Monday, February 08, 2010

No Success At Last Cat. Coyotes Are Better Than Me

The last cat in that doomed colony evaded my traps tonight. I tried. I sure wasn't going to give up. The coyotes aren't giving up either and they are far better hunters than I, of a little starving stray. I heard them first, then saw one right on the edge of the road, not fifty feet from where I had parked, facing the road, so I could watch the traps. I ran him off, but coyotes don't run off far. They just disappear from sight, but they're still there, waiting.

The little girl went halfway into one trap. I was holding my breath and crossing my fingers and praying to every god I could think of. But she backed out, left, came out to the road, eyed me from the road, danced around my car for awhile, then ran off, as she always does, down the road. Down the same road where I'd just chased coyotes an hour earlier. I rolled up my windows. I didn't want to hear any shrieks of horror, of a dying animal being eaten while still alive. I don't want that little girl to meet that fate, but I failed to catch her tonight. Every night out there is a dance with those waiting jaws of death.

I know this goes on every night. I just don't want it to happen to her. I know what it's like to be unwanted with everyone out to get you. She's got that biologist hell bent that she dies, and the county too, and she dodges a highway heavy stream of cars every day.

Who dumped her mother anyway? That asshole should be forced to watch the pain and suffering he or she caused when they did that. Shouldn't be me out seeing it, should be those who cause it forced to watch the stories in continuous loop, day in and day out. Maybe then at least they'd teach their children to do otherwise.

I watched the cat near one trap, then turned to see the other one snap shut. Since the cat was 100 feet away, my heart sank to see the other trap close. I hadn't been watching. I just knew it was going to be a skunk. Of the three most common animals who get in my traps when I'm after cats, a skunk is the worst to deal with because they spray and even if they don't, they stink up the trap forever. I lucked out. It was a possum. Possums are hard to get out of a trap because they're as dumb as an animal can come. This was a young possum and I finally got him out. They usually turn around and go right back into the trap, within ten minutes, too, so having a possum show was not a good thing.

I'll go out this morning early and try, but I have a very bad feeling about this night, one little stray and a world of predators far bigger than she intent on eating her alive.

Tonight I cursed the coyotes, among other creatures, under a clear cold black starry sky.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Round Up

Today is cat round up for tomorrow's five spots.  Two more came up from the vet student in Harrisburg late this morning.  Over 60 fixed ...