The cow will stand and watch you until it decides if it recognizes you. They’ll stare at you to recognize your face or evaluate your movements before deciding what to do next. The cow will watch you until you leave and feel safe to continue grazing. The cow will stare at you, trying to recognize your facial features, and pay attention to any movements that might pose a threat to her.
Cows stare at people because they are uncertain of how the humans whom they see will behave. Cattle are uncertain if humans are dangerous to them, and many cattle are wary around people before becoming acquainted with them. So cattle stare at strangers in order to appraise the danger they pose.
You need to avoid sudden movements that might startle the cows. If you spot an aggressive cow or a herd of threatening cows, stay calm and avoid direct eye contact. In this case, the cow will follow you and gradually approach you, never abandoning you, until the cow knows you are not a threat. If you take them to a whole new environment, the cows will look at you to express their frustration and stress.
Cows Watch Humans for Signs of Predation
Most of the time the cow is looking at you, just waiting for you to make a move. They also look to their cow friends and other farm animals. The purpose of cows in life is to be eaten by another animal, and most of the time they don’t fight. The cows know you will get them and there is nothing they can do about it.
Cows are simple creatures and cows cannot make decisions, especially good or bad ones. Cows bond with their keepers, but they will always make sure that their caretaker is by their side, not a stranger they don’t know. Even if cows don’t bark furiously at you like dogs, they will literally stare at you, watching your every move to make sure it doesn’t pose a threat to them.
These were good reasons why this poor animal look might also be looking at an attack (if the person is a threat to the calf or the cow itself). Since humans can be the biggest predators of cows, this is one of the reasons cows retain their gaze. Cows look to get attention, to recognize, to express love and appreciation, to find food, and to watch for predators.
Cattle May Remember Your Face
If the cow is looking at you, it is likely that she is recording your face or has recognized you from a previous encounter. A level-headed cow can make you feel uncomfortable, and sometimes you may wonder if she’s getting ready to load you up. There are times when you find yourself in an eye contest with a cow.
Big-eyed cows are usually not dangerous, but there is always the possibility of undesirable accidents. Loud noises can startle cows and cause them to kick, rush or run. Cows are more sensitive to noise than humans, especially high-pitched sounds that can damage their ears.
One of the most common reasons cows moo at night is because they don’t feel safe from humans or predators. If they find their predators such as coyotes, mountain lions, and wild dogs roaming in the dark, the cows roar loudly to alert the rest of the herd. If a wild cow felt threatened at any moment, the wild cow would stop and look at the threat, deciding whether it was dangerous or not.
Cattle Memory Can Be Persistent
Your cows can record and recognize faces and environments for a long period of time. Most cows place their newborns in tall grass or under a shady tree and return to nurse them when needed. Most cows hide their newborns from the rest of the herd for the first two days until they are strong enough to interact with other members of the herd.
Newborn cows and calves are also better protected in the backyard, as their babies get lost and confused, and they and the calves can get very upset. When young cows or calves engage you in play, you will be hurt because they use their heads/horns.
If cattle are irritable, they will wag their tail from side to side, they will also dig into the ground with their front legs, hold their head up and stare at you, and sometimes snort if you approach them. Some believe that when cows look at you like this, with such a passive expression on their face, they are trying to figure out which one you have your eye on. Cows have character just like any other animal and getting a cow to show you as much affection as the ones shown in this video will not be an easy task.
The cow herself decides that she will stay and watch the giant split-backed wolf longer. The cow may want to look into her big blue eyes, looking for a reason. Little things you may not have even thought about, but if you go racing and look at them through the eyes of a cow, you will probably find a problem.
