Have you ever had a run in with a dangerous wild animal?

[AbsentmindedWoman]

I'm sipping my coffee and dreaming about going camping in the wilderness. Somewhere really remote. It would be awe inspiring, but also in reality I'd be too scared of getting lost or being eaten by some of the local wildlife so will probably never actually do it.

Has anyone been wilderness camping or similar? Did you have any narrow squeaks with snakes/ jaguars/ crocodiles?

[MariposaLilly]

I have moose sometimes in my garden. They don't run from people as deer do and I have heard they have killed more people than bears.

[SisterBeaverhausen]

Not me but my friend lives on the Gold Coast, her first Christmas there after 18 years in the UK, she said her Christmas tree was moving.

Her boyfriend said don't worry leant down grabbed a croc by its tail and threw it out the house. She was more concerned with how casual he was about it (the boyfriend not the croc)

[CaveMum]

This as some good photos to illustrate how big some animals actually are, though several of them do look like forced perspective/deliberate use of a small person to me - I’ve met plenty of Clydesdales in my time and none would tower over me quite so much as the ones in the first picture (I’m 5ft 6) so I suspect the lady holding them is a tad on the small side!

www.boredpanda.com/animal-size-comparison/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic

[mathanxiety]

Also, on the last day of a stay in Kiawah Island in S Carolina I noticed for the first time a sign on the path across the marshy area between the beach and the house we were staying in, that said "Please do not feed the alligators".

[PolkadotsAndMoonbeams]

*hadn't bothered going in

I then went to the doctors when I got home because although the pain from the sting had stopped (I knew to put my foot in hot water), the barbed sting was still in my foot. The doctor took ages before he removed it, and when I asked if there was a problem, said he was trying to decide whether to choose "animal/fish bite" or "insect sting" from the dropdown list. I suppose that what you get for living in a landlocked county.

[PolkadotsAndMoonbeams]

Fortunately nothing abroad, apart from the odd gecko, although the one that shot under the doorway when I was on the loo was unnerving.

In the UK however, I've been stung by a weeverfish in north Wales (the sea was freezing as well. I wish I had bothered going in!) and was knocked over by a peacock on Brownsea Island when I was little.

I'm currently suffering sleep deprivation by starling — a pair are nesting just over my bedroom window and don't seem to go to sleep until 2 am, but still manage to wake up to join in with the dawn chorus. They keep pooing on my washing as well.

[mathanxiety]

We stayed in little cabins while holidaying at a dude ranch northwest of Denver one time I went out the door one afternoon and saw several little brown and grey snakes in the grass, then spotted their far bigger mother snake slithering along. I went back inside.

On the way to Wyoming one time we stopped at a Mexican restaurant on the outskirts of Denver and had the exciting experience of seeing a crew wrangling a rattlesnake into a barrel in the car park. They told us to stay in the car for a few minutes and wait for the all clear.

Closer to home, I once had to trap a raccoon who had found its way into my eaves from an overhanging tree, and was in the process of setting up camp in the crawl space. I could hear it scuffling around overhead in the wee small hours when it returned from its nocturnal business. I bought a humane trap and baited it with a tin of sardines, and around 1am heard the trap snap shut and a good deal of rattling and scratching as it tried to break the trap door.

So out I went with my torch to lug it into the back garden. It turned out to be huge and not one bit happy about being trapped. It bared its teeth, and tried to scratch me through the bars of the trap. I set it down in the garden near the back fence, and within two minutes it succeeded in breaking the door and squeezing its way out. It shot over the fence, and disappeared into the alley. I got a tree trimming company in that afternoon to take off the branch it was using to get into the eaves, and tackled the loose fascia myself.

[Chemenger]

I find it difficult to believe moose exist. I’ve been in so many places where “moose sightings are common” and usually where “there were loads of them here yesterday” and never seen one that I’m beginning to think they are the North American version of the wild haggis.

[VetOnCall]

Moose are huge - this is a female, bulls are bigger. They sometimes like to lick the road salt off cars in backcountry hiking trail car parks

[CaveMum]

Ooh, thought of another: DH used to be in the RAF and was in Iraq about 16 years ago. He was stationed at Basra Air Base and every now and then they'd find Camel Spiders sunning themselves (hint - do not google camel spiders if you are at all twitchy about spiders/insects).

Two things about camel spiders - they can run pretty fast and they can jump. One of DH's mates (big burly RAF Regiment guy) thought it would be amusing to poke one with a stick. Reader the camel spider was not impressed and jumped up onto the guys leg , who proceeded to (and I quote DH on this) "scream like a little girl".

To be honest if I got within 25ft of one of those buggers I'd be screaming like a little girl too!

[CaveMum]

Never had an encounter myself but a friend in Canada had a near miss with a Moose whilst driving. I'd never realised how big they are, I thought they were just like a large deer until she told me they were more like a small elephant!

[ajandjjmum]

I heard about someone digging a couple of holes for gate posts to be cemented in in NSW - fairly deep. When they came back the next morning, there were brown snakes in each of the holes! That too was on a farm.

[fdgdfgdfgdfg]

Spent a year in Australia during which I spent a few weeks working on a little suburban farm. Spent the morning weeding, had this huge pile of weeds by lunchtime ( about waist high).

Went in for lunch and when I came back out started chucking the pile of weeds in a wheelbarrow. The third time I plunged my hands in this snake shot out and between my legs, before disappearing at speed.

The bloke I was with identified it as a Dugite, which is fairly venomous. Was very glad it decided to run away rather than attack!

