I FIND it sad that I am again reading of someone being trampled by a cow (Echo, Oct 7). I have written to HAS before on this subject.

I think it is a shame people who have suffered these incidents did not have the means to defend themselves in such circumstances. I would advise all who venture into a field containing cows to always have the means to defend themselves if necessary.

As I have written before, I was evacuated from the London Blitz, to a farm in South Wales. My elder brother and I were tasked to help out in various ways to help in day to day tasks on the farm.

One such task was to gather the cows from the fields at milking times to take them back to the farm to be milked.

I always carried a stout stick to help steer the cattle along the lane back to the farm, with help by the farm’s working dog. If a cow approached too close to me, I tapped them on the nose with my stick, causing them to change their direction.

I would encourage anyone entering a field on a public pathway to have with them a walking stick or stout branch.

JL Wicks, County Durham