But have you ever heard one? We have a pack of around 30 in a ravine about 1/4 mile west of me. I've seen them, I know they are there, but when they yowl, the hair on the back of my neck stands up. I'm not afraid of them, but they unnerve me every time I hear them.
-
Too many ads? Join our community of cat lovers now to reduce ads by 90%! Click here to join for free!
What Local Animal Are You Most Afraid Of?
- Thread starter Mother Dragon
- Start Date
My hair stands on end and so does the hair on all the cats. Makes you want to break up furniture and nail it over your doors and windows. It's not as you say actual fear of the animal but the noise they make hits something primal in you.
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2017
- Messages
- 8,674
- Purraise
- 34,615
.
Hornets - especially Bald Faced, and both varieties of Yellowjackets. The huge European Hornets aren't aggressive - they act more like Cicada Killers than Hornets - but those little guys I steer clear of.
.
Hornets - especially Bald Faced, and both varieties of Yellowjackets. The huge European Hornets aren't aggressive - they act more like Cicada Killers than Hornets - but those little guys I steer clear of.
.
Here at home I'm most scared of coyotes. They hunt in packs around here, which isn't very common and you can hear them screaming throughout the entire night along the rivers. They aren't the huge species that you see farther north but nonetheless 6 coyotes on you in the dark is never a good thing.
When I'm in school up in the mountains it's black bears during mama season. Usually they steer clear of people but on my night runs I have walked up on the same big dude twice now. He is older and larger than any black bear I have seen in a zoo or preserve anywhere. He is docile but I cannot imagine if I were to walk up on his female and her babies. We have had two events of black bears outside of my dorms, a mama and two cubs. When she comes around nobody is allowed outside lol.
When I'm in school up in the mountains it's black bears during mama season. Usually they steer clear of people but on my night runs I have walked up on the same big dude twice now. He is older and larger than any black bear I have seen in a zoo or preserve anywhere. He is docile but I cannot imagine if I were to walk up on his female and her babies. We have had two events of black bears outside of my dorms, a mama and two cubs. When she comes around nobody is allowed outside lol.
We have had two bears here in 25 years mostly because of drought in the mountains. When we have coyotes around I take the suet cakes in. I don't want anything that looks like food. We added hardware cloth to our windows years ago. Cats in but I'm not so sure some of the coyotes we have around here wouldn't go through a screen for an easy meal.
The yotes here never used to show themselves during the day if you spotted one half a mile away they'd freak out now it's like they don't care.
The yotes here never used to show themselves during the day if you spotted one half a mile away they'd freak out now it's like they don't care.
The only dangerous animal we have around here is the coyote, and for the most part, they stay out of sight. They seem to avoid humans, and I don't know of any pets in this area that have been attacked by a coyote. I'm glad we have them - they keep the rabbit population in check. Maybe that's why they haven't attacked anyone - there are plenty of rabbits to feed on.
A skunk sprayed my dog twice many years ago, but avoiding getting sprayed isn't the same as fearing them.
A skunk sprayed my dog twice many years ago, but avoiding getting sprayed isn't the same as fearing them.
It's actually more common than people think.
Last week I took my dogs out to potty. It was very dark as the moon hadn't yet come up. Just outside the radius of the porch light, I heard a huffing - growl. It happened a few times, I figure it was a bear. The hair on my beagle stood up and he began growling. My schnauzer however, wanted to go over and play with whatever it was. This is the same dog that's afraid of packrats. I'll never figure him out.
They are pack hunters. Ask anyone who's had their dog lured out and them ambushed by one waiting. I think it's the wolf becoming more common in many coyotes also.
I feel a little sorry for the alligator in the picture, to be honest. It took a while for him to get that big and then some idiot comes along and kills him. And for what? So he could stand there and get his picture taken? How very courageous; but then again, he's the one with the gun. Oh, I get it. Alligators are killers. I understand that. But still......I just never understood the reason for killing for sport. Sorry, but I'm shaking my head over that one. What a shame.
I don't know that there's any animal that I'm really afraid of; there may be some that I don't particularly like, but I don't think I'm really scared of them. Anyway, I don't like snakes, but I guess I can deal with them. Rick takes the rattlesnakes and copperheads that we find up into the field behind our property, alive when he can. Dead, if he has to.
I don't know that there's any animal that I'm really afraid of; there may be some that I don't particularly like, but I don't think I'm really scared of them. Anyway, I don't like snakes, but I guess I can deal with them. Rick takes the rattlesnakes and copperheads that we find up into the field behind our property, alive when he can. Dead, if he has to.
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2017
- Messages
- 17,135
- Purraise
- 44,451
I would love to live in the south, but I'd be terrified that a poisonous snake or black widow spider would get in the house and kill me or the cats. I would never be able to sleep ever again. How do you guys make sure they don't ever get in the house? Or are they mostly found in rural areas?
I live in a decently rural area in NC and then when I'm in school it's even more so rural up in the blue ridge mountains and I can honestly say I've never ever seen a black widow. They're not as common as people make them out to be, what you have to worry about is the brown recluse. They're tiny and deadly. You have to be vigalent with your perimeter bug killer, and it does work very well to keep them out. The cotton mouth/copper heads are the deadly snakes and it's rare that you see them far from water- but they do get into people's garages. They can be agressive when agitated too so basically you have to really watch in the winter months when they're trying to get out of the cold. I've never seen one of these snakes anywhere near my home, but again there's no water close by.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #32
Coyotes are getting bolder. They're coming into cities, as are feral hogs. Don't think coyotes aren't around just because you don't see them. They're there and they're skilled predators. They'll take a cat just as fast during the day as at night. They also carry rabies.
If you let your cat out, you also risk their being taken by a hawk. My doctor had his puppy taken that way. There was nothing he could do.
I'm not afraid of monkeys. Wait, I think I probably am. I do know I don't like them or any apes.
Another local fear is Africanized bees. They're highly aggressive and can kill a person very quickly. Fire ants are just about as bad. Every bite leaves a pus-filled sore. Both are known to overpower and kill livestock and occasionally humans. Nasty critters.
If you let your cat out, you also risk their being taken by a hawk. My doctor had his puppy taken that way. There was nothing he could do.
I'm not afraid of monkeys. Wait, I think I probably am. I do know I don't like them or any apes.
Another local fear is Africanized bees. They're highly aggressive and can kill a person very quickly. Fire ants are just about as bad. Every bite leaves a pus-filled sore. Both are known to overpower and kill livestock and occasionally humans. Nasty critters.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #33
Snakes normally don't/can't get in the house if doors are sealed properly. The main time we see snakes at all is after a flood, when they're displaced from their burrows. Also, we try not to provide an environment that encourages rodents. That makes a cafeteria for snakes. Snakes don't like us any more than we like them and will try to escape a confrontation. The only snake that's a bit aggressive is the water moccasin. Snakes don't like to waste their venom on something they can't eat, so they usually don't envenomate unless they have no other option.
The black widow spider has a bad reputation, but the bite, while painful, is far from lethal. Brown recluses do have nasty bites that can become infected. However, I've been bitten three times and had a minor infection one time. I just wasn't careful. Spiders are pretty reclusive and like snakes, will only bite when threatened.
We learn to watch for bad critters. Most of them keep other bad critters in check. You'd do just fine here. Come visit us!
That is what we think happened to Tabby's sister. She came to us as a wee kitten, probably about four weeks old. Our neighbors found her in their driveway and called me. She became our fourth fur-daughter. A couple weeks after she came to live with us, our petsitter called; she had done some petsitting for people who live on the road behind us. They had a cat, cat got pregnant and they thought it would be ever-so-cute for the cat to have her kittens. Until the kittens were born, then they were a pain in the butt and the people kicked all of them out. There were two little female babies. There's a good chance that Tabby was one of the girls; we think a hawk got her sister when they were up in the field, finding their way down to us because it was just Tabby; she was alone.
I'd never let our kids outside; it's not worth it.
Since I respect the wildlife around us I am not particularly frightened of it. I go mostly by the rule, live and let live. I am however terrified of spiders - big ones. When I lived in Florida we had one get in the house that was so big it looked like a star fish. If a spider comes in my house it is a dead spider as soon as I see it. Around my home now (I live in New England) we have ground hogs, snakes (mostly non poisonous), fox, coyotes, racoon, beaver, deer, opossums, rabbits, skunks, bald eagle, falcons, hawks, an occasional bear and moose, as well as fisher cats. Those scare me more for my cats and dog than anything else because there have been reports of them actually coming through a screen into a house to get a cat. I did see one in my yard a couple of years ago. I never leave the window open on the ground floor unless I am at home. At night you can hear them screaming - will make the hair on your neck stand up!!
- Joined
- Jan 31, 2014
- Messages
- 8,089
- Purraise
- 13,358
I have heard fishers are scary. We don't have open windows in the summer- AC is on! Something about fishers just scare the bejesus out of me.
Aside from our cats being unable to get out through a torn screen its the reason we added hardware cloth to the windows. I have no illusions about wildlife and what it's doing which is hunting for food all the time. A fluffy cat in the window would be an easy target. The neighbors uncivilized dog tried a through the screen to attack one of our cats a few years ago. Big dog bounced right off.
If you have anyplace on your property rural or urban that could harbor a wild den you can discourage them by simply walking your perimeter on a regular basis. We had a yote right out the back of the house last year 3 days in a row it was a warning that it was looking for a place to live.
You learn something everyday. I never heard of a fisher cat before, so had to look it up. It looks like their range is far north of everywhere I've lived, so that's probably the reason. Turns out it's a native North American animal.
I agree with you. There is no excuse for killing that poor alligator. What an idiot.
I think it's wonderful that Rick takes the snakes in the woods alive when he can, It is just ridiculous kill innocent animals.
Muffy
When my schnauzer was a puppy, I had a bald eagle swoop down and try to take him. And he was on a leash. And that's probably why he's still alive today.
I've noticed the animals are getting bolder. I feel like I'm watching the tv series Zoo, but it's in my back yard.
