A Highland bull which lives in the Overstegen park in Doetichem will not be put down, despite repeated escape attempts, the town council said on Sunday.

There had been rumours the bull was set for the chop after he escaped from the park four times over the past few days.

An online petition against the ‘ridiculous’ plan to kill the bull was set up to keep the animal alive and had been signed by 5,500 people by Sunday afternoon. ‘The bull does not have a voice but we do,’ the petition stated. Over 300 people also signed up to attend a demonstration in support of the bull.

However, the town council was quick to deny the bull was to be put down on Monday. Instead, officials are trying to find a new home for the bull, which has become known in the Dutch media as Houdini.

‘Killing a healthy animal is not one of the council’s options,’ a spokesman said in a statement on Sunday.

The bull is being moved to a new park in Doetinchem, a small town in the east of the Netherlands, while officials try to sell him or swap him.

Safety

‘Because the bull knows how it can leave the park, it is very likely he will try again,’ the statement said. ‘The safety of animal and humans is paramount and therefore the bull cannot be put back in the Overstegen park.’

Eyewitness Marco van Breemen told local paper the Gelderlander the bull was calmly eating grass along the verge after his first escape attempt. ‘The bull was very relaxed and totally unaggressive,’ he said. ‘He was free for around 20 minutes’.

Hardy Highland cattle are used by the forestry commission, water boards and other groups in the Netherlands to keep down grass in parks and nature reserves.