every year we get to watch wildlife around our place. Most of the time it is fun to watch but sometimes we see things that puzzle us. There are no answers as to what is wrong with these animals or how the injury happened. More than anything else I am amazed at their will to survive.
Take this gosling. From the first day we saw it in the pond it was handicapped like this.
It’s hard to tell but the head seems to be growing out of the side of hit’s body. As it would swim around it’s head was barely out of the water. Sometimes it had to swim circles to locate the rest of the flock. It even had a tougher time on land but somehow managed to stay with the flock. It lived much longer than I imagined it would. Some animal finally took advantage of it’s handicap and we found it partially eaten on the shore.
For two weeks now we’ve been watching this goose. If it were a human, I would say it had too much to drink. I don’t know if animals can have strokes or other diseases like humans but this goose definitely has a coordination problem. Even with it’s disability the family unit stays intact and the mate and goslings hang tight to it.
Just a few days ago we saw this doe. We don’t know how she broke her leg over three months ago but she is negotiating the country just fine on three legs. I even saw her jump a four foot fence with ease. She still has that crusty old stub to help her keep balance when eating.
This cow elk moved with ease after the rest of the herd. The stub had been healed for quite some time and she looked as healthy as the rest.
I’ve seen three legged coyotes and many other crippled animals that seemed to be doing just fine. It just amazes me that with this world of predators these animals somehow find a way to survive.
The Reigning Chukar Champions 