There goes another one!

We all love wildlife. That is to say most of us feel good about the fact that we still have some wildlife left on Scotland Island. Some people are not great fans of the Brush Tailed Possum but since most everything else has been killed off its one of the few native animals that have survived on the Island. We may occasionally get annoyed when they eat our pot plants or raid our garbage and spread it about. On the other hand some people don't like dogs (the domestic kind). They bark and they too upset the odd garbage can. No prizes for guessing which ones poo I'd rather step in.

Now if the possums come out at night and forage and the dogs stay at home then mostly things are OK but some people let their dogs out at night. This morning I was disturbed by a dog barking & a possum squealing. I ran to the scene and shooed the dog away. The possum was head down in the bracken trying to hide. I could see a large chunk had been taken out of its thigh. At first I thought if I let it be for a while it might get its breath back & then get up a tree somewhere. I took the kids to school and on returning took a closer look at the possum. Pulling away the bracken, my heart sank when I saw a huge gaping wound at the back of the possum's neck. I can only assume that the dog had done this. My neighbour came to investigate and we agreed the possum would not live. Neither of us being country folk we had to swallow hard on this one. I agreed to end the possums life if he would bury it. The deal was agreed and in the most humane way I could think of I ended the possums life very quickly. My neighbour honoured his part of the bargain. I felt pretty sick about it all afternoon. So I wrote this. It is a plea to the animal owners of the Island to please keep your animals in at night. Let the pesky possums do their thing at night and by dawn they'll all be snug in their homes. Take your dog for a walk and if your not at home during the day then stick to the law and make sure your dog doesn't roam about. Too much to ask. Too bad! I'm mad enough to call the ranger as often as it takes!