Swiss farmer leads cows to water – and onto a boat
Some cattle have already done four tours of duty on Ufenau. For others it's all new and they feel correspondingly unsure.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Häcki and his 25 helpers fit the chosen cows with bells and halters.
13 Photo
Reto, Josef's son, leads a cow into a trailer. The shore is about 300 metres away.
13 Photo
The adventure begins
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
The animals are sometimes scared and need to be pulled gently by the halter.
13 Photo
If that doesn't work, it's time to give them a good push.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
The cattle are tied to the boat.
13 Photo
Häcki heads to the island.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
The journey from Pfäffikon to Ufenau lasts just under ten minutes.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
It appears to be a relaxing journey for the animals.
13 Photo
It's a good day to travel - the water is calm.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Poop deck: water isn't the only thing splashing around.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Hitting land.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Disembarking, one by one.
13 Photo
A high-spirited cow heads for the meadow.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Made it!
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
Mission accomplished: the cows on the meadow, the boat in the boathouse.
Stephan Rappo / 13 Photo
For 29 years, Josef Häcki has been bringing his cows from the “mainland” in Pfäffikon, canton Schwyz, to Ufenau, an island in Lake Zurich, at the beginning of April. They stay on the 11-acre island – the largest in Switzerland that can be reached only by boat – until the end of May.
Stephan Rappo/13 Photo, Ester Unterfinger (picture editor)
On UfenauExternal link the cattle eat on the meadow, so the farmer doesn’t have to do any mowing. It’s paradise for the animals: they eat fresh grass, buttercups and dandelions and they can roam around to their heart’s content.
Häcki rents the island, which is owned by Einsiedeln AbbeyExternal link. He is responsible for the forest, meadows and the reeds. The only animals allowed on Ufenau are heifers – female cows that are at least a year old and have not had a calf – so there is no daily milking.
At the end of May, Häcki gathers his livestock and heads back up the mountain in Graubünden. That’s where they spend the summer, before sailing back to Ufenau in autumn.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Man fined for threatening cows with gun
This content was published on
The incident took place in 2014 when a herd of cows repeatedly trampled on the man’s garden and ate his plants in Toggenburg, canton St Gallen in eastern Switzerland. In June, his patience snapped and he pointed his gun at the cows saying he would kill them if they did not leave. Sentencing the man…
This content was published on
Can one man persuade 100,000 people to care if cows have horns or not? Maybe if he’s as bull-headed as Swiss farmer Armin Capaul.
This content was published on
Deity, icon or just cattle? Cows are seen differently across cultures. An exhibition in Zurich examines the role of cows in art and society.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.