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HoCo Wild and Woolly


 

You’ve probably herd heard about the goats. If not, here you goat  go:

Howard County police help return goats…,  Jesse Zander, CBS News

News stories which center on the appearance of animals where they are not expected seem to evoke a sense of whimsy or fun. Probably not for the animals. Very likely they don’t understand why it’s not normal for them to be anywhere. We’re the ones who draw the lines. Or we’ve put animals in places they weren’t intended to be in the first place. 

Emu on the loose in Wicomico County, for instance. Or five zebras spotted roaming in Prince George’s County. Neither are native to Maryland. 

Most animal sightings around town aren’t that exotic. And usually they’re in the more rural part of the county. Some years back a male turkey developed a bit of an internet following after being spotted numerous times near Daisy Road. Alas, this fellow came to a sad end when unknown miscreants grabbed him, put him in the trunk of their car, and drove off. 

The dangers of getting famous on social media - - right there. 

And then there was Serendipity.


If someone is missing a large rooster, he is near serendipity. He ran off into the bushes when he saw me get out off my car to take a picture. 

If a serendipitous rooster sighting isn’t enough for you, perhaps this post, from this week, will tickle your fancy.



(Actually, it was “chickens” plural.)


Just as my brain had a hard time processing a “rooster near serendipity”, I also wondered why the moral behavior of the chickens was remotely relevant.  As my Irish family members might say, “I’ll thank you not to be so pass-remarkable.”

No, no. These were not “loose chickens” (God forbid.) They were chickens who got loose. And if I lived in Western HoCo I wouldn’t be having these amusing misconceptions. 

Clarksville Happenings is a private FB group, so I’m not going to screenshot the comments, but these are fun.  Enjoy them if you are able. If not, let me assure you that the question of why did make an appearance.

Circling back to a previous post…we are drawing nearer to the first frost, which was my self-imposed deadline for restarting my backyard bird feeding venture. I still don’t have a solution to my deer and squirrel dilemma. A savvy reader suggested a pulley system, but I’m not that handy. I found a commercial product that would do the trick at the cost of nine hundred dollars. 

Nah. 

The truth is that the deer and the squirrels belong here. It’s only a problem because I, as a human, am setting a boundary that declares them to be out of place. When they show up at the feeder they’re not trespassing. They live here. They’re hungry. 

If for some reason you have an extra nine hundred dollars lying around please don’t buy me a fancy birdfeeder. I’m pretty sure you know what to do. 


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