[Snaketime]

This wasn't dangerous, but was hilarious. My 6ft 17st husband once got chased by a ............ Praying mantis 🤣🤣 he flicked water at it to get it to move from the middle of the path and it chased after him. I have never seen him move so fast in my life.

[WeAllHaveWings]

My old place of work was a large chemical factory surrounded by greenbelt and we regularly had foxes in the buildings, came across a large snarling one once trying to get past me and I had nowhere to go. Thankfully if backed off in the other direction.

I get the occasional fb post from my cousin in British Columbia, Canada about black bears around the house (once one had got into her car through an open window, another was near her house when she got back from work so she couldn't leave the car!), a buck charging their dd walking to school or cougars spotted near the school - I guess it is just normal for them, but sounds terrifying!

[AintNobodyHereButUsChickens]

When we were kids, me and my sister went with our dad to hammer in a mooring post on the edge of a field opposite his boat. The field had very tall grass so you couldn't really see anything around you. Anyway, as we were finding our way there, we heard this snarling and dad dragged us out of there sharpish. We've no idea what made that noise but it definitely didn't sound like a dog, more like a big wild cat of some sort. We never found out what it was and no-one else ever reported hearing or seeing anything in that field. This was in the UK btw, North Lincs/Humber sort of area.

Not me but my home town, many years ago some lions escaped from a circus and one of them mauled a young boy to death Circuses were banned after that and it's only in the last 10-15 years they've come back to town.

[JudyGemstone]

I remember being at the zoo as a kid, a large chimp shat into its hand and threw it at me 🤣 luckily the screen was there as it’s aim was pretty good!

[Dullardmullard]

@Didiplanthis

At a zoo when a wanking Lorus ejaculated onto the glass as I stopped to see what it was...

Seems it a common theme with them

Many moons ago before they put in the glass plate one grab a lady all poshly dressed through the bars and wanked in her hair, she was screaming like a banshee but her offender didn’t give a shit. Zookeeper comes over and says “Roger you’ve to play nice “ I swear the bloody monkey grinned at him

[LimpLettice]

Got bitten on the ankle by an enormous spider round a campfire in China. Think dinner plate enormous. I'm arachnophobic and only caught a glance as it galloped away. Not hugely toxic but the bite was very sore and my ankle looked quite bad for a few days. Expedition doctor gave strong antibiotics and antihistamines. Also saw several huge redhead centipedes climbing the wall. Fascination things but really quite creepy.

[isthismylifenow]

@Buggeredpelvicfloor2013

Oh gosh these make mine look so tame..... driving to work one morning and a huge bloody bull had escaped from the local farm and was running down the road towards me. I literally slammed on the brakes and as it got to my car it stopped and started sniffing at the window (thank god it was early so no one was behind me). All I could think of in my panic was bloody jurassic park and if you stay still it won't see you move , so stupid given it wasn't a dinosaur! Anyway, after a minute or so it galloped past with umpteen farm hands running after it shouting and waving. Quite funny thinking back now but at the time I was terrified.

[Iremembertheelderlykoreanlady]

Charged by a herd of bullocks

Charged by horses (I jumped into a river to avoid them)

Aparently I'm very chargeable! 🤷‍♀️

When my brother was about 10 he killed an adder. He strangled it.

He said it was going to bite him but I just think he had been watching too many Indiana Jones films tbh.

[inigomontoyahwillcox]

All I could think of in my panic was bloody jurassic park and if you stay still it won't see you move

😆

[Buggeredpelvicfloor2013]

Oh gosh these make mine look so tame..... driving to work one morning and a huge bloody bull had escaped from the local farm and was running down the road towards me. I literally slammed on the brakes and as it got to my car it stopped and started sniffing at the window (thank god it was early so no one was behind me). All I could think of in my panic was bloody jurassic park and if you stay still it won't see you move , so stupid given it wasn't a dinosaur! Anyway, after a minute or so it galloped past with umpteen farm hands running after it shouting and waving. Quite funny thinking back now but at the time I was terrified.

[cariadlet]

@TheyCallMeJustice We were going to DRC just for the gorillas rather than doing any other trekking there. We'd booked to visit Virunga National Park.

[inigomontoyahwillcox]

Couple of occasions spring to mind:

Cape Point in South Africa. Lots of baboons about and warnings not to have visible food. Was on my way back to our car and grabbed a sandwich from a small kiosk, tried to stuff it in my pocket but was clocked by a particularly big baboon which I then vividly remember clearing car after car in the carpark towards me whilst I desperately fumbled with the keys to get the door open. I didn't succeed in time and it dive bombed me, grabbed the sandwich and dislocated my thumb in the process! Can only blame myself for that one.

Went white water rafting on the Zambezi river (started at the base of Victoria Falls - just incredible). Made our way through the rapids, all very exciting - and a little terrifying. Got to one of the more sedate rapids and the instructor said that we could get in the water and bob through that one for something different to do. I was the only one who took him up on the offer and in I got. Went through the rapid, floated around a small bend to find myself face-to-face with about 6 Nile Crocodiles! Fortunately the boat wasn't too far away and I was scooped up within about 15 seconds but it felt like an eternity and they definitely had lunch in their eyes whilst they made their way in my direction.

Oh and one more - final dive whilst doing my PADI in the Cook Islands. Just the instructor and I at about 18m. Saw a shadow looming in the distance which got a little less shadowy and a little more shark - shaped. The instructor didn't seem particularly bothered so I was fine, he did eventually decide to get on the boat though. It was an oceanic white tip - almost indistinguishable from a great white, and apparently responsible for more fatal attacks.