Pink Kate

sure is fun to try. i have no desire to shoot deer or elk, but the only thing more appealing to me than shooting a wolf is shooting a cougar.

ironic isnt it? ;-)

(......that the wolf kills for fun, and i find fun in killing wolves)

Me too. But I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it. My yard is 700+ acres. Dangers are numerous.

My son is the one who told me it was there, he is 13. The cat was investigating the snake and so it was warning the cat away. Hell, if my wife hadn't demanded it's removal, I'd have preferred to watch it hunt. Our Indigo snakes often catch the leopard frogs at our water trough by the deck, very cool to witness. Rattlesnakes are a reality here, as are bad bulls, rabid skunks, black widows, brown recluses and barb wire, dangers lurk everywhere (like crappy shackles on early CJs). One learns about their surroundings in the country, much the same way a city feller pays attention to who is watching him withdraw cash at the ATM.

Besides, rattlesnake bites are rarely fatal. My mom was bitten on the forearm, and my last dog - twice - once on the paw and once on the throat. Both my grandfather and my Bro-in-law have been bitten by black widows, and they suffered FAR longer and worse effects than my mother or dog. My best friend has been bitten by a brown recluse, and I have been bitten by several spiders, thousands of fire ants, numerous wasps, bees and even a scorpion. No Bot flies yet, but I keep trying! I fear the shredder on my tractor, more than rattlesnakes (the equipment tends to piss off africanized bees). As I said, If I can't remove it from the area, THEN I'll destroy it.

Many years ago, we came home late one evening with groceries from town, several trips back and forth thru the screen and front door to the truck and kitchen. Next morning I found a rattler, BETWEEN, the front screen door and front door, a space of 2-3". He was alive, uninjured, and one of us stepped right over it as it tried to get in the house as we closed the doors.

And I won't even mention the dangers my son and I face while caving, but thats the fun, risk. Sure beats the mall! Later this year I'm rappeling into Sotano del Golandrias in Mexico, some thousand feet. Perhaps we should fill in the big hole, instead, because it's dangerous?

It's not that I oppose killing them, I killed two last year upon arriving at our family reunion pik-nik. They were trying to get into the woodpile and little kids were coming. Had to dismantle the woodpile afterwards to make sure there were no more.

No, these animals have their place in the world, killing it would serve no purpose. I'm not afraid of the snake, neither is my son, we prefer to RESPECT it.

Why? You gonna eat it?

nope. im gonna make sure it never eats again.

same could be said of your house.......bathtubs kill more people per year than rattlesnakes so why not let rattlesnakes in your house? thats using the same logic i quoted from you.

sounds like a nice place! ;-)

they are when it involves small children. i nearly stepped on one in '04

i kill those too. :-)

not a realistic comparison.

please tell me we arent talking tim treadwell type "respect" here. :-)

There was about a quarter inch of some sort of white stuff on the ground... I hear they call it 'snow'...

Only happens ever 20 years or so around here... I don't think I let the dog come into the garage for that one...

Given a choice of rats or snakes, I'll take snakes... Once their food source is gone, they leave... I've known people who would throw a Texas Rat Snake up in their attic to get rid of mice... Once it finished off the mice, it left... Of course, a rat snake is not poisonous... Don't think I would throw a rattler up there... A rattler or cottonmouth, I would just release back into the wild...

On the other hand, I kill armadillos and 'possums on sight... Not because I enjoy killing 'em and having to dispose of their bodies, but just because they're ugly... Well, that plus they either dig up my yard or get in my dog's food...

Would you feel the same way about shooting a T-Bird or is it only Lincoln-Mercury products you want extinct?

Drunk drivers are far worse, nobody is out shooting them.

"Earle Horton" wrote : > Why would you put up with such a thing? : >

: Cabin fever. They make such good company, it breaks my heart to put them on : the floor. Hope the snow melts soon... : : Earle :

Hey Earle, your house, your rules, your cats. Whatever makes you happy. :¬)

rattlesnakes so why not let rattlesnakes in your house? thats using the same logic i quoted from you.

Whatever, I'm not gonna debate you about my lifestyle. Besides, we found a big snakeskin in our laundryroom last summer, who knows?

widows, brown recluses and barb wire

It's Texas. And it's my piece of Texas.

Small children need close supervision, I don't have small children. And anyway, buckets and stairs are bad new to small children, too. We live in the country, I raised two w/o snakebite so far. You learn to watch the ground when you walk around, I find more things from this habit.

A caving buddy was bitten many years ago by a big rattler. He wasn't envenomated. Good scare tho. I have crawled past dozens of rattlers in cave entrances over the years. I have eaten them. I have sewn their moths shut and trained my (new) dogs with them. I have caught and removed at least six from my house over the past 15 years (I killed three, they were trying to get into or under my house). One was in my engine bay of my truck.

Sure it is. It's dangerous, let's do away with it instead of being careful. Killing every predator on my place would be a bad move too.

I have no idea.

I did see a cougar last month cross the road a couple miles down the road a while back.

Are you sure these were wolves? From what I have read, and had confirmed by forest rangers and wildlife biologists, eating the guts first is what dogs do. Domestic dogs, and wolves, though they are closely related and can even breed together, have distinctively different behavior patterns, which identifies which species you are dealing with. That is, if you are not so overcome by rage at the federal government and bleeding heart liberal wackos, that you can't think straight any more.

I am a little surprised that you don't attack Nate for being a "criminal" now. As you know, the democratic form of government is indeed a "popularity contest", not about "doing what you know is right". Anyone who strikes out on his own, defying laws written by our process, which is essentially one of consensus, is a criminal by your definition.

It doesn't matter how "bad" wolves are, just as it doesn't matter how "unfair" our immigration laws are. You don't break the laws, eh? And if you do find it necessary to break the law, because your conscience cannot stand the alternative, then you stand up like a man and take your punishment.

Earle

---snippy---

Mike, every place has its own natural order and established customs. Imported predators like the feral dog and cat, or overly romantic East Coast city refugee mountain man wannabees stick out like a sore thumb and disturb that natural order. You can't really blame the dog, but the human import would be well advised to step back for a bit, and observe, until he figures out what is really going on.

The ranchers out here lease federal and state lands for pennies, know which side their bread is buttered on, and rarely take such a hostile attitude towards the local wildlife and the people who are looking out for it. Many of them are even conservationists of one kind or another.

It is odd, that many of those who would escape from the cities to live in the wilderness, cannot really stand the wilderness the way it is either.

Earle