Cow shot by authorities after escaping truck on US-127 in Ingham County

A cow fell from a livestock trailer near the northbound US-127 exit ramp at Lake Lansing Road and was killed by local law enforcement on Wednesday, Ingham County Animal Control and Shelter says.

The cow was improperly secured during transport, and the individual transporting it was unaware the cow was missing until they arrived at their destination, over an hour away, the shelter says.

ICACS officers were contacted by local law enforcement to assist with transporting the cow before it moved from the highway area into nearby residential neighborhoods to the east, which posed an ongoing public safety concern, according to the ICACS.

ICACS officers then attempted to chemically immobilize the cow and contain and secure it, but the medications had little to no effect, and the cow moved into a densely populated residential area with an elementary school nearby, the shelter says.

The shelter says that a veterinarian was brought to the scene to assist in another attempt to immobilize the cow chemically, but the attempt was unsuccessful, leading to the decision to kill the cow using a firearm by local law enforcement.

"This was an unfortunate outcome to a challenging situation," ICACS said. "Unfortunately, as the situation escalated, the safety of residents and the surrounding community had to remain the priority."