It was a first for the Bluffdale Animal Control Department: six cows were running amok in the river bottoms and no one knew where they came from.

“Usually people will call and report missing livestock, and we had no calls. These weren’t local animals,” Animal Control Officer Anika Estioko said.

The cows were first spotted on Nov. 18 on Heritage Crest Parkway. Animal Control Officer Craig Rasmussen tried to chase them down, but the elusive cows ran back into the bushes. After a few days of them on the run, a local farmer managed to corral the cows and reported them to animal control.

As Bluffdale’s animal control ordinances do not specifically state the protocol for dealing with rogue cows, the animal control department had to figure out what to do with the cows. After a short stay at the farmer’s ranch, the cows were loaded up and taken to the Bluffdale Rodeo Grounds while city officials tried to track down their owners.

“It was bizarre,” Estioko said. “Some of these cows were very distinctive and no one knows where they came from.”

The best theory for the riddle of the cows is that they must have been stolen, and for some unknown reason someone dumped the cows in Bluffdale. The animals were two different breeds, and were taken from different owners. Only one owner was located, and he was shocked that two of his cows were found in Bluffdale as they were last spotted in Delta.

After 10 days in city custody, the remaining unclaimed cows were taken to an auction and were sold for around $1,200 each. The city has since amended the animal control ordinance to include a provision for renegade cows.