A GRASSINGTON pensioner is poorly in the intensive care unit at Steeton's Airedale Hospital after being trampled to the ground by a herd of suckler cows.

Seventy-eight-year-old Robert Chaney, of Wood Lane, had gone mushroom picking in fields opposite Woodside, Grassington, on Saturday afternoon when the incident occurred.

Mr Chaney was accompanied by his dog and was picking the mushrooms. In the adjoining field were some suckler cows.

Police say the cows charged Mr Chaney, knocked him to the ground and then trampled on him. Mr Chaney's dog was killed during the incident.

The pensioner was taken to Airedale with serious internal injuries and was later said to be stable in the hospital's intensive care unit. He is on a ventilator.

Stephen Dew, group secretary for Skipton and Craven National Farmers' Union, told the Herald that as more and more people used footpaths for recreational purposes the danger of such incidents occurring grew.

He said: "If the cows have got calves at foot and there is a dog on a lead, the dog can be seen as a threat by the cows which become protective over their calves.

"Generally speaking, my advice would be to always let go of the dog, as a dog will be able to outrun the cows. Most people become protective of their dogs and tend to pull them closer to them but that is the worst thing they could do."

He added: "Whenever a footpath crosses a farmer's field, farmers might not be able to keep some types of animals in the field, but it is perfectly legal for the farmer to have suckler cows and calves in the field."