Country Life
Tuesday, August 19, 2008 at 09:39PM This post will probably interest no one except the other people that live in our neighborhood. One of the things about living in the "country" is that you get the native creatures that come with it: snakes, bugs, big bugs, scorpions, centipedes, and the other usual nuisances such as raccoons and armadillos. Armadillos. Never seen one in person except dead on the road. Until tonight. Armadillos are nuisances mostly because they dig up your landscaping looking for food. Landscaping that you paid lots of money for and that the homeowners association makes you keep up with. And boy can they dig. And one armadillo can do lots of digging. We have been lucky in that our armadillo has really only done minor work to our landscaping. But Greg for some reason decided he wanted to try and catch it. So he set out our trap, humane trap, baited it and waited. One night, nothing. Next night, nothing. Well, this evening, even before dark, HE SAW IT. In a process that involved a bucket, a snake catcher (What? You don't have one?), and the DOG, they basically hunted the poor thing down. And caught it.
Nine banded, Natalya counted.
He really is kinda cute. And, yes, he is climbing the cage.
"Let me out. Please."
This one just cracks me up. The poor thing looks like it was imprisioned. Rockey was a basket case and hunted in true Jack Russell fashion. Greg did release the poor guy down by the river so if he ends up at your house, Angelia or Jen or Amy, sorry. But we are now renting Rockey for armadillo services. Email me for the price list. OH, and I did forget to post our raccoon story so that will come tomorrow. Aw, country life.
Reader Comments (17)
Oh jeez, I never realized how creepy Armadillos look!
Mmm...yeah, I'd have to say a little more on the creepy scale - not so much on the "cute!"
Still makes me miss the country. Well...some days!
Yep, we captured ANOTHER centipede last night. The scorpions are a daily occurence, and we are constantly dodging deer poop on our driveway.
Don't think I was blogging yet when we set our traps and caught a family of armadillo, a raccoon, and a skunk.
Last night I dreamed we had 3 huge snakes in our living room.
Today is not the day to talk to me about how "great" country life is.
Ugh.
Oh, he's so ugly! Not as ugly as an Opossum, but still not a pretty creature. We don't have armadillos here...at least not typically. I hear that they're working their way north, however, so we may have them in a few years.
he is cute! i grew up in the "country" and had plenty of experiences with armadillos, but i never saw one look so cute...
I love his whiskers. My friend used to catch them when she was a little girl and paint them pink...awww...what a sweet little country girl. Cute, but I think they have rabies..ugh.
Wow! I've seen my share of armadillos dead on the side of the read, but never alive! How cool...and yeah, kinda creepy too.
Tell Greg he's hired at our house..we just paid Critter Control $200 bucks and they haven't caught OURS!!! If he comes and moves into the huge hole we have OUR house, you're in BIG trouble!! I saw the one that lives at our address, waddle around the outside while I was brushing my teeth one evening..but Scott was to slow and it got away..I'm going to have him call Greg and get specific instructions on how he caught it.. AND get our $200 dollars back from the pest company!
I think he's kind of cute! But forget country life, I was shocked to find that skunks and raccoons live amongst here in the city! Do you know how many run ins we've had with each? Crazy.
WOW, you have broadened my horizons--I have never seen a real armadillo! Yes, kinds cute, if he isn't inmy yard here in NEw England! Now, I do have a woodchuck I could send you...
That's crazy!!!! Of course I only think this because I'm in the midwest and can't imagine seeing this in my yard!
Well, he is kinda cute! Love the series of photos of him because I don't think I've ever really seen pictures of one. Hopefully he doesn't find his way back "home". ;)
he is pretty cute! :)
they ARE stinkers though!
we've had a rash of skunks lately! stinking things!
Oh my gosh...that last picture is hysterical...I had to pull my husband out from the other room to show him! We have about 3 raccoons who come in to our garage through the cat door and get into our garbage and eat the cat food! We don't want to call anyone to come get them because we don't want them to be hurt...they really are pretty cute! They even sit in the garage and hang out with one of our cats! We may have to try your humane trap and relocate idea!
WOW. So cool! And I thought we had weird and wonderful wildlife!!! Those shots are great. I wonder if he/she came back??
awwww...that is the cutest armadillo I've EVER seen...and, like some others here, the only ones I've ever seen were dead ones on the side of the road in Texas where I grew up...once while walking to grade school, I found a severed armadillo foot and I took it to school for show-and-tell...I thought it was kewl the way you could pull the tendons that were sticking out and see the claw pull in...my teacher was disgusted as I remember....LOL
Wow! I can't remember ever seeing an armadillo up close...they were always to fast for me at the young age when I used to try to run after them. Or roadkill. Hmmm, wonder what that little bugger's thinking?