I've been watching the signatures rise and rise over the last two days and the response has been overwhelming! Thank you so so much for taking the time out to sign the petition and to give your thoughts on the plight of this herd. I read every one of them. It's so lovely to know that I'm not alone in thinking that the recommendations by the HSE were ridiculous, leaving the farmer with little choice but to abide by the law and made the choice to sell the whole herd. 

This is desperately sad and some would argue that there's no point in continuing the petition. However, I'm of the view that this goes beyond this single herd of cattle. It seems to set a dangerous precedent for other farms and farmers who own cattle that graze on public access land across the country.

Of course, I'd love to see the return of Highland cattle at Baslow Edge, but I also want the vast majority of people's feelings about this matter to be taken seriously. There will always be isolated incidents where cattle might injure people if they are unaware or ignorant of the risks involved, particularly when walking with dogs, but I strongly feel that the benefits to the environment, to tourism, not to mention the rural way of life, strongly outweigh concerns about safety. 

So far, despite going over 7000 signatures, there has been no response from either the HSE, National Trust, Natural England or the Member of Parliament for the Derbyshire Dales, Rt. Hon. Sir Patrick McLoughlin. Feel free to contact them yourself if you wish.

Also, despite a request for images from a BBC journalist, there seems to be little media coverage evident. This is something I hope to rectify in the coming few days. 

Thank you again for your support. There's a lot of love for those hairy coos!

Justin