A buffalo on the run in Fife will not face a grilling after its misadventures.
The year-old animal, initially dubbed Bill but now called Bert, has been on the loose since Saturday December 9 when it bolted while being weighed.
It is now hiding out in the Carden Den woodland after extensive efforts to lure it back to captivity.
Stevie Mitchell of The Buffalo Farm has released a cow and calf in the hope they will coax Bert out of his hiding place.
And he said there would be no repercussions for the escapee when he is finally caught.
“It’s our intention to have a couple of buffaloes at the farm shop as an attraction and because Bert now has star status, he’s an obvious choice.
“Given Bert’s popularity on Facebook, he’d create a lot of public interest.
“Because of his popularity, we’ll try to make sure he doesn’t end up as burgers. He actually owes me a lot more than I’d ever make out of burgers because of the amount of time we’ve spent looking for him.”
Mr Mitchell said there was a serious side to Bert’s disappearance.
The buffalo farmer is becoming increasingly anxious about Bert’s welfare, and also the possibility that he could cause a road accident.
“I’m petrified that he could cause a terrible road accident,” said Mr Mitchell.
“Anyone who is driving on the Torbain Road should take extra care and attention because he has been seen popping across that road.”
He added: “Bert is obviously very scared and his instinct is to hide.”
Last week, a team of beaters unsuccessfully attempted to flush Bert out of woodland.
And Mr Mitchell has been using heat sensing binoculars in an attempt to catch sight of the 400kg beast.
He said people had been in touch believing they had seen Bert, but they had in fact spotted the cow being used as a “decoy”.
Mr Mitchell said: “We’ve released a cow with her calf in the hope that might entice Bert to come and get some company.”
