Six cows lead hours-long chase after escaping slaughterhouse

March 31 (UPI) -- Six cows that escaped from a slaughter house in Missouri were captured after leading authorities on a chase for several hours.

St. Louis Police shared video of the cows sprinting down a local street after sneaking their way out of a local packing house on Thursday.

"Working with Animal Control & Humane Society to corral six cows loose from packing house in North St. Louis," police said.

The cattle managed to escape from Star Packing Co. through an unsecured door after a latch was left open and spilled onto the streets of the surrounding neighborhood.

Police were called to the area at around 1 p.m. and SWAT officers responded to the scene with rifles as a precaution.

It took animal control officers and Humane Society staff about four hours to capture all six of the escaped cattle.

New York-based animal rescue group Farm Sanctuary successfully launched a GoFundMe campaign to bring the cattle to their 175 acre farm, rather than returning them to the slaughter house.

"It's just so incredibly sad. They're just running for their life," Farm Sanctuary director Susie Coston said.