Tuesday 16 December 2008

What the Hunters do...

In the forest there are many types of animal. Some are bold and can be observed going about their business each day, others are very secretive and shy.

Although when we arrived we were told that the forest contained many deer, it was the wild boar that made the stuff of legend. Everybody knew somebody who had just missed one on the road, or worse, had crashed their car because of one. The stories gain details in the retelling, huge tusks, families of piglets, ferocious sows attacking picnickers and so on. We saw the deer, we never saw the boars and so we discounted them as rural myths, like big cats on Exmoor or the Loch Ness Monster.



In the night, this poor creature found its way to our yard and died, in pain and distress. His front leg shot away, his lower jaw missing.

We don't doubt the wild boars in our woods any more.

2 comments:

joker the lurcher said...

i wish i hadn't seen this. but i know it happens when people don't treat life as special. that's why i don't eat meat. i'm sorry you had to see this too, especially as you don't eat meat either. poor, poor creature.

ICQB said...

Poor thing. My daughter and I found a deer once in similar condition after following it's blood trail in the snow. It was well after hunting season, so don't know exactly what took its leg. Perhaps a car. Sad to see. It pains the heart.