The Amazing Animal Encounters Thread

First off,thank you and credit for the inspiration for this thread to member silo13,for his/her very interesting thread "End Times:When Animals Attack"

That thread made me think of some truly wonderful and awe-inspiring experiences ive read about that people have had with wild animals,as well as more domesticated ones.

My latest amazing experience was with a humble dungbeetle,and it was actually very profound.Now first,i have to confess that at times,i suffer maudlin,negative moods and/or some depression,though i always pull out of it,when its coupled with real sadness,it takes a bit longer.
So,im sitting in my yard here in Africa,on New Year's eve,it was still light out,late afternoon.My dog had gotten snared in barbed wire earlier that day,luckily my husband managed to free her without blood and pain,though it was really stressful.I was sitting moping about how i really just did not feel ready to face yet another year,feeling very tired and pessimistic in general,when i saw this large dungbeetle about 2 meters off,walking past me,parallel to where i was sitting.

Just the way it was walking immediately made me smile,it was so jaunty,that beetle was'nt merely walking,it eas STRUTTING-such a quaint and cheering sight.So while im watching this jaunty beetle,i get the thought in my mind:"Maybe it should be my Totem animal-life can be a real sh*t salad"..in that half joking/half-serious way we often say or think these types of thoughts,you know?
What happened next was what made my jaw drop-and my son's,he was watching the beetle also.
This beetle made a U-turn,it was already half a metre past us,it made a turn-and for no apparent reason whatsoever,started making its way towards me! It was battling through pieces of longer grass,it even fell over once or twice,but it kept coming,straight at me-my son and i were bug-eyed(pardon the pun) by its determination to come in our direction.

When it reached me,it stopped and just stayed there.So i couldnt help myself-i softly stroked its shell,and i swear,it stayed by us the whole time we were sitting in that spot,just dawdling around us,but not moving off.I would stroke it occasionaly,and it seemed dead happy to just be there with us.
I follow a shamanic path,and dungbeetle symbolises perseverance,overcoming/moving heavy obstacles,also regeneraration.
It blew my mind,how Earth communicates with us,if we are open to her,and her creatures.
Last summer i was accompanied by Pray Mantises,to the extent that it felt weird when there was not at least one close by me.I feel asleep one night with a Mantis clinging to the side of my pillow,and the next morning it was still there.So often,when sitting down,i would feel a slightly tickly sensation,and there's another Mantis on me-i love and adore Mantises,so that was a Wonderful summer.

Birds are always drawn to me too.I can not sit even 5 minutes outside without a wild bird plonking itseld down on the ground close to me,or on a branch right by my head.
Please share if you want,any amazing,profound or even funny animal encounters on this thread,its very uplifting to read such,and i think in these times,we all can do with some wonderments :-)

reply to post by Raxoxane


Hello,



about 8 years ago, I was sitting on a bench in a park, when suddenly I look up and see 3 crows...

Two of the birds were chasing the 3rd crow, I guess the crow being chased decided it was safer with me rather than being in the air...next thing I know, this huge crow lands on the bench beside me.

He must have spend at least 5 minutes perched on my schoolbag, while the other two crows looked on from a nearby tree, squawking at us both...

The other birds eventually flew away, me and the crow sort of checked each other out for a bit, ( I couldn't believe how big it was ), and I ended up just leaving the park.

I will always remember that.


SS

reply to post by Raxoxane


Great thread...





My dad and I were walking on a small bridge over one of the ponds at the Hyatt in Maui. Just checking it out since it was too expensive to stay at, and stopped to watch a bunch of Geese swimming in it.


So, dad turns to me and says something along the lines of, "why would the Hyatt allow birds of this pedigree to roam their pools".


Next thing I know, a big white one swaddled/paddled over towards us and somehow bit my dads foot.


I think they pick up on our negative vibes too...


Enjoyed your story.

reply to post by Raxoxane


my most amazing animal encounter EVER
was back in 1996/7 ,i was a driver for edge transport ltd wrexham

anyway iwas going from bishops castle to churchstoke on a b road
with very low hanging branches( my ford iveco cargo was 12 feet max head room
so i was going slow maybe 20 mph max
Then all of a sudden a bird of prey (not to sure what type) very big
just dropped out of the trees right in front of my windscreen
id say the wing span must of been 4 to 5 feet and it flew
up the road right in front of me for maybe 200 yards or so(im not to sure)
then it just flew through a gap in the tree lined road

ill never forget that as long as i live
and as i write this now i gm getting all tingles hairs standing on end
BEST EVER ANIMAL ENCOUNTER EVER

reply to post by Raxoxane


many years ago my cousin and I were just a few miles out of Boston Harbor in his 14ft aluminum boat. We were out looking to see if we could see some whales as we were following some of the whale watching boats.

We could see something breaching the water a few hundred yards away and I quickly got the camera out and started snapping pictures...a couple of tail breaches and I was quite satisfied with what we had. I naturally used all of the film as there was only a few pictures left on his wifes camera.

Fast foward a few minutes and the larger boats had left the area and one whale started to move in closer. In a matter of moments the fish finder turned black and it was clear the whale was going under us. The day was overcast and the water being as deep as it was was quite dark. We could see the water starting to swirl around us and within a moment or two the whale popped his big pickle looking head out of the water to get a glimpse of us with his big eye or her big eye. The whale was about fifteen feet away and I then moved to my knees on the boat as I was started to freak out a bit.

My cousin told me to throw some gear on to go in the water and check the whale out...I told him no but I used some different words. As the larger whale was looking at us I noticed a baby whale also pop up adjascent to the boat and I could literally reach out and touch him (I didn't) but I could clearly see all the bumps on his body along with his large eye looking at us. At this point the larger whale was under water out of site and we both were freaking out and started to talk to the whale similiar to how you would talk to a puppy.

Within a few minutes the larger whale popped out of the water with his or her back breaching first and it was enormous. He or she was monitoring the situation and as fast as it occurred they both went under and we were both left laughing. My cousin then proceeded to talk a great deal of trash and was upset that I used all the film but who the hell knew a whale would have come that close...awesome experience and if I was diving and seen a whale I'm pretty sure I would have locked up and not move...

many years ago we used to go to the sand dunes to search for bullets, during the War, not sure which one..I or II they must have used those dunes for Target practice...

Anyway, whilst poking around with my stick i spotted a large Lizard, (5/6") i have saw plenty newts before in the wilds here in Scotland but never a Lizard, so i picked it up by the tail......

I never knew Lizards could cast off their tails as a defence mechanism which it did.....i was left holding a moving, wiggling tail as the Lizard made it's escape into the brush...

I Screamed like a big girls bottom, dropped the tail and ran home to the wife...


ok, not the BEST animal story....just a story..

I can tell you about what happened in Missouri some years back,my sister told me this.She had ran across a women in public she was talking to and the woman however it came up lived in the area and told her what happened to her while driving one night.

She was driving on the highway alone when her headlights picked up eye shine on the road.She slowed down knowing that this being out in the country deer are plentiful and dangerous on roads.She pulled right up to this large buck who instead of running just stood there looking at her.

She had the strangest feeling that the deer was trying to communicate with her,so she got out of the car and stood there.The deer still waited for her,seeming like it wanted her to follow it,so she did.In the distance she could hear dogs yapping,but wasn't really focused on them since everything felt so surreal to her at this point.
The buck kept walking and would stop now and then to check if she was still following it,until they ended up in the woods at a fence.

