Here on the fringe of civilization--Hungry Horse, MT--and yes, Virginia, there really is a Hungry Horse--we have been prepping for 2 years. Unexpectedly, a roving mountain lion killed our 2 La Mancha goats recently (and they had been giving over a gal of milk a day), putting a crimp in the plans. PT: it's not just the expected failures that can take us down. If you've never kept creatures before, make sure there going to be safe! Sidebar: to all Pollies: check out Business Week, dec 6th issue. Special section on software/glitches etc. as well as short Y2K section. Unusual, in that Bus Wk--which I find usually optimistic re Y2K--has some good info on bad stuff. gd lk

-- robert gridlock (plutusx2@yahoo.com), December 01, 1999

Answers

Sorry to hear about your goats. We have
two Australian Shepherds that work together
to harass cats and bears. They attack from
two sides and have been quite successful in
not getting killed.

-- spider (spider0@usa.net), December 01, 1999.

Yes, we had two big dogs for the same reason. Some moronic hunter shot one of my dogs last week,... on my birthday. Still crying about that here...

-- Mumsie (shezdremn@aol.com), December 01, 1999.

Since the suburban airheads passed a law preventing management of cat populations in California, we have been over-run with them here. Mean ones kill for the pleasure of hunting (not eating) and have destroyed entire flocks of sheep in a season. We have a terrible problem here. They attack sheep, cattle giving birth and calves. They take down full grown horses or drive them into barbed wire fences so they have to be put down. Deer hunting has stunk since they passed the law. The herds have been decimated.

Cats have taken up residence, napping on people's lawns, sauntering down the street and hanging out near school yards. We had to trap two females and their 4 kits at one of our elementary schools. Used to be that folks got an almost automatic ex-post facto depredation permit because the cats were so overpopulated. (Several younger ones have had to be put down as they came into town starved and preying on pets.) Under Davis, this has tightened, so people don't bother with the permit, they just shoot, shovel and shutup.

I wish that we could round them all up and drop them in the area of those damned idiots that voted for this. I value the life of my children, my pets and my livestock more than they do. Hope they don't move here or come knocking looking for a handout or help, cause I will return the sentiment and value them and theirs just as much as they value me and mine.

-- anon (anon@anon.calm), December 01, 1999.

Robert--

Sorry to hear about the goats (over a gallon a day? Wow!) Hope you can replace them fairly quickly.

Mumsie--

So sad to hear about your dog, too. How awful....I'll keep you in my prayers.

Take care,

Scarlett

-- Scarlett (ohara@tara.net), December 01, 1999.

I'm in CA too...a suburb south of San Jose. I'm almost postive a mountain lion took out our entire flock of eight chickens several years ago, and the peacock the night before. What else could carry a peacock without dragging it and causing the feathers to fall off. All it left were the legs and the tail. The rest of the creature was not on our property.

And LAST night...it was a bobcat, I hope, that took out the stray chicken I had neglected to put away.

Lesson: Folks, secure your animals.

-- Mary (CAgdma@home.com), December 01, 1999.

Hmmmn.

Are mountain lions still 30-30 proof if seen in a night-vision set?

-- Robert A. Cook, PE (Marietta, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), December 01, 1999.

There has long been a saying up here in Montana - Shoot, Shovel and Shutup. Works for me.

-- Aim Straight (JustSayNo@Gov.com), December 01, 1999.

All you big cat sufferers, did you know these varmints just LOVE anti-freeze? Just put a few dead chickens in a nice big pot of it, and let em hold it! Also for a little more fun, stake out a young lamb or goat and wait for the lord of stealthy murder as Teddy Roosevelt called them to appear. Who knows, you might even get a grizzly. If you do, I'll buy the hide from you and send it to my fiendish taxidermist. You can use the money to buy new goats. Been there and done that with the goats. My problem was ferrel dogs. Killed five on last Memorial day morning, but lost two goat kids too. Hang in there and keep your powder dry. Can you say 7mm remington magnum?

-- doktorbob (downsouth@dixie.com), December 01, 1999.

doktorbob.....You don't happen to be a vet over around the East Coast of Florida, do you? If you are, is your wife's name Micki? If so, Julie is in Florida at Georgia's house. Give her a call Jim Moore

-- Lobo (atthelair@yahoo.com), December 01, 1999.

I must urge all to be very careful of ethylene glycol antifreeze. It is my understanding that all animals will drink it because of the sweet taste. A person who ingests four or more oz will get drunk and die. For this reason it must be secured from all pets and people that we care about. see www.kurtsaxon.com

-- Vlad (Strelok60@yahoo.com), December 02, 1999.

Thanks for the Business Week heads up. They are online at http://www.businessweek.com/1999/99_49/b3658015.htm

Article doesn't dwell on Y2k, but you'd have to be pretty stupid not to conclude that they are offering their own discrete warning.

-- cmd0903 (cmd0903@dontcall.com), December 02, 1999.