Community
21 February, 2023
Cow rescued in Lake Tinaroo by local hero
RESIDENTS have saved a cow from drowning in the middle of Lake Tinaroo.
RESIDENTS have saved a cow from drowning in the middle of Lake Tinaroo.
Yungaburra resident Paul Harris was showing his family and friends around the lake and the Barron River in his boat, when they came across the cow struggling to swim back to shore.
The sight was one they never thought to see but Mr Harris and all on board jumped straight into action to save the weakening animal.
“We were near the ski jumps and we saw it swimming in the middle of the water and a few boats had already almost hit it,” Mr Harris said.
“We could see it was tired and unwell and it had a few bite marks, and we didn’t know really what to do, so we lassoed it and brought it on to the back deck of our boat.”
It is believed the cow was attacked by dogs on a farm backing onto the dam and the cow jumped into the water to escape and couldn’t find its way back to shore.
Pulling the cow onto the back of his boat, Mr Harris’s family and friends helped it back onto the dry land, where a local farmer took it back home.
The whole experience was exhilarating for Mr Harris, but the best part, besides saving the animal’s life, was his son telling him “you’re a hero papa”.
“In the last 20 years I have never seen something like this before,” he said.
“We felt sorry for the poor cow and thought this would be a good adventure for us and our mates and it is a really good feeling to help someone or something out.”