She looked and a doe was tangled up in barbed wire with its feet hog tied.It was laying on one side of the fence and dogs were on the other side trying to attack it.She screamed at the dogs to go,which backed them off a bit,then started untangling the doe's legs from the wire.She was afraid the doe would start kicking to free itself and end up hurting her but it just laid there.Finally she had the legs free,the doe got up, looked at her,then started to 'walk' off,not run.The buck followed her but stopped and turned back to look at the woman as if to say 'thanks for helping'. Then they both disappeared into the woods and she was left to ponder just exactly what had happened to her.Told my sister that was the strangest experience she'd ever had and she had lived out in the country all her life.

Last year, I was walking my dog across a meadow making our way towards a stretch of woodland where we regularly walk, and on the edge of the woods hovering just mere feet above my head, was a beautiful kestrel.
It just hung there in the air for a good few minutes, and it was so close above my head I could pick out every feather.
I was amazed at how it kept it's head perfectly still whilst it's body did all the work to hover there - wonderful

Then it flew further away and higher in the air, before swooping to the ground for a mouse or something it probably spotted.

I've seen pairs of grey squirrels running through the branches of the woodland oaks, and on the ground, gathering acorns ready for winter, and foxes surprising us by suddenly darting from a hedgerow across our path, and wild rabbits jumping and playing in groups on a big grassy mound which they have burrowed in.

Nature provides wonderful sights to see right on my doorstep, all for free - who can argue with that?

reply to post by Raxoxane

Great thread I enjoy animal stories. Lots of interesting reads.

One of the most memorable encounters I've had was with one of these guys:

Great Skua on the Wiki



I heard some commotion outside one day. We have ducks and they were making a ruckus, as they will do, if a cat or any other creature they decide is not welcome in our yard, needs to be chased away by me. when I looked out the window, I saw that a large Great Skua was inside a narrow enclosure in the yard where we were growing some vegetables. I watched him for a little while, but soon realised he was unable to get out on his own. He didn't seem distressed though, just walked about checking things out.

After a bit I went outside and opened the enclosure, and he walked out into the yard passing right by me. Then we strolled to the yard gate which I opened for him and let him out. He walked across the driveway, stopped once and looked back at me after which he started running and flapping his huge wings, He didn't get airborne until he got to the edge of the road which is a very steep drop off down to the ocean, so he simply didn't have enough of a runway to get out of the yard by himself

He never seemed afraid of me and never ran from me, just walked slightly in front of me to the gate. He was a huge bird and I'll never forget it. It is the only time I have ever seen one of them up close. They usually don't come close to the houses.

reply to post by Raxoxane


Where should I start?

--A few years ago, I was sitting in this exact spot at the computer. There is a large window behind it that looks out into my back yard. I saw movement just beyond it and looked out, and there was a golden eagle on the ground, about six feet from me, just scanning the yard. Relaxed and casual. I watched him for a few moments, and after a few, various (generally more colorful) incarnations of "Wow, that's a really big bird!" I thought to myself... "I wonder if he even knows that I am here?" and just as that thought had finished, he whipped his head around like lightning (suddenly not casual anymore) and made eye contact with me. We stared at each other through the window for 20 maybe 25 seconds and then he flew off toward the west. It was a brief encounter but very intense.

--17 years ago we had gone camping at a local spot, at a lake in the mountains. I knew it very well, and I still love it up there. We were on the lake paddling in a little rubber raft, when I spotted movement in the trees just off shore. There was a black bear. She stopped, turned and peered at us, and came down to the waters edge and peered at us some more. Sniffing and sniffing. She seemed to be trying to figure out what in the heck the yellow thing in the lake was. And then, darned if she didn't just wade in and start swimming toward us. She got just a few feet away... less than a yard. If I had been very silly I could have leaned out and touched her. Again, we made eye contact, just a few scant seconds, and apparently curiosity satisfied, she turned and paddled back in, lumbered out of the water, shook herself like a dog and went on with whatever she was doing. It was pretty clear at the end of that encounter whose house we were in.

--One morning (very,early I might add) about 8 years ago, my husband shook me awake...

"Is there something we need to talk about?" he asked me.

