Quote of the Moment

"It's never wrong to hope, Byx," said my mother. "Unless the truth says otherwise."
- from Endling #1: The Last, by Katherine Applegate

Monday, June 01, 2009

Bearing Up


Something's been going after the bird feeders on and off for the past few weeks. We thought maybe it was the coons. Evidently not... This guy and his brother (or sister - I didn't want to get too close, even if they are just black bears) were caught red-pawed this evening. A clatter of a broom against the railing spooked them, but we decided to take the feeders in early. (We've been leaving them up until sundown, because normally nocturnal foragers don't go out before then, but these must be early risers.)

While they were out there, a neighbor called in a panic to let us know there were - gasp! - bears around!!! A prowling cougar might be worth a little panic, but black bears? Generally not troublesome, save the property damage. Besides, our housepets are indoors for just this reason. Sometimes I wonder why certain people moved into bear country to begin with...

We now return you to your regularly scheduled evening.

3 comments:

Jade said...

I'm torn between saying "Holy Shit" and "awww! Cute!"

There are bears living in a green space between us and the 7-11, but so far as I know they don't come up the hill into our neighborhood much - at least if they do, nobody has spotted them yet.

Whenever there's a bobcat sighting the neighborhood email list lights up like Christmas with warnings to keep an eye on your small pets and children... as if normally it's OK to just let your small pets and children run around in the streets.

Brightdreamer said...

Jade - A bobcat taking out a kid? Are these the large bobcats with tawny coats and long tails, or are the kids small furbearing quadripeds? Who in their right minds leaves a kid small enough for a bobcat to drag off alone in the yard to begin with? Some people just love to panic, I suppose. And, yeah, from what I've seen people seem highly resentful at the idea of restraining their offspring from running free in dangerous situations. They also don't seem to give a rip about letting their supposedly beloved animals run loose - a fact the cougars and coyotes are supremely grateful for. (Of course, by far the biggest threat to freeroaming pets is a certain overpopulated bipedal predator and its four-wheeled companion species.)

PeppyPilotGirl said...

I think Jade said it well - it's a toss up between "Holy Shit!" and "Awwww! Cute!"

isper - the nervous under-the-breath chatter that starts up when a bobcat is seen in suburban neighborhoods.