Charging cow prompts closure of Highway 128

A cow that survived after it was struck by at least one vehicle and endured ensuing attempts to put it down closed Highway 128 outside Healdsburg on Thursday morning after it began charging law enforcement cars, the CHP said.

A Sonoma County Animal Care and Control officer finally dispatched the animal shortly before 8 a.m., 90 minutes after it was first reported lying in the roadway east of Chalk Hill Road, the CHP said.

A passing ranch hand was attempting to help CHP officers corral the cow when it began charging a CHP car, prompting closure of the road, according to initial reports.

It appeared a CHP officer attempted to put it out of its misery while awaiting help from animal control, but the cow continued to charge, the CHP said.

Two vehicles were damaged in the initial collisions.

Additional details were not immediately available.