"Whaa...?" I said.

"Is there something we need to talk about?"

The look on my face must of been something, because he took pity on me about then and said... "There are two horses in the yard." and sure enough, there were two geldings in the yard, talking to my little chestnut peruvian paso filly over the fence.

The younger was a big bay, of indeterminate breeding, and the other older one was a golden, flaxen maned sorrel quarter horse. They were a bit busted up, like they had gone through a fence, and thin. The sorrel walked up and shoved his nose in the halter, and the bay followed him. I put them in the pasture next to my filly. Well, after some wrangling with the sheriff, and the brand inspector, and my nosy neighbor who thought I was horse-thievin ( I had already called the brand inspector when she called the cops), we found the owner.

He had fallen on hard times and wanted to know if we would care for them. The bay, the owner said they couldn't get to take a rider, but he packed well. Undeterred my friend (a.k.a the afore mentioned nosy neighbor become friend) worked with him and he came out alright. I rode him alot and he liked to run, and jump. The sorrel, (who we named Whiskey) latched onto my daughter and became her baby sitter and therapist.

She is on the autistic spectrum and was not verbal at that time. We went everywhere on that horse, the two of us double, or me leading him. Every time we turned for home she would melt down... Just screaming bloody murder, and that horse would just turn an ear toward her and keep plodding on, steady as a rock. Sometimes when I was leading them, I would get a good, solid nose bump on my shoulder, I would turn, and every single time that horse bumped me that kid was side ways on his back. We eventually bought Whiskey, and he was a god-send for our daughter.

I got a call one day, that she had missed the bus to come home from school. I got in my car, and shoot... It wouldn't start. I was getting a little frantic then, and my eye landed on Mr. Whiskey looking over the fence. It was a few miles to the school but mostly rural on the way... So... saddled up and off we went. He was fat, but knew I was in a hurry. He was a trooper. We sure walked back home though.

I have lots of stories about that horse, and other horses, and cats, and foxes, and crows...

reply to post by Spike Spiegle

Thanx for sharing,Spike,and the pic is beautiful.That was definitely a special experience-the faith the crow put in you not to hurt him-wonderful.I think crows are awesome birds,there's so much folklore about them,mysterious kinda birds,very striking.Really smart too.Some people find 'em a bit creepy,but they're cute,imo.Somewhere around this area where i live,there's a pair of huge black+white crows,really large for their breed.One of The most intriguing+mystical totems also.Crow lives in the void,where he sees past,present and future :-)

reply to post by Raxoxane


Here's mine a little scary. I was walking down a neighborhood street one early morning leaving a girls house. When I looked up to see two rottweilers staring at me no more than ten yards away. And on someones front lawn. They must have gotten out of someones backyard. Anyway, when our eyes met, they both began to charge. My first instinct being to turn and run I did so. Then as I realized I had no where to go and they would surely run my ass down. I stopped in the middle of the street turn and whistled my loudest pitch whistle I could. Those dogs stopped dead in their tracks. I Whistled the same pitch again and those dogs turned and ran and I never saw them again.
I continued on my merry way !
Thought this would be good for folks to see if they ever come into the same predicament.

reply to post by facelift

Thanks and yes :-D i think they do pick up on vibes,and geese bear grudges,so it seems!My mother had a white goose,she liked to keep poultry.I always used to tease this goose-bad mistake.One day i was playing next to the chicken run,and while i was distracted,it stuck its head through the fence and bit me on the buttock-it was so sore! Had a nasty bruise for days too,bv it certainly made its point,i pretty much avoided it after that:-)

reply to post by maryhinge

Thanks for your story,i know what you mean,i get that feeling about the two massive crows around here.They are majestic, its a kinda spiritual experience almost,when i see them,or even one.Owls very much has that effect on me too.That was an awesome experience you had,im glad for you.My husband had an encounter with an extremely large owl one morning round 3o'clock.He got called out to work,and on returning,this huge owl was in the lane leading up to our driveway.He was tired,it being so late,but this owl was going nowhere :-D it was dining on a rat or some hapless critter.He kept inching closer,but it just looked at him and carried on eating for a few minutes.It left when it was good and ready.He did'nt mind too much though,it was a fascinating and amusing experience.

