Bull Cuts Off Power To 800 Homes Scratching 'Itchy Bum' On Electricity Pole

A bull cut off power to 800 homes in Scotland as it scratched its 'itchy bum' on an electricity pole.

Four-year-old Ron managed to knock a transformer off the pole during his vigorous scratching between 10pm and 11pm on Thursday at East Shawtonhill Farm in Chapelton, leaving residents in three nearby villages in South Lanarkshire without electricity.

This is no cock and bull story my friends - it's an a**e and bull story, and it's true.

Hazel Laughton

Fortunately for the Limousin bull, he managed to avoid the box as it fell into his field, as well as an 11,000 volt shock from the tumbling cables.

Indeed, Ron's owner, Hazel Laughton, was amazed he had survived the near-miss.

The farm owner and agricultural consultant told BBC Scotland: "We got up around 6am and we saw a big generator sitting at the bottom of our road, all linked up to the poles. We thought that was a bit strange.

"We went up to feed our cows and it was my husband that noticed the transformer box had been knocked off the pole.

"We put two and two together and realised our bull had been scratching against the telegraph pole and he had knocked the box off the pole. All the wires were down in the field as well.

"We were standing looking at it and the bull just sheepishly walked up to the fence. He just looked a bit stunned. I don't think he really knew what had happened during the night."

Maybe Ron will think twice before hitting the bull's eye on an electricity pole in the future.

Hazel was subsequently told by SP Energy Networks engineers that Ron had cut off the power supply to 800 homes, so Hazel shared a post on Facebook in which she issued an apology on behalf of the bull.

Hazel Laughton

The post read: "Our bull Ron would like to apologise to everyone in Chapelton and Strathaven for causing last nights power cut to over 700 homes!! He had a itchy bum so scratched it on the electricity pole and knocked the transformer box off!

"He's just happy to be alive this morning after somehow escaping 11,000 volts and a large bump on the head! Think we will rename him 'Sparky'!"

The post quickly went viral receiving 20,000 likes, Ron's apology seemingly well and truly accepted. Now people are coming up to the field to visit Ron, who has become a local celebrity - though the price he has had to pay for his newfound fame is his scratching stick, which is being fenced off to prevent future accidents.

Topics: UK News, Funny, Animals, Scotland

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey