Quick As A Bunny!

[Type 97 Chi-ha]

Driving home from my workplace yesterday, a big fluffy rabbit suddenly ran across the street into the path of my car, and for some reason it was hopping unusually fast by rabbit standards. I didn't have time to react; it disappeared from my view under my car. Less than a second later, however, it somehow managed to stop and hop just as quickly down the same path back to where it had come from.

I guess that's why I never see any roadkill rabbits. Somehow they can avoid being hit by cars no matter what.

[Discogod]

A few years ago I was coming home from the cinema with my girlfriend and a friend of ours, in his VW van. It was late and on an unlit road, so when we saw a cat sitting in the middle of the road we had less than a second before we went over it. We all panicked, as we were all animal lovers (and my GF and friend worked for an animal charity!), so we pulled over an ran back, expecting to see a squashed cat. Instead, we found it very much alive and still sat in exactly the same place, the van being high enough off the road to miss it completely...

We moved it off the road (which it wasn't happy about) and drove the rest of the way home VERY carefully...

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, rabbits can be fast. We have one that comes to the bird feeder and eats with the birds on the ground. I'm also surprised at how squirrels often go so fast when a car comes and they don't get hit.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Not around here, they don't I can't count the number of times I've walked to or from work and found the squirrels that DIDN'T make it.... And skunks. Ugh, now THOSE, I wish would not get hit. They STINK when a car hits them! (It always seems to bust the scent glands....)

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, I hear you there about the skunks. Ugh. We've had a few close calls with squirrels, but they always seem to make it.

[blindturtle02]

Allot of dead skunks in the middle of the road around here, stinkin to hiiiigh heaven. Sorry, someone had to say it. We've actually got a skunk living very close to our place. He tends to spray right outside the window wherever our cats are sunning themselves during the day. We never see him around, but think he enjoys tormenting our pets. We sure smell him around, however. He must roam several neighborhoods and stick to the shadows because he's been next to impossible to spot, well for my better half anyway. For me it's impossible. Our neighbors haven't seen him either.

Bunnies rarely seem to get hit by cars. They really are quick. I think their's a whole rabbit family bunking in our neighborhood right now. Better half has spotted our older kitty spying on a few from the window in doors while making that stuttering sort of meow. But most of the time when you see roadkill around here, it's just skunks. Yeesh! Thank God I've never come across one out of the blue. I'd rather skip that experience. I hear some people actually keep them as pets after removing the stink glands. I think I'd rather have a bunny.

[Type 97 Chi-ha]

Originally Posted by blindturtle02

I hear some people actually keep them as pets after removing the stink glands. I think I'd rather have a bunny.

You heard correctly.

[snake]

Personally, I haven't noticed any roadkill in my life so far.

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, I'd rather have a bunny for a pet, too.

[Storm Eagle]

Originally Posted by Discogod

A few years ago I was coming home from the cinema with my girlfriend and a friend of ours, in his VW van. It was late and on an unlit road, so when we saw a cat sitting in the middle of the road we had less than a second before we went over it. We all panicked, as we were all animal lovers (and my GF and friend worked for an animal charity!), so we pulled over an ran back, expecting to see a squashed cat. Instead, we found it very much alive and still sat in exactly the same place, the van being high enough off the road to miss it completely...

We moved it off the road (which it wasn't happy about) and drove the rest of the way home VERY carefully...

That reminds me of a time where I drove through an intersection and saw a kitten under a truck. I was going to go and get it and take it to the nearby shelter. When I pulled over and got out of my car to retrieve it, the truck drove off, and I was thinking it might crush the kitten, but it wasn't near the tires.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Originally Posted by blindturtle02

Allot of dead skunks in the middle of the road around here, stinkin to hiiiigh heaven. Sorry, someone had to say it. We've actually got a skunk living very close to our place. He tends to spray right outside the window wherever our cats are sunning themselves during the day. We never see him around, but think he enjoys tormenting our pets. We sure smell him around, however. He must roam several neighborhoods and stick to the shadows because he's been next to impossible to spot, well for my better half anyway. For me it's impossible. Our neighbors haven't seen him either.

Bunnies rarely seem to get hit by cars. They really are quick. I think their's a whole rabbit family bunking in our neighborhood right now. Better half has spotted our older kitty spying on a few from the window in doors while making that stuttering sort of meow. But most of the time when you see roadkill around here, it's just skunks. Yeesh! Thank God I've never come across one out of the blue. I'd rather skip that experience. I hear some people actually keep them as pets after removing the stink glands. I think I'd rather have a bunny.

Well, they ARE related to ferrets, which actually make good pets, and I understand they can be litter-box trained. So I guess it's just a matter of personal preference.

Unfortunately, I HAVE met a few of them "up close and personal" on my daily 4:30-ish walk to work in the mornings. Fortunately, I've never yet been sprayed. When I see them, I usually back off VERY slowly, and make a WIDE detour around said skunk. My route mostly goes through some quiet residential neighborhoods, as well as a couple of large fields and a wooded creek-bed area (the street I walk up crosses it) where skunks, raccoons, and opossums all hang out.

