Update: Just one day after posting this story, the editors of SPIEGEL ONLINE learned of Uschi's tragic death on Wednesday. The pregnant cow, who had stampeded through the streets of Hanover, died under the duress of the chase and tranquilizer shots. Uschi, it turns out, was actually named "Beate," according to her owners. Sadly, attempts to save her unborn baby also failed.
A pregnant cow rampaged through the German city of Hanover on Monday evening, scaring pedestrians, demolishing fences and trampling gardens before it could be stopped. Uschi, weighing in at a hefty 800 kilograms (1,760 pounds), likewise damaged a number of cars, including police and fire department vehicles. In the end, the beast caused some €25,000 in damages.
Uschi escaped from a farm on the edge of the city on Monday evening before her jaunt through the Limmer neighborhood of Hanover, the capital of the German state of Lower Saxony. Hundreds of onlookers followed Uschi's progress as she avoided capture for fully three hours while covering five kilometers. Hanover authorities closed roads and warned pedestrians and joggers of the horned cow, which became aggressive during the chase and periodically rampaged through gardens and down residential streets.
"The animal became aggressive because of the stress," confirmed fire department spokesman Martin Argendorf to the local Hannoversche Allgemeine. "The cow was very confused."
The chase finally ended when a fireman managed to hit the bovine peril with three shots fired from a tranquilizer gun. According to a vet who examined Uschi after her excursion, her calf survived unscathed. "In three days, she will give birth according to plan the vet said," reported Argendorf.
cgh/ddp/dpa
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