/pine
Super Star Member
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2009
- Messages
- 12,450
See what I mean about humans trying to relate their reason and rational to wild animals? Humans want to think that animals vocalize distress the same way humans do...i.e., humans say ouch when they feel pain...they say eek when they see a mouse...etc., etc...
It's not a fairy tale...even if someone's been consciously aware of being in actual shock it's impossible to realize what an animal without the power of reason experiences...when in shock the nervous system (any pain sensors) are defunct...many people in severe shock exhibit extreme vocal activity...
People hear distress calls from wild animals and they try to rationalize why an animal makes such a horrid noise...they automatically think that said animal is experiencing some ghastly torturous demise...it's just not the case when a wild animal is in shock...it is instinct...it's no different than a newborn kitten knows to use it's paws to get more milk etc., etc
I understand as humans it is very hard not to think that "wild animals think" and react like humans but they don't...truly wild animals have only instinct...no rational,reason or sense of self (conscious)...
Let me relate an experience from last August... Sorry to make it a long story but it is 100% true.
...We live on private property within national forest land on a mountain river...I see (and hear) everything there is to experience from local wildlife species...
I was home alone eating lunch one day when I heard an extreme whitetail fawn distress scream from across the river and because there had been no dogs running deer of late I took notice...I heard the scream again from farther up the hill (mountain on the other side of the river)...Then I hear it again much closer followed by the sound of splashing just down stream across from the neighbor's property...
...At this point I hop in the golf cart and shoot down the hill and around the corner...as I come out of the hedgerow perpendicular to the river bank and looking across I see either a *wolf or coyote* with a fawn by the neck trying to drag it back up from the river on the steep, rocky bank 35'-40' from me...
To me at this point it is all surreal and seems like it is in not happening in real time....but as soon as the coyote/wolf saw me it dropped the deer and took off...the fawn slipped back down the bank into the river just as I was wading in from the other side...The river was still a little swollen and swift from recent rains and with the RA in my hips and knees it was not easy going on the river rock bed...
...At any rate...I had to angle my way across to compensate for the current that was carrying the deer downstream...it was along the bank where the current is much less than what I was having to cross to get to it...When I got to the fawn it was completely out and blowing bubbles...the problem was...where I intercepted the floating deer was in water up to my waist and I was standing on very slippery very uneven rocks...
...I picked the fawn up out of the river...I noticed it was late to still have spots...There was no sign of any torn skin or puncture wounds etc...I could feel its heart beating and could see it breathing...but no other reactions...I was in a predicament...holding the deer I could not move...between the slippery, rocky bottom and the RA in my legs I could not move...I wanted to get the deer back to my side of the river but every time I lifted a leg to move to another rock the current would get me...this seemed to go on forever (in reality about ten minutes)...
...I had started to yell as loud as I could for the neighbor that I thought was home but was not...about this time the fawn started to slowly come out of shock...it suddenly turned into all legs and hoofs and definitely did not want me holding it any longer...My biggest fear at this point was that it would want to get to the closest bank and back towards the original predator ...but the animal completely surprised me when I let completely loose of it...it turned and "pranced" across the river right past my golf cart and on up the hill...like nothing had ever happened...
It was an amazing experience and since then I have often wondered if I should have interfered...there is a good possibility that should that same deer survive to worthy size I may one day shoot and eat it...
** there are coyotes here but not that many based on local farmers...but there are also wolves that have made it this far south from where they were re-released into the wild up in the Smokies... It was only a few years ago that a pack of 4 red wolves were shot and ID'd as wolves and there has been a rash of new reports of wolves...I have not seen that many of either in good conditions so I truly don't know if it was a wolf or a coyote that had the fawn...
It's not a fairy tale...even if someone's been consciously aware of being in actual shock it's impossible to realize what an animal without the power of reason experiences...when in shock the nervous system (any pain sensors) are defunct...many people in severe shock exhibit extreme vocal activity...
People hear distress calls from wild animals and they try to rationalize why an animal makes such a horrid noise...they automatically think that said animal is experiencing some ghastly torturous demise...it's just not the case when a wild animal is in shock...it is instinct...it's no different than a newborn kitten knows to use it's paws to get more milk etc., etc
I understand as humans it is very hard not to think that "wild animals think" and react like humans but they don't...truly wild animals have only instinct...no rational,reason or sense of self (conscious)...
Let me relate an experience from last August... Sorry to make it a long story but it is 100% true.
...We live on private property within national forest land on a mountain river...I see (and hear) everything there is to experience from local wildlife species...
I was home alone eating lunch one day when I heard an extreme whitetail fawn distress scream from across the river and because there had been no dogs running deer of late I took notice...I heard the scream again from farther up the hill (mountain on the other side of the river)...Then I hear it again much closer followed by the sound of splashing just down stream across from the neighbor's property...
...At this point I hop in the golf cart and shoot down the hill and around the corner...as I come out of the hedgerow perpendicular to the river bank and looking across I see either a *wolf or coyote* with a fawn by the neck trying to drag it back up from the river on the steep, rocky bank 35'-40' from me...
To me at this point it is all surreal and seems like it is in not happening in real time....but as soon as the coyote/wolf saw me it dropped the deer and took off...the fawn slipped back down the bank into the river just as I was wading in from the other side...The river was still a little swollen and swift from recent rains and with the RA in my hips and knees it was not easy going on the river rock bed...
...At any rate...I had to angle my way across to compensate for the current that was carrying the deer downstream...it was along the bank where the current is much less than what I was having to cross to get to it...When I got to the fawn it was completely out and blowing bubbles...the problem was...where I intercepted the floating deer was in water up to my waist and I was standing on very slippery very uneven rocks...
...I picked the fawn up out of the river...I noticed it was late to still have spots...There was no sign of any torn skin or puncture wounds etc...I could feel its heart beating and could see it breathing...but no other reactions...I was in a predicament...holding the deer I could not move...between the slippery, rocky bottom and the RA in my legs I could not move...I wanted to get the deer back to my side of the river but every time I lifted a leg to move to another rock the current would get me...this seemed to go on forever (in reality about ten minutes)...
...I had started to yell as loud as I could for the neighbor that I thought was home but was not...about this time the fawn started to slowly come out of shock...it suddenly turned into all legs and hoofs and definitely did not want me holding it any longer...My biggest fear at this point was that it would want to get to the closest bank and back towards the original predator ...but the animal completely surprised me when I let completely loose of it...it turned and "pranced" across the river right past my golf cart and on up the hill...like nothing had ever happened...
It was an amazing experience and since then I have often wondered if I should have interfered...there is a good possibility that should that same deer survive to worthy size I may one day shoot and eat it...
** there are coyotes here but not that many based on local farmers...but there are also wolves that have made it this far south from where they were re-released into the wild up in the Smokies... It was only a few years ago that a pack of 4 red wolves were shot and ID'd as wolves and there has been a rash of new reports of wolves...I have not seen that many of either in good conditions so I truly don't know if it was a wolf or a coyote that had the fawn...
