Wild Kingdom

[Farmersfan]

My wife and I were working in the front yard yesterday when we heard a bunch of racket coming from the back yard. I went into the back yard and found a hawk of some kind eating my wife's parrot that had been in it's cage on the back porch. When it saw me it took off and carried the parrot out of site. I found the whole side of the cage torn open and enough feathers to stuff a good size pillow. Our 15 year old blind, deaf and dumb dog was sleeping on the back porch the whole time and never moved. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?

[waterboy]

No, we don't have a bird.:p We do have critters coming into our yard all the time. The other morning I came outside to get in the truck to go to work, and there was a loud leaf rustling sound coming from the yard. It was still dark and my wife thought maybe it was a wild hog or something big. I went inside and got a flashlight and went hunting for whatever was making the racket and discovered it was an armadillo. This armadillo was gathering leaves to make himself a nest under our storage building. It's also been tearing up our yard with its rooting, too. If I catch that little critter again, I'm a gonna fill it with lead!:D

This is not the first time we've encountered critters in our yard. I remember twice having killed a 'possum in our house, and once or twice we've had 'coons get into our trash can. Opened up the back door once to put trash in the trash can, only to be hissed at by a 'coon! It gotta way before I could come back to shoot it!:doh:

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Farmersfan
My wife and I were working in the front yard yesterday when we heard a bunch of racket coming from the back yard. I went into the back yard and found a hawk of some kind eating my wife's parrot that had been in it's cage on the back porch. When it saw me it took off and carried the parrot out of site. I found the whole side of the cage torn open and enough feathers to stuff a good size pillow. Our 15 year old blind, deaf and dumb dog was sleeping on the back porch the whole time and never moved. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?

No!! But my daughter DID stick out her tongue while holding a turtle she had found and he bit it!!:p

You don't seem very upset about the parrot, did you not like it???

I would have been freaking out!!!

[Farmersfan]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
No!! But my daughter DID stick out her tongue while holding a turtle she had found and he bit it!!:p

You don't seem very upset about the parrot, did you not like it???

I would have been freaking out!!!


We were both freaking out when it happened. I went after the hawk when it flew off thinking perhaps the parrot was still alive but it flew out of sight and the huge pile of feathers told me there was no chance the parrot still lived. My wife took it pretty hard but in truth the recent years had turned the parrot into a mean noise maker. That's the biggest reason it spent so much of the day outside on the back porch. It would not shut up. My wife asked if we might get a new one and almost fainted. What do you think? Can you replace a old pet with a new pet. My opinion is this is something you do for a child not an adult.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Farmersfan
We were both freaking out when it happened. I went after the hawk when it flew off thinking perhaps the parrot was still alive but it flew out of sight and the huge pile of feathers told me there was no chance the parrot still lived. My wife took it pretty hard but in truth the recent years had turned the parrot into a mean noise maker. That's the biggest reason it spent so much of the day outside on the back porch. It would not shut up. My wife asked if we might get a new one and almost fainted. What do you think? Can you replace a old pet with a new pet. My opinion is this is something you do for a child not an adult.

I don't believe a pet can be replaced.

It seems like the only reason we seem to get dogs now (or outside dogs) is to be a companion to the crusty old man (Australian shepherd/border collie mix) that lives back there.

Personally, I have never understood why anyone would want to have bird....or any kind of pet like that. My daughter has a snake, I just don't see the point!!

[waterboy]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
I don't believe a pet can be replaced.

It seems like the only reason we seem to get dogs now (or outside dogs) is to be a companion to the crusty old man (Australian shepherd/border collie mix) that lives back there.

Personally, I have never understood why anyone would want to have bird....or any kind of pet like that. My daughter has a snake, I just don't see the point!!
Does your daughter cuddle with, or let you cuddle with, the snake?:eek: Does it like to be cuddled........and how do you pet a snake?:eek: (No innuendoes intended......whew!.....glad I caught that!:D )

Somehow, I'm with you on not understanding how some animals can be called pets if you can't at least communicate with them on some level.:hand:

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by waterboy
Does your daughter cuddle with, or let you cuddle with, the snake?:eek: Does it like to be cuddled........and how do you pet a snake?:eek: (No innuendoes intended......whew!.....glad I caught that!:D )

Somehow, I'm with you on not understanding how some animals can be called pets if you can't at least communicate with them on some level.:hand:

She lets Sherman (the snake) out of his tank and lets him crawl around. He loves to get in her hair and her hair is long, so it's quite humorous to watch her try and extricate him from it.

She informed me he "shed his skin" last night, so she to buy him a mouse....let the carnage begin!!:eek:

[Farmersfan]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
I don't believe a pet can be replaced.

It seems like the only reason we seem to get dogs now (or outside dogs) is to be a companion to the crusty old man (Australian shepherd/border collie mix) that lives back there.

Personally, I have never understood why anyone would want to have bird....or any kind of pet like that. My daughter has a snake, I just don't see the point!!


10 years ago my oldest son had really bad sinus problems. He blew his nose often. For the last 10 years anytime someone would put a hand or napkin even close to their face this bird would mimick the nose blowing sound. My wife taught it early on to whistle the Andy Griffith show tune. We had a hot tub in the sun room and one evening when we got in from work the puppy had broken in the window screen and was in the hot tub and could not get out. The bird was crying non stop like the puppy had and for years it would imitate this sound all the time. to this day I can't get that puppy to go near the hot tub............If you show the bird constant attention they can be great pets but they can also get very, very mean. Sassy was a demon bird for several years..

