Return path is doing more work than we admit

I think return path needs more weight in review, and yeah I know I keep saying this.

A cow that enters water, pauses, and exits toward the same pasture is one thing. A cow that enters water and exits somewhere that makes the route shorter, stranger, or fence-avoidant is another thing.

We keep treating return path like a cleanup detail. It may be the part that separates accidental water contact from water use.

Not asking for a new category. Asking for the form to stop burying it under the stuff everyone remembers anyway.