"Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo" (akioohtori)
09/24/2018 at 00:52 • Filed to: None
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"Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo" (akioohtori)
09/24/2018 at 00:52 • Filed to: None | 2
| 5 |
It was weird. I was working on the yard when a fully grown possum appeared on the top of the fence. Dog B sprung into action trying to get at it. We were having a good laugh as the fence is a 6' privacy fence and, as big as Dog B is, we figured he had about a 0% chance of catching it, so it was funny to watch.
Well... he got it. The force of a determined 75 lbs doggo pounding the fence caused the possum’s tail to hang over just far enough for Dog B to grab it.
Shockingly, Dog B knew exactly what to do. He grabbed the possum , gave the thing a series of exceptionally hard shakes and then trotted back to me.
We figured he’d killed it, but unfortunately upon further inspection it started moving, which caused Dog B to go in for round two. T his time the possum was very clearly mortally wounded , but still alive.
Luckily the dog had escaped both encounters without getting bit, so I put him inside so we wouldn’t tempt fate.
Unfortunately this left me with a dying but not dead possum in the yard.
Several shots of whiskey later, I took a (literal) axe to it to finish what Dog B started . I would have preferred to shoot it, but discharging a firearm in city limits caries a hefty fine and the possibility of jail time. This was a ctually my first time killing an animal intentionally unless you count that time we asphyxiated a rat with the Alfa. It was... unpleasant.
So yeah... impressive to see a dog working instinctualy, but the aftermath this time was very unpleasant. Dog A has killed a rat before, but it was a clean kill that time. This was not...
He spent the remainder of the night on alert. Just in case......
SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media
> Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo
09/24/2018 at 01:59 |
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Using a firearm to kill something is like flicking a switch. Using something less efficient but equally effective leaves just the right taste in the mouth. Nothing like that should ever be easy. You did good and cleaned up after your dog...
XJDano
> Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo
09/24/2018 at 07:01 |
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The good thing about possums is that they can’t carry rabies. And they actually eat a lot of bugs around the yard.
Bummer you had to put it down.
mrbaits
> Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo
09/24/2018 at 09:26 |
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The "O" that opossum starts with somehow found itself at the end of "dog".
facw
> XJDano
09/24/2018 at 09:42 |
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They can carry other diseases though. Both my parent’s dogs got lepto and we think the source was a possum that had been around shortly before hand and seemed a bit unwell.
Seen here after the dogs trapped it, but were smart enough to not actually attack something not much smaller than them (terriers)
One dog died about six months later (and our vet was shocked he lasted more than a couple weeks giving his kidney function), the other did much better, but was never quite right afterwards.
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Akio Ohtori - RIP Oppo
> XJDano
09/24/2018 at 10:23 |
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Interesting. Around here they’re generally considered target practice and purveyors of disease. Probably doesn’t help that they’re so freaking ugly too.
This ones fate was sealed once the dog got him. It didn’t really have it coming, but it also had plenty of chances to escape. Dog B had 5+ lunges in before the possum slipped and exposed his tail. If it had just like... moved... or jumped off the other side of the fence it would have been fine.