “distressing for everyone” who saw it.

In footage of the incident, the calf can be seen getting knocked to the ground by a police pickup truck responding to the incident. While the animal is on the floor and struggling to get back up, the truck drives into it again, with its front quarter crashing over the head of the animal. It’s a pretty shocking scene to see unfold, which you can see for yourself at the video below.

Escaped cow rammed by police car

After the collision with the police car, the young cow was taken to a veterinary surgery in the area. there, it has received treatment for a large cut on its leg, said Surrey Police in a statement.

Now, the force has referred itself to the UK police watchdog over its handling of the incident, reports ABC News. The move came after the events sparked outrage among lawmakers in the UK, with home secretary James Cleverly branding the move “unnecessarily heavy handed.” As ABC News explains:

Surrey Police said it had notified the Independent Office of Police conduct, which investigates misconduct allegations against officers.

Chief inspector Sam Adcock said “the decision to use the police car is one that was only taken after other methods to stop the cow had failed.

“There will be an investigation into the actions that led to this, but our focus at all times is on ensuring the safety of the public.”

UK animal welfare charity the RSPCA says it supports the police force’s decision to refer itself to the watchdog, adding that it will support the investigation into the incident in any way it can.