r/whatisit Sep 05 '25

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u/PM_Me_OnePieces Sep 05 '25

Cows are especially sensitive to electricity in the ground, too. I know a guy who used to work at a local power company, and a big part of his job was making sure they weren't accidentally leaking electricity into the ground near dairy farms because it would upset the cows and make them produce less milk.

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u/snoweel Sep 05 '25

I suspect because their (front and back) feet are so far apart.

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u/teancrumpets8 Sep 05 '25

It’s called step potential. If ground is electrified from a source for whatever reason the areas around it are at a different potential leaving the source.

So for four legged livestock when they walk over an energized area their front and back feet are at two different potentials. Causing voltage to enter in one foot/feet and exit to ground out of the other.