Avoid Calves In East Bay Regional Parks

BERKELEY, CA — Berkeley residents have abundant choices for hikes in nearby East Bay Regional Parks. They may catches glimpses of wildlife.

But hikers are also likely to see domesticated livestock grazing, including cattle. The park district calls conservation grazing an important use of parks, providing an economical solution to managing grasslands, "Over 86,800 acres of parkland are grazed annually by cattle, sheep, or goats, mostly during the winter and early spring months."

The East Bay Regional Park District has issued an advisory about calving season which runs from August to October. "Interactions with calves can be a danger to both people and grazing animals," according to the advisory.

Safety Tips from the Park District:

• Do not approach or touch calves.
• Do not take selfies with calves.
• Do not get between a mother and her calf.
• Do not worry if a calf is by itself. The mother cow is usually nearby.
• Leash dogs around cattle and keep them away from calves. More information about leashing dogs at on the Park District website.

If you have followed all of the safety tip but you are still concerned that a calf is injured, sick, or otherwise in distress, call the park district at 510-881-1833. Note the location of the animal, its color and, if available, an ear tag number.