Plea to remove cows with young calves from Forest following death of 88-year-old Pamela Barnwell

COWS with young calves should be removed from the Forest in the wake of the death of an 88-year-old woman who suffered fatal crush injuries, the latest verderers’ court has heard.

Speaking on Wednesday, East Boldre resident Susan Melluish referenced the death of Pamela Barnwell last month. As reported in the A&T, she was found in October, surrounded by animals, at Godshill cricket pitch.

Ms Melluish told the court: “That lady didn’t stand a chance. At 88 she probably couldn’t run and I don’t imagine there were many gorse bushes to hide behind. What a terrible way to lose your life.

“What are you waiting for? Surely one fatality is too many? We need change now. One small simple change – keep cows and calves off the Forest in those first few early weeks.”

She claimed another walker, Kevin Parker, had been charged at by a cow in the same place a few days before.

Describing how she feared she also would be killed when a cow with a young calf charged at her a number of times, Ms Melluish said she was still too traumatised to walk on the Forest with her dog.

She gave details of an incident that happened in East Boldre just weeks before the death of Mrs Barnwell.

“I was walking my dog, as I do on the forest every day, when we were literally charged at by a brown and white cow. I can only imagine she must have had a young calf nearby that we had not seen.

“The cow saw us first; I had no idea she was there. I would always avoid cows on the forest as they often have young calves and I’m well aware of the danger this poses.”

Revealing that she had since learned the calf belonging to the cow in question was so young it had not yet been tagged.

“I ran and hid behind a gorse bush,” continued Ms Melluish. “She ran after me. When I thought she had gone I ran again, only to be chased again. This happened four times – she wasn’t giving up. She was relentless in her pursuit of me.”

Describing how she was only able to get away when the cow saw another walker and charged at them instead, Ms Melluish said she was in no doubt she could have been killed if the animal’s attention had not been diverted.

Calling on the verderers to require commoners to remove cows from the Forest in late pregnancy and only return them when their calves were a few weeks old, Ms Melluish said: “So many people have contacted me, having heard about what happened to me. All have had encounters with cows who, like myself, had not seen them, but the cow saw them and charged.

“I asked why they hadn’t reported it and many didn’t know who to report it to and just accepted that it had happened, they hadn’t been trampled and they hadn’t been killed, but now someone has.”

She added: “Everybody loves seeing all the animals on the Forest. We respect them, keep our distance and train our dogs to do the same.

“All I am asking is that for those few short weeks when a cow’s hormones and maternal instincts make them dangerous, they are kept safely off the Forest to enjoy that time with their calf without the stress of seeing dogs and walkers.”

Currently, commoners are advised – but not required – to take their cattle with newborn calves off the Forest.

Mrs Barnwell, of Normandy Way in Fordingbridge, was found critically injured shortly before 2pm on 21st October.

She was said to have been lying on the ground with cattle and ponies around her, and was taken by ambulance to Southampton General Hospital where she was later pronounced dead.

A coroner’s hearing into her death, opened at Winchester’s court just over a week later, heard the preliminary cause.

This was said to have been pelvic and retroperitoneal haemorrhage, and polytrauma, with Mrs Barnwell having a background of ischaemic heart disease.

A full inquest is due to be held at the same court on 15th September 2025.

Hampshire police is leading the investigation into her death, with the Health and Safety Executive also looking into the incident.

Andrew Parry Norton chairman of the Commoners’ Defence Association, which represents Forest livestock owners, said the whole commoning community had been deeply saddened by the news of Mrs Barnwell’s death.

He continued: “As commoners we do take our responsibilities really seriously – no one ever wants an accident like this to happen.

“As the forest becomes more and more busy with visitors and recreation – there are fewer quiet places where cattle can have space. The pressure on commoners is immense and now we have reached the point where some are saying ‘I’ve had enough’.

“No commoner wants to be in a situation where they know their animals are causing a problem and we would urge anyone to report any incidents to the verderers so that any necessary action can be taken.”