reply to post by chrismarco

Whoaa that must have been Intense!! You were so fortunate to have experienced that! I would have been pretty nervous myself-just the size of them.The baby must have been a treat,though,that i would've loved,but been a bit worried about mama! Thanks for sharing,i sort of got a mental picture while reading this.Btw,i also would've politely refused if some one asked me to go in the water just then:-))

reply to post by Soloprotocol

Well i liked your story,it makes me think of the times each of my children first saw the tail-phenomenon(we always have cats,so ive rescued countless geckos,some literally pried out of cat's mouths) The reaction of kittens at the tail-thing is priceless as well:-)! My husband and i LOVE geckos,lizards,iguanas,etc.If we could,we'd buy em by the crateful,as insect control-and living dècor.Luckily,living in the Bush,there's always a few inside the house.We get a gorgeous iguana-type lizard here,the "Bloukop-koggelmander" with the males having turquoise blue heads.The ones i see here and in town,are about 20cm long,but im sure they get bigger.Handsome critters.

reply to post by Dimithae

Thank you for sharing this! What a most profound experience that woman had.And what a Blessing,that she had the guts to follow the deer-i bet a lot of woman driving alone at night would have found that a bit too creepy.I can just imagine how surreal that whole experience must have felt.

reply to post by doobydoll

Thank you,yes you're right,its a privilege to live right out in nature-not one day goes by that i don't see something uplifting or fascinating.We don't have foxes here,they are lovely animals. We do get squirrels,apes,zebras,the occasional wildebeest,a large variety of beautiful birdlife,gorgeous iguanas,and unfortunately in summer,poisonous snakes-ive had to kill a cobra and a black mamba so far this summer,in the past, Mozambique spitting cobras and a puff adder.I don't like to,but with my kids+animals around,i dont have a choice,if they come into or too near my house.I have a thread called "Elijah's Sparrows" about two sparrows that seemed to arrive when i was pregnant with my son-they pecked at my lounge window,stared at me,tried to get in,for months.They settled down in a broken ventbrick in the wall of my lounge,i hear them some nights,or their descendants maybe.Darling l'il things.I always had a special affection for sparrows,since i was a child.

reply to post by Bronagh

Thank you,yeah im always uplifted by animal stories,it makes me happy:-) I dont know how folks can doubt that animals have consciousness and individual personalities.And they DO know when you won't hurt them,as you experienced.I believe they can sense our intentions,and "read us" in a way.Im glad for you,what a charming experience.I checked out that pic-impressive bird.Looks like they are part of the albatross family,but different coloring? Such an awesome moment in one's life,that moment when you realise that an animal,specially a wild one,trusts you to help it.

reply to post by redhorse

Thank you,i enjoyed your stories very much,feel free to share more whenever you want.That one about the eagle-what a brilliant,ice cold shivers-awesome moment! Makes me wonder-could there be a telepathic sort of connection? I mean,even with the dungbeetle-how the HECK did it know to turn around Just Then,and make a U-turn,and absolutely come straight up to me?! And to hang around for quite a while,and be petted like a cat or dog-just astounding..Im a bit wary of horses(i have an irrational fear that they'll bite me,believe it or not :-)) but they,along with dogs,are such precious, irreplacable friends to the human race,and has been for so long.Beautiful souls.Im so happy that your daughter had such a wonderful animal as a friend-and i love the way the horse nudged you to get your attention when your daughter was not in the saddle properly! Animals are So sentient,much more than most people ever realise.And horses and dogs,cats and dolphins maybe even more so.Im an ardent cat lover,myself,btw.