How Do Farmers Call Cows?
Come girls, come on
Come boss, come boss
Here girls, let's go
Kom kyyyyra! Såmådikomme
Come boooooossssssss
Ccccow. Cccccow
What is all this gibberish?
Well, it isn't gibberish to farmers, and apparently it isn't gibberish to cows, either.
These are just a few of the many calls farmers use to bring in their cows. While the words may sound strange to an outsider, cows learn to recognize the sounds, voices, and routines associated with their daily lives.
Now why would a farmer need to call a cow? There are several reasons. Bovines respond to what their farmers are saying, yelling or singing to get their attention. The call may signal that it's time for milking, feeding, moving to fresh pasture, heading to the barn or getting checked on. A good call can be heard from miles away!
What Sounds Attract Cows During Feeding?
Different farmers take different approaches. Some farmers simply ride their UTV out to pasture to get the cows' attention. Others clink a metal feed bucket to get the cows moving. Some whistle or call the cows by name. Others rely on traditional calls and some lull them in with sweet melodies. While we haven't heard it on our organic farms, Kulning, an ancient Nordic herding call, is a fascinating way to summon cows from far-off fields.
Leslie and Brian Wickline walk the pasture at their Organic Valley dairy farm in West Virginia.
Farmer Leslie Wickline says there's no rhyme or reason to how she calls in the family's 70-some Jersey cows on their Organic Valley farm in West Virginia. "Come on girls, come on girls," is her signature call and when they hear it, there's always a cow eager to be first in line — except the cow rightfully named "Slowpoke." Her husband, Brian, prefers to call, "Come on, come on."
The cows know the call and once the herd's leader emerges, the others fall in line. Leslie admits she is loud and says when you are on a farm, working around tractors, milk pumps and machinery, you must be loud to get any cow's — or person's — attention!
How to Call Cows Effectively on a Farm
Cow calling is an art. It's mesmerizing to watch a farmer at work and see the cows respond. It's intense to hear a booming voice fill the valley as a small person wails out a large, long call. Sometimes it's earsplitting and other times, gentle.
"My neighbor has iron lungs and she calls out ‘BEHHH BEHH BEHHHHHHHHH’ so loud it echoes off the mountainside," a commenter said in a Reddit discussion about calling cows in from pasture. "It's quite impressive. Although excessive."
This cow was eager to follow Sonya and Tim Roberge at their Ought-A Be Farm in Vermont.
Can Cows Recognize Human Voices?
It doesn't come as a huge surprise to many Organic Valley farmers that a 2026 study found that cows can recognize human faces and connect faces to familiar voices.
While watching an Organic Valley dairy farmer call in the cows on his Washington farm, I asked his grown son what he thought his dad was saying. "Gustvar," he replied. His young grandson thought he was saying, "School bus, school bus." What a surprise to learn he was bellowing, "Come boss."
Everyone had a good laugh. After all those years in the field, it seemed the communication between farmer and cow was better understood than the words themselves.
No matter the tone, word or nonsense sound, calling cows is part of the connection farmers build with their herds, until the cows come home.