I've seen all of the above, and even a couple of armadillos in the mornings on my walks, as well as squirrels (during the day on the way home) cats, loose or stray dogs, a snake or two, and those little leopard geckos that are all over during the summer. I've even heard (but never seen) a few coyotes yipping in the pasture across from my apartments. Saw a pair of kites (the hawk kind) on the way home a few days ago- that was really cool. Yesterday I saw swarms of beetles rolling around in huge orgy balls all along my walk home. It was the first time I'd ever seen them do anything like that. Thought they were honey-bee mating swarms at first, until I got a closer look at one of the groups, and saw what they actually were. Heh, beetle-mania took on a whole new meaning.....

[blindturtle02]

Well uh, all they need is love, I guess. hehe

Coyotes now. I remember hearing a bunch of them back in hs when we were at a sort of local band camp practicing marching before school would start. They weren't even close to the building, but they sound rather sinister when they all proceed to howl and yip at the same time.

At present, we've got a few huge owls who make their presences known around 5 evenings out of 7. Haven't heard any coyotes, but I've been told they lurk on the outskirts of the city.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

Heh, they always give me a little chill when I hear them, especially since we lived with my grandmother for a few years a while back, and she had a big piece of land out in the country, with nothing but pastureland and woods around, and coyotes would come up even right to the back yard. It was always kind of creepy, like one of those monster movies where they're out in the middle of nowhere and people start disappearing one at a time, LOL!

And then there was the time my cat Mischief got sprayed by a skunk while he was out one evening while we lived with her. I had smelled one around, and went to the back door to call him in so I could put him inside for the night (because of the coyotes, mostly) and he came racing into the kitchen right past my legs- and the SMELL came in WITH him! I nearly gagged, it was so strong, and yelled "Oh my god! Mischief!!" and raced after him to keep him out of the bedrooms. Luckily the doors were all closed and he ended up getting cornered at the end of the hall. I picked him up by his scruff and tossed him right into the bathroom and shut the door, then went to the pantry and grabbed every tomato product can we had. One of my teenage cousins helped me bathe him, and he was NOT happy. He also was banned from sleeping on the bed with us for a week. He never went near one again, though!

[Type 97 Chi-ha]

How and why skunks spray.

[MsMarvelDuckie]

WHY is pretty simple- don't PISS THEM OFF!! Or scare them. I've been around plenty of them, and trust me, it doesn't take much to annoy them into doing it. Met one coming around the corner on my 4AM walk to work one morning. It's still dark when I go to work, so they are often still out. I came within about three feet of it, and it almost immediately turned around in preparation to spray. I backed off (almost ran, actually) and went WAAAY around him. Not taking chances! (Also, they can get rabies, and who wants to get bitten by a rabid skunk?!) And it's not the first time I've unintentionally gotten too close to one, either. One of these days, I'm going to end up having to call in because of skunk spray, LOL!!

[BubblyShell22]

Ah, coyotes. Yep, we get them around here. I can hear them at night, and it does sound creepy when they suddenly start howling. We've had them come close to the house a few times though not often. Haven't heard any yet, but I'm sure I will soon.

Mom saw a skunk that was by where she keeps her flowers in the front yard. She thought it was a cat, and then she looked and saw it was a skunk and was worried because the window was open, so she went very quietly to the window and tried to shut it, hoping the skunk wouldn't get scared and spray. Problem is, our handle to close the window is a squeaky one, so she had to be very careful when closing it for sure. Luckily, the skunk didn't spray, but it was right by her one bush near the picture window.

[blindturtle02]

It's like they're looking for an excuse to unload on people or other animals. They only have about two or three shots before they're out of juice, from what I've been reading. Then they have to let the stuff replenish over time. I forget how long it takes before they've got more ammo. lol

[Type 97 Chi-ha]

I once ran over a skunk (unintentionally). My car stank for a while. Others I've seen were either crossing the street or just pottering around somewhere, not near anyone else. And I've seen coyotes in recent times-same story.

As a cat owner, though, I can tell you one thing-their urine definitely rivals the odor of skunk spray!

[BubblyShell22]

Yeah, I hate it when we see a dead skunk because the smell is awful, or when you just smell it when a skunk has sprayed. Just nasty.

[blindturtle02]

Originally Posted by Type 97 Chi-ha

I once ran over a skunk (unintentionally). My car stank for a while. Others I've seen were either crossing the street or just pottering around somewhere, not near anyone else. And I've seen coyotes in recent times-same story.

As a cat owner, though, I can tell you one thing-their urine definitely rivals the odor of skunk spray!

Yeah, I hear ya there about the cat urine. Even if you get the males fixed, they can still spray from time to time if you've got more than one male and both or however many are alphas. The spraying has tapered off quite allot since my better half's dad got their cats fixed, but Bouncer, one of the big males, tends to do it from time to time. He does it outdoors mostly, but another male named Hobo will do it inside on occasion. He's fixed too, but he likes spraying near their couch from time to time, I think. Not sure which is worse, now that you mention it. And I wish we had more bunnies around, but they've proven to be delicacies among the neighborhood kitties this time of year. lol