The same chap also has cottoned on that a Highland Cow will make folk stop outside his wee shop, so he has borrowed one of his wife’s pet cows to act as tourist bait. Kilchurn Castle - On the walk from the car park to the castle, you pass a small cabin that an enterprising local has set up as a small gallery to sell his landscape photographs from.They have been breeding them here for almost 100 years so you’ve a good chance of seeing some calves and baby Highland cows are off the scale when it comes to cuteness. Highland Coo Safaris - Staying in the same area as Ruthven Barracks, the Rothiemurchus Estate has a well established fold of Highland Cattles and they offer short guided tours where you can meet their Hairy Hielan Coo club.It’s unusual to get this reaction, but I’ll talk more about this later. A word of warning, one of the cows here tried to charge me and I had to jump a wall to escape being prodded with a horn. It was here that they received their final order from Bonnie Prince Charlie. The barracks have a poignant place in history as the site where the Jacobite army last rallied after defeat at Culloden. Ruthven Barracks - I can’t promise that you’ll always find Hairy coos here, but we’ve always bumped into a couple of them at these historic ruins just a mile to the east of Kingussie.The owners of Redburn Cafe have catered for this and they sell little bags of “munchies” that will entice the resident coos to tolerate having some “selfies” taken with you. Redburn Cafe on the A887 near Invermoristion - if you want to get up close and make friends with a Highland Cow, then it helps to offer them some snacks.Listed below are some places where you are more or less guaranteed to see Highland cattle: This is also the location of the Burrell Collection, but at the time of writing the building that houses this art collection is closed for some major repairs. If you are in Glasgow, you will find that there are some resident old Cows in the Pollok Country Park on the southside of Glasgow. You don’t even have to go into the Highlands to find Hairy Coos. Which does beg the question, does a farmer “Herd up his Highland cows” or does he “Fold up his Highland Coos”?

Now, I don’t mean they are roaming across the Highlands in massive numbers like Buffalo migrations on the American prairies, but you will find “folds” of Highland cattle all over the country.įor some reason the official collective noun for Highland cattle is a “fold” and not a “herd”. So let's start with the most frequently asked question, and the answer is… all over Scotland. So it’s time to fix that with answers to the Top 10 questions we get asked about Highland Cows 1. In all the years I’ve been doing this blog, I’ve never written anything about that most iconic of Scottish creatures the Highland Cow. And remember, we want to see your pictures of these beautiful babies! Tag your pics on Facebook and Instagram with the hashtag #headsofayrfarmpark.'Where to see Highland Cows and other Hairy Coo Questions!' We hope you have enjoyed learning all about highland cattle, and will come along to meet our calves in person! Lomond, Nevis, and McDui can't wait to meet you. Scottish mountains are called 'Bens' after the word 'Beinn' which is Gaelic for mountain. Lomond, Nevis, and McDui are all named after some of Scotland's most famous Bens. It is because of their Scottish heritage however, that we chose their names. This means that they do not eat meat, and instead eat mostly grass, although they have been known to munch on leaves from low-growing trees, and even the odd flower! They have become very good at foraging for food, and their patience and skill means than in the wild they can be found grazing on even the steepest mountain slopes!Īlthough they originally come from Scotland, highland cattle can now be found all over Europe, as well as North America and Australia. Like all cows, highland cattle are herbivores. They also use their horns to defend themselves against predators and rival highland cattle. The two horns on their head help them to dig through thick snow to find vegetation underneath. Highland cattle are also known as 'hairy cows' because of their long thick coat, which helps them survive harsh conditions in the Scottish Highlands and keep them warm in the cold weather. They arrived in our care in November 2016, and have been lovingly looked after by our animal keepers ever since! Gentle, sweet, and friendly, they are so excited to make lots of new friends when Heads of Ayr Farm Park opens for the summer on Saturday 18th March 2017.

Meet Lomond, Nevis, and McDui, our beautiful highland cattle calves. There is nothing cuter than a baby highland cow.

Scottish highland cattle baby