While no man or beast was injured, a cow forced its way through the canvas top of a cattle trailer cruising along U.S.50 Sunday afternoon.
As if in protest to its destination -- the trailer was headed for a meatpacking plant in Emporia, Kan. -- the cow managed a partial escape.
Sheriff T. Walton explained that prior to the haul the driver had scrubbed the inside of the trailer, including the partitions. When they were placed back inside, one partition wasn't completely secured with a pin. As the hauler headed east on U.S. 50, the partition slid over on some of the cows, and then one curious cow used the panel as a ladder and climbed up, pushing its head through the canvas.
That's how it was first spotted by an oncoming tractor-trailer driver. When the driver radioed, the cattle hauler thought he was joking and kept driving.
Eventually the determined cow worked its way through the canvas and was sitting on top of the trailer, when another truck driver radioed the cattle hauler that a cow was on his roof.
"The driver pulled over and called 911," said Walton. "That's what people do they call 911. Can't get your baby to sleep? Call 911."
Tired of being top sirloin, the cow went back down into the trailer without incident.
The driver who made the second call to the driver headed to the packing plant happened to be hauling frozen beef fresh from the same plant.
"It was a bizarre case," said Walton. With it came humorous responses to the Harvey County Sheriff's Facebook page, including, "Cows should be in the trailers, not on top of them."
