A cow was shot and killed in a Cincinnati street near a McDonald's Wednesday morning after it escaped a slaughterhouse.

Police say the cow was one of three animals to escape the Tri-State Beef Co. on the city's West Side around 11am and believe the animal slipped out through a back gate while the other two were corralled, WLWT reports.

Chris Poor, a tow truck driver, told the station that he saw the animal trotting down a viaduct westbound with two Tri-State Beef employees chasing after it.

Escaped: A cow was shot and killed in a Cincinnati street near a McDonald's Wednesday morning after it escaped a slaughterhouse

Slipped Out: Police say the cow was one of three animals to escape the Tri-State Beef Co. on the city's West Side around 11am and believe the animal slipped out through a back gate while the other two were corralled

Tiffany Hardy, Cincinnati Police Department spokeswoman, told the Cincinnati Enquirer that the cow was nervous.

'It got confused and it ended up going up the Western Hills Viaduct onto Queen City,'Hardy said.

Poor said he offered the men a ride to capture the cow. He said the animal seemed very angry and aggressive.

'One was a truck driver that was delivering another truckload of cows and he pulled his gun out,' he said.

Authorities cornered the animal near the McDonald's by Queen City Avenue, Hardy told the Enquirer.

Chase: The cow was seen trotting on a viaduct westbound with two Tri-State Beef employees chasing after it

Charged: The handler, with a .22 caliber rifle, shot the cow once after the animal charged at him; the cow charged a second time and was shot again, this time fatally

The handler shot the cow once with a .22 caliber rifle after the animal charged at him, Metro reports. The cow charged a second time and was shot again, this time fatally.

'The man who put the cow down, it was so close it actually fell on his leg and he seemed to be limping but he refused medical at the time,' Sgt. Stephen Meyer told WLWT.

Hardy said no one was injured and no investigation is necessary.

Humane:Tri-State Beef officials said that the cow's escape was not due to negligence and they hold that the cow was put down in a humane manner

Tri-State Beef officials told KPTV that the cow's escape was not due to negligence and they hold that the cow was put down in a humane manner.

The slaughterhouse is located at Baymiller and Bank streets in the city's West End so the animal had to travel through city streets for just over a mile before making its way onto the viaduct, WKRC reports.