Loose Cow On I-285 Led Police Chase, Blocked Traffic For An Hour

DUNWOODY, GA — Traffic jams are pretty common in metro Atlanta. Thousands of drivers traversing Atlanta's highways, car accidents and severe weather are some of the usual culprits.

But this past weekend, a traffic jam on Interstate 285 was caused by something entirely different: a cow who would just not get its moooove on.

Dunwoody Police Department officers responded to reports that a cow was running loose on I-285 just west of Ashford-Dunwoody Road and causing a traffic jam around 9 a.m. this past Saturday. Police said the cow fell out of a livestock trailer before making a run for it and heading into Dunwoody.

"Chasing people is a norm for officers. However, chasing cows on the interstate ... not so much," Dunwoody police said via Facebook.

Police chased the cow down the interstate, leading to a traffic jam for about an hour. Authorities eventually got the cow safely back to its owner with the help of a civilian with a rope and a handful of officers guiding the wayward cow.

However, this is not even the first time an animal has run loose on an Atlanta interstate. There were three separate incidents of cattle on highways within a five-month period in 2018, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.