Beaver Habits?

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Dawgs were raising a ruckus. Went out in back and the little jack russell in neighbor's yard was barking at a brown furry critter, and my hounds were going nuts with the critter only a few feet outside their fence. The hounds live to chase furry critters.

Some of my neighbors get kinda upset with sustained loud hounds in harmony, so I was too busy getting my dawgs back in the house to get a good look at the critter.

This was daytime in the suburbs. Pretty sure it wasn't a possum. Pretty sure it wasn't a big wharf rat. The critter was 'cornered' against the fence by the jack russell, but the dog was on a chain, and the critter could have figured out how to walk around the dog and get away. Which he did eventually.

The critter made a couple of 'fake charges' to get the jack russell to back up. About the same time I got my dogs back in the house, the jack russell and the critter were facing down nose to nose with the critter giving the russell a cold stare, and the dog barking his fool head off (but not nearly as loud or annoying as my hounds).

The critter was about a foot or eighteen inches long. Looked like a beaver, but we are not near water. Several blocks away there is a stream where I've rarely seen small beavers. We are a good couple of miles away from the TN river.

Dunno much about critters. How likely is it to see a beaver wandering that far away from water? Didn't get a good look at the critter's tail. Are there any Nutria in South East TN? Nutria also look like big rats.

Are there any other SE TN rodent-looking critters bigger than most cats, that would look "kinda like" a beaver?

Edited August 27, 2010 by Lester Weevils

[Guest Joey]

Could it have been a cougar?

[dats82]

Ground hog perhaps? They will fight a little bit with a dog.

[vontar]

Maybe you had a Chupacabra?

[memphismason]

Ground hog perhaps? They will fight a little bit with a dog.

That is what I was thinking too.

[Guest Jcochran88]

I would also say ground hog.

[Guest Jamie]

Yup, groundhog.

Used to have one living here, over in my sideyard. Scared the crap out'a my 2nd wife, first time she saw it...

She came running back in the house, dragged me to the window, pointed, and said "What the hell is THAT???"

I looked, then asked her "Haven't you ever seen a hamster before?"

She wasn't amused.

I finally, once I could quit laughing, told her what it was and that it wouldn't bother her. I don't think she quite believed me, 'cause she always kept an eye on the area of it's burrow anytime she was outside.

Oh, and I think the only real difference ( appearance-wise ) between a beaver and a groundhog is that the beaver has a wide, flat, leathery tail. The groundhog doesn't.

Edited August 27, 2010 by Jamie

[E4 No More]

Groundhog!

[Mike.357]

I thought maybe this thread was going to be about nagging.

[E4 No More]

Yup, groundhog.

Used to have one living here, over in my sideyard. Scared the crap out'a my 2nd wife, first time she saw it...

She came running back in the house, dragged me to the window, pointed, and said "What the hell is THAT???"

I looked, then asked her "Haven't you ever seen a hamster before?"

She wasn't amused.

I finally, once I could quit laughing, told her what it was and that it wouldn't bother her. I don't think she quite believed me, 'cause she always kept an eye on the area of it's burrow anytime she was outside.

Oh, and I think the only real difference ( appearance-wise ) between a beaver and a groundhog is that the beaver has a wide, flat, leathery tail. The groundhog doesn't.

J.

Since I was the police sniper on my department and the town had way too many groundhogs ruining gardens and the occasional dog, it was my job to snipe the little bastards while on day and evening shifts. We also had beaver in town, and I never saw them stray from the creeks. They look exactly alike with the exception of the tail. The groundhog is fairly tough too. You had to hit them square in the head with a hot .22LR round to kill them from 30 yards or better.

[Guest Verbal Kint]

I thought maybe this thread was going to be about nagging.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]302[/ATTACH]

[Garufa]

If there is a "Thread Title of the Day Award" this one gets it.

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Thanks All

Jamie's picture nailed it. Most likely a groundhog.

If he manages to get in my hound's territory he will be dog food. Hadn't seen any around here, but dunno much about it. He'll have to dig in unless he's a climber, because I had to bury chicken wire all along the fence to keep the dawgs from digging out.

Saw a bunch of groundhogs up at Cades Cove near Knoxville.

[ShaunM]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]302[/ATTACH]

LOL!!! Now thats what I was thinking about.

[dats82]

They do indeed dig. That is the main reason they are a problem. I would not be too sure about it being dog food. If it is a good size one, it will be a bit of a fight. My grandmother's dog is now blind in one eye from a ground hog encounter. If I were you, I would make it disappear next time I saw it, if you know what I mean.

Edited August 27, 2010 by dats82

[Guest Bronker]

I thought maybe this thread was going to be about nagging.

I thought something close...

[Guest Jamie]

They do indeed dig. That is the main reason they are a problem. I would not be too sure about it being dog food. If it is a good size one, it will be a bit of a fight. My grandmother's dog is now blind in one eye from a ground hog encounter. If I were you, I would make it disappear next time I saw it, if you know what I mean.

Yeah, I gotta agree with this...

Unless you're just in the mood to possibly have a vet bill to pay, I'd tend to the critter myself if I were you.

'Cause if there's one thing you can count on, it's that any animal fighting for it's life is gonna give it's best effort, and do as much damage as possible.

[Guest BEARMAN]

Yep, groundhog...aka whistlepig...even heard 'em called a hedgehog, however, a hedgehog is not as big as a groundhog...confused yet?

[Guest Lester Weevils]

They do indeed dig. That is the main reason they are a problem. I would not be too sure about it being dog food. If it is a good size one, it will be a bit of a fight. My grandmother's dog is now blind in one eye from a ground hog encounter. If I were you, I would make it disappear next time I saw it, if you know what I mean.

Yeah, I gotta agree with this...

Unless you're just in the mood to possibly have a vet bill to pay, I'd tend to the critter myself if I were you.

'Cause if there's one thing you can count on, it's that any animal fighting for it's life is gonna give it's best effort, and do as much damage as possible.

Thanks. Will keep an eye out for the critter. Maybe him getting chased off from the other yard will convince him to pick another place in the neighborhood to dig.

I have an acre of fenced woods behind the house, but its right in the middle of the burbs. Illegal to shoot, and up the hill into the woods is the only safe backstop direction. If the critter was any other direction, fairly close houses, cars and people would be the final backstop. So if I see him again, probably can't do much except call the police or animal control, unless it is an emergency and he gets on my land.

Seems quite possible that the coonhounds might get injured if they tangle with the groundhog. Wouldn't want that. They are sweet dawgs but they don't pay me a lick of attention if there is a furry mammal in range. If the groundhog makes it into the fence, it would be very difficult to keep the dogs off him.

Have seen em dispatch fairly large cats and rabbits. They are fast and efficient about it. I don't glory in violence, and would just as soon that they would leave furry critters alone, but thats just the way they are.

They don't mess around, go right in for the kill. Especially the old man, a hound the rescue agency found fending for himself out in the woods. Probably lost on a hunt. One powerful bite to crush the chest, one good shake, and rabbits or cats are dead right there. The young hound has never been hunted, but he's pretty fast and good at it.

The groundhog would probably be a bigger challenge, but the boys wouldn't give him much time to put up a defense, if earlier incidents are any clue to how it would go.

[Oh Shoot]

Yep, groundhog...aka whistlepig...even heard 'em called a hedgehog, however, a hedgehog is not as big as a groundhog...confused yet?

Whoever called them a hedgehog was way off base, since there aren't any in North America.

They look sort of like porcupines, though.

- OS

[Guest Jamie]

One powerful bite to crush the chest, one good shake, and rabbits or cats are dead right there.

He goes for the chest, the 'hog goes for the face and eyes with some VERY impressive dentures (Remember, beavers cut down trees with the same equipment). Yeah, the groundhog dies, but the hound has some expensive injuries.

Not good.

The young hound has never been hunted, but he's pretty fast and good at it.

The youngster hasn't learned yet, and well, there's a first time for everything. I've seen more than one coon hound ruined by a bad start. ( 'Coon with a mouth-full of hound lip, and flipped over the other side of the dog's muzzle. Not pretty, and the end of the hound's hunting career. Usually a "I'll just go wait in the truck" moment for the hound. )

The groundhog would probably be a bigger challenge, but the boys wouldn't give him much time to put up a defense, if earlier incidents are any clue to how it would go.

The 'hog WILL lose... there's no debating that. One or more of your dogs ( and you, ultimately ) could pay the price for that victory though... Just ask my own dogs about their go-'round with the copperhead. ( Snake dead, them alive, and me $600 poorer. )

[Guest Lester Weevils]

Thanks for the good advice, Jamie. Will keep an eye out for the groundhog.

Am ignorant of dogs and never hunt, but I can turn into a bore talking about dawgs. Previous breeds I've had were great, but never had dogs with strong hunt instincts before. The first hound was an accidental rescue, and he was so sweet we found him another old Walker rescue for a pal.

Most larger/intelligent dogs love squeaky toys. When I bring the old man a new toy the dignified old fellow acts like an excited puppy running around playing with it. But he plays with fuzzy toys a little different than earlier dogs. He will repeatedly set the toy down in the middle of the floor, back up a few feet, then bark, pounce, and shake hell out of it. Over and over. Or set it down in one room, go into the other room, then come barreling back in to pounce on it. The doggie equivalent of target practice!

[mikegideon]

Ground hog perhaps? They will fight a little bit with a dog.

That's what i was thinking.

[Il Duce]

Man talk about a major letdown when i came in here.

[mikegideon]

It's a gun board. Talking about the kind you can legally shoot