— Musings —07.12.2012 09:03 AM
Warren’s Wacky World of Wildlife
Got up to cabin with daughter and her fellow camp counselor, both on one-day furloughs, around 10:30. Roxy, who is dumb as a post, acting weird. Neighbour down the way calls out to keep dog in – “there’s a big fisher about.”
They’re nasty bastards (the fishers, not the neighbours), and I doubt the dog would win a scrap with (what sounds like) a big male fisher.
Assuming I have, er, sufficient firepower (and you should), is there any chance I could dissaude said fisher from eating my dog?
Input welcome, as always. Over and out.
June 4th – “Roxy, like her master, is a yellow dog Democrat”
July 12th – “Roxy, who is dumb as a post”
I would suggest your yellow dog Democrat waive her paws around frantically, bark louder than the other dog and call the fisher a racist. That’s worked pretty well for Democrats over the years when they get into fights.
Like so many young Democrats, it’s a good thing she’s pretty.
(She is a beautiful animal, by the way. If I didn’t put walnut floors in my house I’d have a golden lab called Indy by now. Had to settle for an orange tabby named Henry instead.)
You’re screwed. Those things bring vicious to a whole new level. We had one in Ottawa attack an Afghan Hound by the Rideau River. They ended up scrapping in the river – when the poor girl went into the river to rescue her hound, the fisher turned on her. I kid you not.
Fishers are mostly nocturnal, so if your dog is in the house at night, and escorted outside after dark, it minimizes the chances of any confrontations.
One of my houses is in an area with fishers and my dogs (always large dogs) have never had a confrontation (@ 20 years). But my dogs are inside at night, sleeping, and are not outdoors unsupervised.
Fishers will clean out a cat population (ie: in the country, outdoor cats) pretty quick.
Yes, keep your dog inside Warren.
This from Wikipedia “Fishers have also been responsible for at least 4 Canadian lynx mortalities in Maine; bobcat remains have been found at male fisher rest or active sites.”
So if a fisher can dispatch a lynx, what chance would a friendly dog have?
Warren, a fisher would do a lot of damage to a dog, but your dog is a fair size and I think that the fisher would leave it alone….unless the dog started something. Then all bets are off.
By the way….if there is a scrap and your dog wins……the pelt of the fisher would make a nice trophy.
Almost forgot…..if there are any wolverines in your neck of the woods (wherever you are now)….best keep the pets indoors. A wolverine would make a meal out of your dog….they’re about four times the size of a fisher; and meaner.
I’m a douche bag.
Then stay away from female fishers’ or wolverines
According to this newspaper article, fishers have been known to feast on bobcats/lynx, so I’d make sure to pack appropriate ‘heat’ for the potential use force.
http://www.pressherald.com/archive/researchers-collect-data-to-track-health-of-threats-to-canada-lynx_2008-03-04.html
Guess it depends if you think Roxy > lynx in a fight with a vicious fisher
Dogs have no fear of Bears(?) so apparently if the bear( grizzly?) is on the prowl dog…could be snackfood. Though with dogs…they do have this wonderful ability to be overly confident which can fool wildlife that should be able to eat the yappy snack…into running away. There is a youtube clip of a canadian chasing a bear off his deck with a hockey stick and dog chasing bear further…very informative:)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIjLf6T_K3o
Let ’em go at it and adopt the winner.
This is about Ontario wildlife, not the next LPOC leader…
Its about weasels, so…
Make sure to wear gloves, safety glasses if you have any, a heavy coat, full pants and shoes in case it decides to attack you. This link might be useful. Good luck:
http://www.pestcontrolrx.com/david_somlcom/2008/07/fisher-how-to-g.html
Found this in a recent article from the Ontario Woodlot Assoc website: “A landowner and/or his or her immediate family members have the right to destroy fishers under the authority of the protection of property legislation, if they believe the animal has or is about to destroy their property (e.g. livestock). They do not have to report the kill or sell the fur. ”
Be careful. But afaik, I’ve never heard of one attacking a human. They like small mammals.
I have read stories about them attacking dogs, but I also read one story of a fisher who attacked a 6 year old kid…..
Respect the wildlife….they just do their thing…and it’s not always pretty.
We had them around the farm and I can’t remember them attacking dogs (their prey is usually smaller). They are pretty shy so I expect the report for a rifle will scare them off.
Are you a decent shot? They aren’t that big…
This is why it’s best to stay in the city.
Good one! This simple country soul would rather take my chances with the four legged rural critters than the two legged urban critters!! LOL!!
… but not raise your kids there of course.
I’m with Sb, even the shot should drive them off; I imagine if its moving it would be a difficult small and fast target…sounds like .223 would do it though.
a .223 would go right through it, and hit something behind. Go for the 12 guage shotgun and #6 shot – open choke bore.
A good rule of thumb when it comes to wildlife is to give it a wide berth whenever possible. Since Fishers are nocturnal, the odds of you seeing it are slim, and the odds of shooting it even slimmer. The last thing you need is a wounded pissed off Fisher wandering around your ‘hood.
Forget the Fisher’s…….here’s what a real beast can do.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2171984/Man-21-eaten-alive-tiger-enclosure-breaking-zoo-night-suspected-suicide.html
Geebus…what a way to go.
Ya Fisher’s are nasty. Believe it or not, two years ago I reported seeing a cougar in the Westport Area and my wife witnessed it the next day. No one believed me. But now that one was shot dead in Ontario recently, maybe my credibility will be restored.
I hear fishers are being encouraged to take care of all of the extra wild turkeys running around.
Fisher…..member of the mustelid family which is better known as the weasel family(Conservatus Horriblis f. Harper)
sorry, forma Hudak
Somebody in Alberta once advised farmers to “shoot, shovel, and shut up”.
That advice might also be good in Cottage Country. You don’t want the MNR up your ass.
I own the “Life” series from BBCNature, and when it comes to members of the weasel family (Harperites notwithstanding), they’re TNT crammed into a firecracker jacket. In one of the discs, there is some pretty graphic footage of a stoat (about the size of a ferret) taking down a huge rabbit that probably outweighed it four times over. After wearing the poor bunny down in a long long high-speed chase, the stoat picked the right moment to slide onto the rabbit’s back and dispatch it with a bite to the back of the neck, a bite powerful enough to sever the brainstem.
As fishers are larger, it wouldn’t surprise me if it actually could kill a small-to-midsized dog, because they’re lightning fast, and they have endless stamina. The jaws on weasels are more powerful than they look and they don’t know what fear is. If they had human characteristics, we’d call weasels **psychotic**.
I’ve heard it said that bears won’t tangle with much-smaller wolverines, so it stands to reason that you might have to keep a good eye on Roxy, WK.