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Owl Flies Off with Chihuahua in California (its a little dog...)
Myfoxmemphis.com ^ | 03/10/2010 | Myfoxmemphis.com

Posted on 03/11/2010 2:43:15 AM PST by The Magical Mischief Tour

(Fox News) - Most pet owners take steps to protect their animals. In Santa Rosa, California, Odessa Gunn worried a car or coyote might one day claim the lives of her dogs, which is why she and her husband, renowned American cyclist Levi Leipheimer, fenced in their property.

But Fox News reported Wednesday that they're mourning the loss of their beloved Chihuahua, Trooper, and nursing their other dog, Bandit, back to health. The attacker came from an unlikely place -- the sky.

Gunn had just let her dogs out into the backyard and was preparing to join them. She recalls, "in the time it took me to put my boots on, I heard what sounded like a really horrendous cat screeching noise. I thought it was a mountain lion or a bobcat or something."

In fact, it was a pair of Great Horned Owls, birds that typically eat rats and squirrels. On this recent night, the birds set their sites on larger prey. From out of the darkness, the two owls swooped down and attacked Trooper and Bandit, just feet away from where Gunn stood.

After a violent struggle, Bandit escaped, bloody and limping, but Trooper was carried off and hasn't been seen since. No fur. No blood. Nothing.

While there are really no good statistics on the frequency of such attacks, wildlife experts say they're rare but almost always lethal. In many ways, owls are the perfect predators; they approach without warning, and their razor-sharp talons can snatch a pooch or cat two to three times their own body weight.


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To: Vinnie
He obviously forgot the SSS rule.
Shoot, Shovel, Shut up.
41 posted on 03/11/2010 4:09:59 AM PST by Jed Eckert
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To: dawn53

Husband and I were in the back yard one day and saw an osprey fly right above us with a fish. A bald eagle (HUGE bald eagle) flew in a and snatched the fish from the osprey. The osprey flew out after the eagle, but I think the eagle won.

It was cool to see right over our yard.


42 posted on 03/11/2010 4:16:07 AM PST by submarinerswife (Obama, the Fresh Prince of Bill Ayers)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour
The exact same thing happened to a couple who are friends of friends here NorthEast of the 101. They were looking at new homes in this case and brought the darn dog. They set it out in the backyard (personally, I wouldn't appreciate someone bringing a dog to do it's business in my back yard while I was selling a home.) They turned for a moment to talk to the realtor before stepping outside when a bird of prey swooped down and flew off with the dog. Horrifying for any pet owner.

I don't think they made an offer on the home, either.

43 posted on 03/11/2010 4:19:43 AM PST by Caipirabob (Communists... Socialists... Democrats...Traitors... Who can tell the difference?)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

I have two little dogs and keep them on leashes when they need to go out. An owl got at least one of my chickens and a huge Peking duck that I had for a number of years. I was amazed at the strength of the owl for being able to fly off with such a large duck.


44 posted on 03/11/2010 4:20:09 AM PST by exbrit
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To: Ladysmith

When my dog was a pup, a brazen hawk would always circle above us as we were on walks. I joked, ‘oh just try and snatch my dog’. He is not a small dog either. Bravado exists in all species. So does stupidity.


45 posted on 03/11/2010 4:21:12 AM PST by rintense (Only dead fish go with the flow, which explains why Congress stinks.)
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To: PeteB570
Not surprising. We had an owl circling over our dog when he was a pup too.
46 posted on 03/11/2010 4:23:07 AM PST by Red Plank
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To: South40
The cats do a good job of avoiding the coyotes around here but they don't do as well with the owls.

A few years ago my female lab had a litter of puppies. When the pups were about 5 weeks old I started putting them outside in the yard in a kennel in the grass. One evening I was sitting in the living room looking out the window and a barred owl came to roost in a tree above the kennel. The owl was obviously eyeballing the puppies for dinner. If I hadn't been there I'm sure one or more of the pups would have been eaten. We had a neighbor with a chihuahua that was taken away by a red tailed hawk some years ago, too.

