Cowboy steers freeway strolling cow in Holly to safety

A cow made a brief escape from a Holly farm Sunday afternoon and ended up on a leisurely stroll on the freeway, forcing its brief closure, but she was safely steered back home by, who else, a cowboy.

The incident occurred around 5 p.m. when 9-1-1 calls were made reporting a cow in the middle of Interstate 75.

The cow briefly blocked the left lane of traffic of I-75 and likely caused a bit of gawking. It took some double teaming to corral the bovine: Michigan State Police directed traffic while a cowboy rescued the creature.

The cow apparently jumped over a low-lying guardrail and meandered over to the freeway near Grange Hall Road, Michigan Department of Transportation officials said.

"It's quite a unique thing," said Diane Cross, MDOT spokeswoman. "How that cow didn't get hit, thank goodness."

It's not the first cow to moo-ve around lately.

Last week, a steer was seen wandering on nearly 70 acres of unfenced, private property near I-75 and got close enough to the freeway for drivers to spot him. That was just 2 miles north of where the cow was spotted Sunday.

It's unknown if it's the same cow, but Cross said that wayward cow made it safely back to the Holly farm it belonged to.

Last month, a runaway bull was killed by Grosse Ile police after the bull romped through neighborhoods on the island in Wayne County.

For seven hours, six police officers, two animal control officials, a veterinarian, several firefighters and residents tried to contain it, but attempts to use fencing, a portable round pen and roping were unsuccessful. One of the animal control officers suffered a minor injury.

A Grosse Ile Township ordinance prohibits exotic or wild animals that pose "a threat or danger to the public health, welfare, or safety if such animal was able to run loose."

"The bull, which was demonstrating unpredictable behaviors, was exposed to children, drivers and domesticated animals as it ran through yards, onto patios and across roadways," Grosse Ile officials said. The owner gave permission to shoot the animal, a move by authorities that angered some island residents.

srahal@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @SarahRahal_