Recent Animal Attacks

You know how unfortunate events seem to occur in threes? Well, that apparently applies to animal attacks as well. Three separate animal attacks on people have been featured in recent news. All three victims, two hunters and a golfer, escaped their attackers with their lives, but not without injuries.  

Just this week, an Alaskan hunter was attacked by a Kodiak grizzly after shooting another bear. He miraculously suffered only a minor scalp wound. Last week a Florida golfer required 50 stiches after a large gator grabbed and pulled him into a pond while he was retrieving a ball. And in latest news, after being attacked by a coyote that mistakenly took him for a hen, a Maine turkey hunter is undergoing a series of painful rabies vaccinations.

Although they might not feel lucky, all three of these guys are fortunate that they weren’t more seriously injured.

Anyone who spends a lot of time in the outdoors runs the risk of an animal attack. I too have been the victim of animal attacks, although my experiences were more comical and anything but newsworthy.

As a child, I was viciously attacked by a mother goose. My parents warned me to stay away from the goose and her nest. But, she had new babies, and I just couldn’t resist a closer look. I remember running down the hill screaming as the goose chased and repeatedly bit me on the butt. My parents offered no assistance. They just stood there laughing, knowing I’d just learned a valuable lesson. Thanks to that incident, I have an unnatural fear of geese to this day.

Many years later, I got chased and almost trampled by a cow. I was helping a friend catch a wayward horse when suddenly one of the cows in the pasture decided she didn’t like what she was seeing. With the angry cow right on my heels, I ran to the fence as fast as I could. I managed to jump over before she reached me. I knew bulls could be aggressive, but I didn’t know cows would come after people as well.

My latest and most brazen attacker came in the form of a little brown bunny. I was standing out in the open field by our church talking to a friend of mine when this fuzzy little cottontail rabbit came barreling out of the underbrush. It was coming right for us. My friend uttered a weird little yelp and jumped out of the way. I just froze, not sure what to do. The rabbit ran right at me, then veered off before the moment of impact. I have no idea what its intent was, but it left me feeling a little uneasy, like there might be other kamikaze bunnies lurking in the brush just waiting for the opportunity to attack.

So, there you have my three terrifying animal attack stories. I know as much time as you guys spend in the outdoors you probably have experienced some wild encounters as well. Care to share them?