First off - thanks to those that have indicated
they enjoy my blog - I get many emails discussing
the things I post! I don't have all the answers
in life, many of the things I post are just my
thoughts on a particular subject matter. Thanks
to all who have offered support during a recent
difficulty with an ex friend, who turned out to never
actually be a friend, which is so disappointing and
maddening. Someone said it best - 'Don't cry over
anybody, because those who make you cry aren't
worth crying for. And those who are worth crying
for would not make you cry.'
I have been requested to post about the proper
way to react when encountering an animal in the
wild. While this may or may not sound like a boring
post, the answers may surprise you!
If you are in black bear country, you may one day
encounter one of those critters. During especially
drought stricken times or in summers after a late
freeze has killed off their food supply, it is not unusual
for them to get more and more daring around people.
First of all, a black bear is not necessarily black! It
can be black, brown, cinnamon, even white. How
do you know it's a black bear then? Because it is
the most common species of bear. Black bear are
smaller than brown bear, weighing anywhere between
90 and 500 pounds.
Now, you are walking along the wooded path and you
suddenly encounter a bear, what do you do?
A) You made lots of noise while walking so will
probably never encounter this.
B) You run - as fast as you can!
C) You put your hands up and slowly back away,
calmly telling the bear how nice he is not to
eat you.
D) You roll into a ball and play dead.
The correct answer is A. When walking in bear country,
ALWAYS make a lot of noise, even talking to yourself.
Black bear are not aggressive and will not bother you
if they know you are there.
An acceptable answer is also C - again, most bear will
just watch you leave. IF the bear is protecting young,
or food, he could become aggressive. If the bear
charges at you or in other ways threatens you, then
it is acceptable to curl yourself in a ball, putting your
hands behind your head to protect it, and play dead.
Black bear are not carnivores, except in very rare cases.
The bear may paw at you but then will determine you
are not a threat and leave. NEVER attempt to run from
a bear, you will NOT win.
A few weeks later you are walking along this same path
and suddenly come face to face with a mountain lion.
What do you do?
A) Run as fast as you can!
B) Curl up into a ball and play dead.
C) Put your arms up over your head and roar.
D) Again if you were making a bunch of noise while
walking this would probably never happen.
The correct answer is D. Cougars are very secretive and
shy animals, and don't want to mess with you. If you
stumbled upon one that took you both by surprise, then the
correct answer would be C - put your arms up over your
head to make yourself appear larger than you really are and
make noise! IF the mountain lion charges then it is
perfectly acceptable to fight, kick, punch, or whatever
you can do to defend yourself. NEVER curl into a ball
and play dead - the cougar do eat meat and will think
you are lunch! They will drag you off to their den and
share you with their family!
You recuperate from this ordeal and a month later you
are on this same path again. Suddenly you encounter a
beautiful skunk, what do you do?
RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!