[ronwx5x]

Originally posted by waterboy
Does your daughter cuddle with, or let you cuddle with, the snake?:eek: Does it like to be cuddled........and how do you pet a snake?:eek: (No innuendoes intended......whew!.....glad I caught that!:D )

Somehow, I'm with you on not understanding how some animals can be called pets if you can't at least communicate with them on some level.:hand:

"Why are you spanking that monkey?" From Night at the Museum! A very funny movie!

[Trashman]

Originally posted by Farmersfan
My wife and I were working in the front yard yesterday when we heard a bunch of racket coming from the back yard. I went into the back yard and found a hawk of some kind eating my wife's parrot that had been in it's cage on the back porch. When it saw me it took off and carried the parrot out of site. I found the whole side of the cage torn open and enough feathers to stuff a good size pillow. Our 15 year old blind, deaf and dumb dog was sleeping on the back porch the whole time and never moved. Has anyone ever experienced something like this?

Nothing like that, but I was almost run over by a deer grazing next to the house. :vrycnfsd: That is the last time I go lurking around outside after dark without a flashlight.:D

[Farmersfan]

Originally posted by Trashman
Nothing like that, but I was almost run over by a deer grazing next to the house. :vrycnfsd: That is the last time I go lurking around outside after dark without a flashlight.:D



My father in law had a bad Armadillo problem so he bought a pistol.(legally). He put a security light in the yard because the armadillos were digging up his yard really bad. That didn't stop them so he went out with his pistol to try and shoot them. They were in the light and he was in the dark and he shot one. It ran straight at him because it couldn't see him in the dark. It tried to run up his pajama pants leg to hide and scratched up his leg really bad. He finally managed to kick it away and shoot it again. He swears he will never shoot another critter in the middle of the night again. I laugh until I cry every time he tells this story.

[DDBooger]

Originally posted by Farmersfan
My father in law had a bad Armadillo problem so he bought a pistol.(legally). He put a security light in the yard because the armadillos were digging up his yard really bad. That didn't stop them so he went out with his pistol to try and shoot them. They were in the light and he was in the dark and he shot one. It ran straight at him because it couldn't see him in the dark. It tried to run up his pajama pants leg to hide and scratched up his leg really bad. He finally managed to kick it away and shoot it again. He swears he will never shoot another critter in the middle of the night again. I laugh until I cry every time he tells this story. damn man, i'd freak out if a roach did that, a damn armadillo? hahaha

[Farmersfan]

Originally posted by DDBooger
damn man, i'd freak out if a roach did that, a damn armadillo? hahaha


He's 77 years old so the armadillo didn't have much trouble running him down.:D
When he tells the story he has to act it out also which makes it even funnier.

[ronwx5x]

Originally posted by Farmersfan
My father in law had a bad Armadillo problem so he bought a pistol.(legally). He put a security light in the yard because the armadillos were digging up his yard really bad. That didn't stop them so he went out with his pistol to try and shoot them. They were in the light and he was in the dark and he shot one. It ran straight at him because it couldn't see him in the dark. It tried to run up his pajama pants leg to hide and scratched up his leg really bad. He finally managed to kick it away and shoot it again. He swears he will never shoot another critter in the middle of the night again. I laugh until I cry every time he tells this story.

Almost as good as the parrot story.

This has nothing to do with pets, but it is hilarious as long as the victim is not you. On my way to work I used to purchase a newspaper from a vending machine in a deli next to the office. I always wear a suit and tie to work. One morning I put my fifty cents in, bent over and retrieved my newspaper then let go of the spring loaded door. It captured my tie perfectly and I cou ld not get out!. The clerk in the store was almost rolling on the floor as I tried to find another fifty cents to free myself. Of course I didn't have any more change. He finally collected himself, got fifty cents from the till and released my tie (and me). I'm sure he still tells that story!!!

[Farmersfan]

Originally posted by ronwx5x
Almost as good as the parrot story.

This has nothing to do with pets, but it is hilarious as long as the victim is not you. On my way to work I used to purchase a newspaper from a vending machine in a deli next to the office. I always wear a suit and tie to work. One morning I put my fifty cents in, bent over and retrieved my newspaper then let go of the spring loaded door. It captured my tie perfectly and I cou ld not get out!. The clerk in the store was almost rolling on the floor as I tried to find another fifty cents to free myself. Of course I didn't have any more change. He finally collected himself, got fifty cents from the till and released my tie (and me). I'm sure he still tells that story!!!


Just another reason why I cut up all my ties 3 years ago......................

[KingRob]

We've had some foxes go through our garbage, but that's about it!

[waterboy]

Originally posted by KingRob
We've had some foxes go through our garbage, but that's about it!
Speaking of which.......my brother was over my house and got nauseated, went outside and barfed in our driveway. That night a fox came into the driveway and ate it.:eek: I heard the dogs barking like crazy, of course they were in their pens, and looked outside to see what all the ruckus was and there it stood, eating the leftovers not 8 feet from the dog pen.:eek:

[waterboy]

There's also a mess of wild hogs out behind our house that come up to the fence bordering my land, and wolves and coyotes come up to the fence from time to time. I feel like the land behind my house is an animal reserve sometimes. Ain't no telling what kind of animal you're liable to see.:eek:

[Ranger Mom]

I was talking to my neighbor this weekend and he made the comment that he doesn't have any cats left (he had about 7) and said the neighbor on the other side of him is down to ZERO cats out of 16 he had a last year.

I have a cat but he is a house cat....come to find out, we have a fox and a bobcat roaming our neck of the woods.

Now that I think about it, I haven't seen any rabbits in a LONG time and that is very unusual.

I guess my horse and donkey are too big to mess with!!