Kid fights off hawk to save mini-dachshund.

[philosophie_en_rose]

http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=171325&format=text

By Norman Miller/ Metrowest Daily News

Young Chris Campo had to fight a wild beast for his puppy’s life on Friday when a red-tailed hawk tried to turn the Weston youngster’s Dachshund into dinner. But a well-placed kick by the courageous Campo to the hawk’s head freed 5-month-old Dimi, who quickly high-tailed it to safety.

“I took the dog out to go to the bathroom and he started to run around like he was kind of scared,” said the 11-year-old Weston Middle School sixth-grader. “I felt a tug (on the leash) and I look back and a hawk was on the back of my dog, trying to eat him.”

While the dog was yelping, Chris stepped on the bird’s wing, reared back and let loose with a kick at the hawk’s head, he said. The ravenous raptor did not let go at first and so hawk, dog and child started madly struggling until the dog broke loose.


I have three small dogs and I always have to watch for eagles and hawks. I'm glad Dimi is okay.

[Patiod]

1. Yikes! Strikes horror in the heart of a dachshund fan!

I grew up with dachshunds, and my parents have one now. None were ever true minis, though, and most would probably give the average raptor a hernia

I used to worry about our cat when she was little -- we have a lot of enormous birds circling our property (we think it must have good updrafts) - mostly turkey vultures, who eat carrion, but also some hawks.

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. There's a lot of me that's on the hawk's side on this one

I hope the kid didn't hurt the bird at all. If bird is fine and dog is safe, then all is well.

If bird is hurt, then I am sad.

[billyskank]

4. Oh so the kid should have let the bird eat his dog

Of course.

[Bucky]

5. It was a noble struggle between three mighty carnivores.

I think the bird and dog should have teamed up and eaten the kid.

[Rabrrrrrr]

10. That would have been justice! The oppressed, non-free dog-slave

and the free creature living as nature intended teaming up to tear down the oppressor.

I could support that!

[philosophie_en_rose]

6. I'd hurt a hawk that tried to eat my dogs.

It's as natural to protect them, as it is for the hawk to try to eat them.

:patriot:

[billyskank]

7. Exactly

It wasn't as if the kid went after it with a gun, or poison or something. Only a misanthrope could possibly criticise the kid for attacking the hawk that was attacking his dog.

[Rabrrrrrr]

8. Wow - I've never been called a misanthrope before.

Especially never out of context like this.

Thanks!

:eyes:

[Rabrrrrrr]

Did I say that? No, I didn't.

[Midlodemocrat]

12. Too bad a hawk hasn't eaten you.

:hide:




:hi:

[BikeWriter]

13. This is an interesting twist on the predator-prey relationship.

:rofl:

[Catchawave]

29. I thought of the bird too...and I'm

a doxie mom, who never lets her girl out alone. This is very unusal behavior for a hawk to attack with a human nearby? Could be a rehabbed bird with no fear of humans :(

[China_cat]

33. Hawks are learning to live where they can

since most of their natural habitat is being destroyed.

We have pictures of a hawk taking a grackle in our backyard. In the city. I'm a bit surprised but it doesn't go after the feral cats in the neighborhood.

[Bassic]

34. They probably try to, but a cat is tough prey.

Dinner ain't so great when your prey can tear you a new one.

Which is also why cats don't hunt squirrels :D

[NeoConsSuck]

38. I've seen many squirrels die

from being attacked by male cats. My neighbor's male cat killed two in one week.

Female cats are usually too small to attack squirrels.

[Bassic]

42. Really?

I'm surprised because around here, every time I witness a fight between a cat and a squirrel, the squirrel wins. Maybe we have super-squirrels. :D

[Shakespeare]

35. Well, it's winter--the hawk may have just been hungry.

I'm with Rabrrrr--I'm glad the kid rescued his dog, but I hope the hawk wasn't hurt.

[seemunkee]

3. I worry about this too

My Luna is only 7lbs, she is such a tiny thing I worry about her being carried off.

[leftyladyfrommo]

9. I had a hawk come right down on top of one of my border collies.

It probably was 2 feet over her head. But the dog turned and bared her teeth and the hawk took off. I kind of figured it was a young hawk. There was a whole family of them there.

I have gotten my dogs out of the way when there were bald eagles around - those birds are absolutely huge.

[philosophie_en_rose]

11. My dogs are flexible, but a mini-dachshund is kind of out of luck.

I'd worry for small children too, if bald eagles are there. For the most part, they don't go out of their way to prey on dogs or kids. However, people have encroached on their habitats and they have to roam out of their usual areas.

I feel for the birds, but have to protect my mini-pack of terriers first. I'm convinced my dogs would fight back, but they are so small and not particularly frightening.

[leftyladyfrommo]

15. A friend has chihauhaus - one is about a pound - and they really

have to be careful.

