Nature is a harsh and callow swine!

[bexVN]

Pothole said:

bexVN said:

Pothole said:

Pints said:

A pretty good rule is "don't interfere with nature".

I've tried that logical approach. I don't think it appeals to these numpties.

Charming! We are not all numpties, generally I agree nature should not be interfered with (and I don't beleive I did) it doesn't mean I have to like all of it, those magpies were brutal and didn't take the bird away to eat it so where's the gain for them?

How far do you go with this rule. should I have refused to euthanase a dying, maggot infested hedgehog at work the other day because technically I was interfering with nature by euthanasing it.

From what you've written you didn't give them the chance to take it away. How far do I go? All the way. Leave them all alone, nature will take its course. It was happening a long time before you appeared and will continue to happen a long time after you disappear. All you're really doing is salving your own misguided conscience as far as I can see.

The magpies had already buggered off back into their tree before I got there, job done, the only bird left was the adult looking over it's now practically dead youngster.

May as well consider my whole career as a veterinary nurse as completely misguided then, all those animals domestic and wild that I've assisted just to salve my consciensce I just never realised that's what I was doing.

Edited by bexVN on Sunday 8th May 11:21

[bexVN]

Pints said:

bexVN said:

How far do you go with this rule. should I have refused to euthanase a dying, maggot infested hedgehog at work the other day because technically I was interfering with nature by euthanasing it.

Why was the hedghog maggot infested?

It had an injury which flies had laid eggs on, they'd hatched and the maggots had started burying into the haedgehog. It's skin was rippling due to the maggots underneath it. The hedgehog was dying slowly, someone had found it and brought it into the surgery. Now I realise if it hadn't been found it'd have died and become food for others, but it was found, it was brought in and as in my job we have a responsibility to avoid unecessary suffering we couldn't just leave it to die in our care so we euthanased it.

[otolith]

bexVN said:

It had an injury which flies had laid eggs on, they'd hatched and the maggots had started burying into the haedgehog. It's skin was rippling due to the maggots underneath it. The hedgehog was dying slowly, someone had found it and brought it into the surgery.

Isn't nature wonderful...

I spoke to someone at a sanctuary last year who reckoned fly strike was a risk for even uninjured hedgehogs out in daylight. I think she might be confusing cause and effect, but then don't both rabbits and sheep suffer from that?

I think there's a difference between putting injured wildlife out of its misery and taking a meal from a predator. I once watched a sparrowhawk on the driveway devouring a pigeon and just felt privileged to watch it at such close quarters, but I wouldn't choose to leave an injured animal to suffer and I wouldn't leave a dead thing to rot on the patio for the sake of feeding the scavengers.

Off topic, but it seems ironic to me that the most ubiquitous naturally occurring species on the planet doesn't realise that it is nature!

[bexVN]

otolith said:

bexVN said:

It had an injury which flies had laid eggs on, they'd hatched and the maggots had started burying into the haedgehog. It's skin was rippling due to the maggots underneath it. The hedgehog was dying slowly, someone had found it and brought it into the surgery.

Isn't nature wonderful...

I spoke to someone at a sanctuary last year who reckoned fly strike was a risk for even uninjured hedgehogs out in daylight. I think she might be confusing cause and effect, but then don't both rabbits and sheep suffer from that?

I think there's a difference between putting injured wildlife out of its misery and taking a meal from a predator. I once watched a sparrowhawk on the driveway devouring a pigeon and just felt privileged to watch it at such close quarters, but I wouldn't choose to leave an injured animal to suffer and I wouldn't leave a dead thing to rot on the patio for the sake of feeding the scavengers.

Off topic, but it seems ironic to me that the most ubiquitous naturally occurring species on the planet doesn't realise that it is nature!

The irony didn't escape me. Poor husbandry usually causes fly strike in domestics, dirty bums attract flies, maggots can then work their way into sore skin and further etc.

Have also witnessed a sparrowhawk dive on a bird, I watched, I did not interfere.

[otolith]

RSPB says cat predation irrelevant.

[rolex]

Incognito2 said:

Without human interference or intervention nature always finds it's own balance.

I propose this as a new mission statement for the Health and Safety Executive

[13th]

Incognito2 said:

Without human interference or intervention nature always finds it's own balance. The biggest problem for our feathered friends however is domestic cats!

I have to agree, I've had cats all my adult life but now having moved out to, what I consdier to be, the country and seen the animals they bring in I'll never have cats again.

The Robin they brought in broke my heart and I'm usually a "live and let live/die" type of person. I can deal with rodents, even rabbits but that Robin

[Tacagni]

Slighty off topic. we had one of our turkeys attacked by a badger on friday night. The turkey refused to come in when it was time for lock up (we then spent 3 hours trying to find her even to the point of taking one of the dogs with us trying to sniff her out, but no luck finding her)We went to bed only to be woken at around midnight by panicked turkey sounds from outside, we rushed out and searched around and found a badger by the pool with feathers in its chops and the turkey swimming across the pool. Scarred the badger off and after some incouragment got the turkey out, its chest had been stripped of feathers and skin, put it in the isolation pen, treated the wounds and wrapped her up.She seems to be doing ok, i didnt know badgers would attack something like a turkey or that turkeys could swim!!!. so after all that happening and the chicks and gooslings hatching and the bad weather i gave chatsworth a miss I hop you lot will be posting plenty of pics from chatsworth.

[Pothole]

bexVN said:

Pothole said:

bexVN said:

Pothole said:

Pints said:

A pretty good rule is "don't interfere with nature".

I've tried that logical approach. I don't think it appeals to these numpties.

Charming! We are not all numpties, generally I agree nature should not be interfered with (and I don't beleive I did) it doesn't mean I have to like all of it, those magpies were brutal and didn't take the bird away to eat it so where's the gain for them?

How far do you go with this rule. should I have refused to euthanase a dying, maggot infested hedgehog at work the other day because technically I was interfering with nature by euthanasing it.

From what you've written you didn't give them the chance to take it away. How far do I go? All the way. Leave them all alone, nature will take its course. It was happening a long time before you appeared and will continue to happen a long time after you disappear. All you're really doing is salving your own misguided conscience as far as I can see.

The magpies had already buggered off back into their tree before I got there, job done, the only bird left was the adult looking over it's now practically dead youngster.

May as well consider my whole career as a veterinary nurse as completely misguided then, all those animals domestic and wild that I've assisted just to salve my consciensce I just never realised that's what I was doing.

Edited by bexVN on Sunday 8th May 11:21

meh.

[sunnybwoii]

I've seen a while ago, by some garages outside my house, a crow attack a pigeon. It pecked at it for a good 10 minutes, feathers everywhere and blood stained. Then, the pigeon got knocked over and the crow was biting at it's neck while holding it down. It was rather cruel just to watch I think. Then with one final peck it took the pigeon's head clean off and flew onto top of the garages so I went to have a look at the pigeon and the crow was still there watching me with a pigeon's head in it's mouth. Well creepy.

[dmitsi]

Whilst we're talking about crows, can anyone explain this behaviour?

I live on the beach and every morning I watch the crows sitting and playing about on the shingle.
I noticed the other day that in the morning they often pick up small stones, fly up into the air, then drop them. They do this repeatedly and in different areas? I can't imagine what food they might be trying to kill/break open. Anyone know what they're up to?

[otolith]

Stones, or maybe snails?

[dmitsi]

It could be, I never considered there could be many snails there. Tomorrow morning I'm going to find out.

[Twincharged]

I recently saw a seagull attacking a pigeon- the seagull had pinned it's wings down with its feet and was pecking at the pigeon's head. The pigeon managed to escape, and the seagull flew after it. I think it escaped in the end, but I didn't know seagulls preyed on other birds!

[Pothole]

dmitsi said:

It could be, I never considered there could be many snails there. Tomorrow morning I'm going to find out.

whelks? They're basically snails, innit?