He is among the dozens of south-west farmers who are “cow parking” for farmers while they renew fences and other farm assets destroyed in the four big blazes that raced across the south-west on the night of March 17.

Mr Robilliard said he had “parked” the dairy cows from other farmers on four paddocks and was feeding them hay. 

Some of the hay he was providing had been donated, he said.

Mr Robilliard said he made the offer so the fire-affected farmers were not forced to sell off cows because they had lost fences and feed.

“If I got burnt out, someone would have done the same for me,” he said.

Mr Robilliard said he understood the cows were the “future” livelihood for the fire-affected farmers.

“Instead of me handing out $1000 donation into a bushfire fund, I can take cattle from farmers who have hit hard,” he said.

Mr Robilliard, who is milking 150 cows of his own, said the parked cows had come from properties in the Cobrico area, north-west of Cobden, that had been badly affected by peat fires ignited by the March 17 blazes.

“They have come out of the worst spot.

“It’s lucky they are still alive,” Mr Robilliard said.

Mr Robilliard said he was determined to return the dairy heifers, which he was looking after for free, in as good condition as they were when they arrived on his property.

Many of the cows were young animals and some were in calf, he said.

Mr Robilliard said he hoped to keep the cows, which came from two properties, for as long as he could to give the owners enough time to refence paddocks.

He said good regrowth was occurring on many of the properties burnt in the March 17 blazes.

“There is more grass on the fireground than anywhere else,” Mr Robilliard said.

Ash from the fires was providing good fertiliser to aid  pastures’ regrowth.

However one of the properties that he was parking cows for was “losing acres” to a peat fire.

The property, which adjoined Lake Cobrico, was losing land that was being turned to burnt peat.