Cow Whisperer

I freely confess that I don't know much about cows, at least not first hand. I can tell a Holstein from an Angus, but I've never had any hands-on experience. So perhaps some reader can educate me about their psychology.

We were traveling in Central Oregon in early July and got word that elk could be sighted at sun-down on the road to the Painted Hills. That turned out to be true, but too dark for photos. We saw bulls with antlers and calves frisking in the dusk--lovely.

But about the cows. On the way, before we found the elk, I pulled over at a pasture full of cows, I forget why. Son Jesse hopped out of the car and stood at the fence and stared at the cows. The closest ones stared right back. Then they walked toward him.

Notice the cows scattered all over the field.

He kept standing there and cows kept coming. Every single cow in that field bunched up watching him.

The cows came only just so close and if a cow got shoved closer, he or she struggled to get back behind that invisible line. I got Jesse to back up a few steps and the cows all took a few steps forward.

Now Jesse is a charismatic guy, no question. But I suspect this has to do with how cows are wired. They've got hooves, so they obey the "run if it's scary" rule, but if "it" isn't scary, does the rule become "walk up just so close and check it out?

Is this typical? If you have cow-sense or cattle wisdom, enlighten me!