I always try to be very respectful of the wildlife in our area. I really don't want my dogs getting tangled up with anything wild.

I think bald eagles mainly eat fish - but I sure am not going to take any chances.

And I have had friends lose cats to owls.

[BikeWriter]

18. A few years ago there was an Eagle snatched up a dog...

I don't recall what went down.

[leftyladyfrommo]

19. Not quite as bad as the poor guy who fought off the mountain lion

that grabbed his cat. He lost his cat but at least he didn't get torn apart.

I won't let my cats outside at all.

[BikeWriter]

21. Good, cats stay healthier that way.

[Midlodemocrat]

16. We have a ton of turkey vultures in our area.

I do worry about both my dogs when they are out. One is a puppy and the other is a mini-dach.

Generally though, they make so much noise, a big would have to be crazy to try and grab them.

[leftyladyfrommo]

17. I don't think vultures mess with anything alive.

But I sure would be careful of the hawks.

Just an aside: I had a bird feeder out back and was getting just tons of birds out there. Then I looked out one day and there was a huge hawk just sitting in the bushes - kind of wierded me out. They like to prey on the birds at feeders. So I moved my bird feeding to under the big trees in my front yard so the birds and squirrels have more protection.

[philosophie_en_rose]

20. I had the same thing happen with a cat.

A big fat cat sat on our fence, looking down on our birdfeeder and hummingbird feeder. Luckily, the terriers chase it away. However, we moved them higher up into the tree, so the cat couldn't get up there without the birds and squirrels noticing.

[Arkansas Granny]

22. I make sure my bird feeders are out in the open with no place for

a predator to lurk and hide. There is no cover for cats for 25 to 30 feet around the feeders. It doesn't offer much protection from hawks, but I figure that hawk attacks would be less frequent than cat attacks where I live in town, although I did see one take a sparrow from my front yard feeder a few years ago.

[leftyladyfrommo]

23. There is a specific kind of predator hawk that targets bird feeders.

Called a kite? They are smaller than normal hawks. Although the one I had in my backyard was a really goodsized hawk.

[Arkansas Granny]

25. The one I saw in my yard was a good sized hawk, too. I have

seen American kestrels in town, otherwise known as sparrow hawks, but never at my feeders. I'm gone all day, so I may have just missed them.

[leftyladyfrommo]

26. kestrels? That sounds more like what I meant.

I don't think I have ever seen one in real life.

[Arkansas Granny]

27. They are beautiful birds and are the smallest American falcon.

They are only about 8.5 to 9 inches in height. More info here: http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i3600id.html

[leftyladyfrommo]

28. Oh, wow. That is a pretty bird. n/t

[Gormy Cuss]

31. Kites definitely like to stalk birds at feeders.

Putting the feeder near bushes or a leafy tree is good protection for them because they have a place to hide. There are always white tailed kites around this area -- I've seen the birds hightail it to the shrubs and the bird songs end abruptly.

A few years ago there was a sharp shinned hawk family nesting in a neighbor's yard they hunted my open space for small rodents and caught little birds in mid flight. I ended up pulling in my feeders for a while.

[Kali]

41. I have heard that black vultures (south east US parts of Texas?)

are pretty vicious - will kill a cow down to have a calf. They go for the eyes and then are relentless tearing up the face and any "tender"parts.

I haven't ever seen that, all we have are Turkey vultures and they are pretty shy, strictly scavengers.

[BreweryYardRat]

37. Any kid over the age of 2 or 3 is safe from a bald eagle.

And even an underage kid is going to probably live through it. We're denser than we look, and birds aren't that strong. The eagle might hit the kid, but it wouldn't be able to kill him or take off with him.

[a kennedy]

14. Oh my gawd.......I have a mini dachshund too.......

I live by the Mississippi River and I watch the eagles closely. I never really thought an eagle would ever attack but this sure changes my mind. :scared:

[XNASA]

24. Really. What did you expect?

[SteppingRazor]

32. So, so wrong

:rofl:

[philosophie_en_rose]

39. cute!!

[deucemagnet]

30. We have to worry about raptors and coyotes around here,

but I think the strangest story I've ever heard about a small pet falling prey to a predator happened a few years ago at a nearby lake. Rumor has it that on a hot summer day, a pet owner was keeping his toy poodle cool by gently tossing him into the lake and letting him swim back shore. Well, this particular lake has steep drop-offs from the shore and is known for its large muskellunge, so guess what happened?

[xchrom]

36. i have friends whose schnauser was attacked

by a red tail in their backyard.

the sound was terrible and the dog had some bad, bad wounds.

but the dog got away.

[UTUSN]

40. Oh my ZEUS!!!1 *I* have a semi-mini one of those !!1

[philosophie_en_rose]

43. cute!

:bounce: