Kelsey (my neighbor) and I have been exercising at 6:30am every morning. We usually take a challenging walk/jog thru the hills surrounding our homes. We always take our fearless dogs along with us, because we are not fearless...
Before you call me a wimp, let me describe our exercise terrain. We have various routes, but our trails consist of dirt and cheat grass. We either follow a canal bank, 4-wheeler tracks, or an animal trail--horse, deer, or coyote. This morning our walk included a hill that was nearly straight up vertically. As we walk, we observe that we are not alone...there are many tracks, droppings, licked-clean bones, and homes along the way. My favorite sound is the gentle call of the dove in the morning, the sound that brings panic to me is the howl of the coyote--within a short distance!!!
I think Kelsey's greatest fear is the coyote. My greatest fear...well, it's a tie. I am scared of rattle snakes and badgers. I think our fears are valid because as we walk, we know we are on their home turf. We scamper past large badger holes and leap over snake holes. I have researched the badger and this is what I found:
Badgers are fierce animals and will protect themselves and their young at all costs. Badgers are capable of fighting off much larger animals such as wolves, coyotes and bears. Badgers can run or gallop at up to 25-30 km per hour for short periods of time. (faster than I can run)North American badgers are omnivores and prey on moles, gophers (yea!), ground squirrels, and mice...(humans are not listed). They catch most of their food by digging and can tunnel after prey at amazing speeds. Scandanavian custom: put eggshells in their boots when walking through badger territory because badgers are believed to bite down until their hear a crunch.
Before you call me a wimp, let me describe our exercise terrain. We have various routes, but our trails consist of dirt and cheat grass. We either follow a canal bank, 4-wheeler tracks, or an animal trail--horse, deer, or coyote. This morning our walk included a hill that was nearly straight up vertically. As we walk, we observe that we are not alone...there are many tracks, droppings, licked-clean bones, and homes along the way. My favorite sound is the gentle call of the dove in the morning, the sound that brings panic to me is the howl of the coyote--within a short distance!!!
I think Kelsey's greatest fear is the coyote. My greatest fear...well, it's a tie. I am scared of rattle snakes and badgers. I think our fears are valid because as we walk, we know we are on their home turf. We scamper past large badger holes and leap over snake holes. I have researched the badger and this is what I found:
Badgers are fierce animals and will protect themselves and their young at all costs. Badgers are capable of fighting off much larger animals such as wolves, coyotes and bears. Badgers can run or gallop at up to 25-30 km per hour for short periods of time. (faster than I can run)North American badgers are omnivores and prey on moles, gophers (yea!), ground squirrels, and mice...(humans are not listed). They catch most of their food by digging and can tunnel after prey at amazing speeds. Scandanavian custom: put eggshells in their boots when walking through badger territory because badgers are believed to bite down until their hear a crunch.
Though there is danger all around, we still find the courage to take our morning walks. Fearless they are, as they lead the way! Thanks Ginger and Cooper!
I must also mention the legend associated with my badger fear: I have a younger brother, Nate, who would change water close to our exercise trails. The other day I heard Bret say "Nate, who was 13, would beat the badgers off with a shovel, and continue changing water like nothing happened!"
I live every day, aspiring to that sort of courage.
3 comments:
I love licked-clean bones!! All white and sun baked!! Gpa also has another dog (that Erin fell in love with) that you could take with you as it is still living at our house.
Okay so I seriously JUMPED when I saw that badger on your blog! And thanks to your research I think I am now totally scared of badgers, coyotes can take the backseat! Tomorrow I am bringing eggshells....
I am flattered that you would aspire to obtain my level of courage. It takes a lot of work, but it can be done... :)
Let me tell you about my badger incident...
I was up on the hill changing water when all of the sudden I saw a badger waddling on the ditch road in front of me. I was intrigued and decided to follow him as close as possible on the three-wheeler.
The closer I got the more agitated he appeared. Finally after a few warning grunts and growls he whipped around, propped himself up on his back legs and started growling at me. I was so surprised to see him stand up and defend himself that I slammed on the brakes and threw it in reverse. The badger proceeded to hassle me as I backed-up ... I wasn't sure what my next move was. He was following me too close to try and attempt a turn around so I just continued to back-up. Finally I think he felt like I learned my lesson and stopped pursuing me.
As you can see... they are a brave animal. I wouldn't want to meet one alone. Bret told me that if I was ever corned by a badger to try and break their nose (with a shovel) --- that was my best defense.
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