An errant animal makes for special 'Moo'ther's Day
Police say animal may still be on the loose
BY JANE MEGGITT and AMY ROSEN Staff Writers
Sharon Gaboff has four children but spent most of Mother's Day with a bull.

A bull wandered along the Millstone border with Manalapan Sunday and into the yards of several Manalapan residences. The animal managed to evade capture.

A part-time animal control officer for Manalapan Township, the Millstone resident was unexpectedly called to duty May 11 when what was thought to be an errant cow was discovered wandering in the vicinity ofWoodward Road inManalapan.

Gaboff and her friend, Monica LaRue, of Upper Freehold, had planned to go horseback riding that day.

"What started out to be an opportunity to meet up for a lateafternoon ride with friends on the Charleston Springs county trails off Stagecoach Road ended up being a real attempt for a team penning event, but with no pen, no partner, and it wasn't a cow," LaRue said.

LaRue and Gaboff tried various means of capturing the animal, with LaRue using her horse to try to block it in a side yard. However, the horse was one of the first to notice the cow was actually a black and white Hereford bull.

"So [the horse] did an about-face and headed us out of there," she said. "I'm ready to return to the contained team penning with the numbered cows."

Gaboff, who estimated the bull weighs 1,500-2,000 pounds, said the animal had crossed a creek about two miles from Gaitway Farm near Route 33 to get into the development of single-family homes. She said the Manalapan police helped her corner the animal several times during their six-hour chase, but the bull always eluded them. At one point, she got close enough to feel his breath on her hand, Gaboff said.

The bull did not appear aggressive, she said, and many people in the area followed the pursuit on foot or by car.

Resident Connor Berkowitz, 18, said, "This was the most exciting thing to happen on the block in a long time."

One resident said her family was out enjoying Mother's Day when a neighbor called to say there was a cow in her garage.

Neighbors reported that apparently the door had been left open and the bull was spotted wandering into their garage.

Neighbors watched the bull stop at a bush near the garage where the animal scratched its back for a bit.

When the bull left the garage, it strolled down the block to the Berkowitz family's backyard, where it made itself comfortable and sat down.

Connor Berkowitz, who was inside his house at that time, said, "I heard voices outside, opened the back door and saw some neighbors looking out back. I turned in the direction they were looking and saw a big white head moving back and forth."

According to Berkowitz, the neighbors had called a farmer on nearby Sweetmans Lane in Manalapan. The farmer said the bull was not his but helped by calling other people with farm animals in the area. No one came forward to claim the animal.

The bull eventually escaped and wasn't seen again until 10 p.m. when it was spotted going into the woods onWoodward Road and Lamb Lane in southern Manalapan.

Manalapan police Capt. Lou Moreto said as of May 12 there had been no further sightings.

Anyone who sees the bull should call the Manalapan Animal Control Department at (732) 445-8344.