47 posted on 03/11/2010 4:26:27 AM PST by Thermalseeker (Stop the insanity - Flush Congress!)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

I live on Lake Murray in SC and recently, a bald eagle flew by with a small opossum in its talons. It paused in a nearby tree, then flew off. I have small dogs and this article has me rethinking safety for my pets. Yikes!


48 posted on 03/11/2010 4:27:09 AM PST by Marty
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To: South40

We live in a semi-rural area with raptors of all kinds. Our large cat goes out at dawn to hunt, but he always stands in the open door for a while before venturing out. Sometimes, he backs back into the room, having sensed something out there. I have heard Great Horned Owls in the yard. I read that they can carry off an animal that is three times their own weight, so I don’t doubt that one could carry off our 11 lb. cat. My husband laughed at me when I told him this, but your sad experience would seem to prove me right.


49 posted on 03/11/2010 4:38:09 AM PST by giotto
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To: Virginia Ridgerunner
"Beautiful! I love owls!"


50 posted on 03/11/2010 4:44:16 AM PST by cll (I am the warrant and the sanction)
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To: cll

Nice! I have a small patch of woods on my property that his home to a Great Horned Owl. I see him occasionally, and he is truly an impressive animal.


51 posted on 03/11/2010 4:47:50 AM PST by Virginia Ridgerunner (Sarah Palin has crossed the Rubicon!)
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To: Vinnie

“Now he’s in trouble w/ the Feds.”

He got what he deserved. Not for killing the bird, but for reporting it.


52 posted on 03/11/2010 4:49:22 AM PST by redfreedom (Just a simpleton enjoying the freedoms a fly-over/red state has to offer.)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

I live here in southern Arizona. I keep my kitty’s inside. I am now in the process of becoming a falconer. I just love these magnificent birds.


53 posted on 03/11/2010 4:51:21 AM PST by waxer1 ( "The Bible is the rock on which our republic rests." -Andrew Jackson)
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To: submarinerswife
At night I have to worry about the barred owls. I put her on a lease hoping I could snatch her back.

You charge by the hour or by the day? :0)

Sorry, couldn't resist...

54 posted on 03/11/2010 4:55:40 AM PST by COBOL2Java (Big government more or less guarantees rule by creeps and misfits.)
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To: PeteB570
We have a little National Geographic scenario right out back, because it becomes open desert....have seen hawks swoop in and grab doves and chipmunks.

Just yesterday, I saw a roadrunner walk by me with a freshly killed hummingbirds in it's mouth; I'd have loved to see that snatch take place.

55 posted on 03/11/2010 4:56:36 AM PST by ErnBatavia (It's not the Obama Administration....it's the "Obama Regime".)
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To: cll

April looks like the rare Michael Moore Owl.


56 posted on 03/11/2010 4:57:36 AM PST by COBOL2Java (Big government more or less guarantees rule by creeps and misfits.)
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To: redfreedom
He got what he deserved. Not for killing the bird, but for reporting it.

Reporting it for sure. Killing the owl? On the surface I'd say no, but it wasn't my dog so I withhold judgment on that.

57 posted on 03/11/2010 4:58:30 AM PST by Vinnie (You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Jihads You)
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To: The Magical Mischief Tour

well, all I can say is time to get a real dog.

...little rat dogs named trooper and bandit. Chihuahuas are for yuppie business women who watch too many movies.


58 posted on 03/11/2010 5:04:49 AM PST by sit-rep
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To: 101voodoo
Take your pet to a local shelter where they will find it a home with someone who wants him/her.

Just any local shelter won't do - CA pays shelters to KILL animals (per the Hayden Act) and owner turn ins are presumed to have something serious wrong with them, so they get no waiting period.

59 posted on 03/11/2010 5:09:10 AM PST by SCalGal (Friends don't let friends donate to H$U$ or PETA.)
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To: jedi150

Muffy...with a name like that, the dog was probably happy to get carted off.


60 posted on 03/11/2010 5:10:56 AM PST by reagan_fanatic (Our politicians are stupid and our policies unsustainable)
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