An escaped steer's six-week romp through backyards, roadways and beaches ended when he was cornered and returned to his owner, authorities said.
The roughly 600-pound bovine, named Moo, was captured around 5 p.m. Saturday. After appearing on a crowded beach, he led police officers and a veterinarian through sand, swampland and into a household backyard, where his escapade ended.
The animal was shot with a tranquilizer dart, said veterinarian Dr. John Andresen, and Moo was then taken back to Greenport farmer Joseph Barszczewski.
The farmer said Sunday that the steer — secured with a rope — seemed content in the company of a horse and a dog.
"They're already starting a very happy little group," Barszczewski said. "It looks good right now after a very ugly whole situation."
The situation started in April, when the newly arrived Moo broke through a metal fence, Barszczewski said. He had just bought the steer, or castrated bull, to raise and eventually slaughter.
Moo hunkered down in woods near Barszczewski's vegetable farm and then began roaming, covering a total of about 10 miles of eastern Long Island, police said. At times, the steer turned up in homeowners' yards. He nearly caused car accidents on a local road.
"He didn't charge," said Southold Police Sgt. Raymond VanEtten. "He wasn't an aggressive-type animal _ he just was on a mission not to get captured."
