Author Topic: OTTERS (Read 4156 times)

goosepimple · « **on:** September 21, 2012, 09:06:55 pm »

Out tonight at dusk with OH catching ducks for Carlisle Rare Breeds auction tomorrow when we could hear a very strange bird screetching down by the river and wouldn't stop - OH went to investigate and found an otter along the banks of the river - the sound was from a baby otter not a bird, obviously calling for it's mum.

We knew we had otter but haven't seen them before. Luckily our Muscovy ducks roost so don't get caught out - we did lose our runners and campbells when we first came here 3 years ago, one every couple of nights and found their bodies in the river. We only keep Muscovies now.

Nice to see the otters though.

Mammyshaz · « **Reply #1 on:** September 21, 2012, 09:59:44 pm »

I find them fascinating creatures to watch, haven't seen any in the wild yet, despite reports of a family living along the river where I walk the dogs regularly

jaykay · « **Reply #2 on:** September 22, 2012, 05:27:44 am »

I've never seen one near here, though some survey I read says there are.

I'd love to have otters about, I think I'd put up with shutting up my ducks at night.

HappyHippy · « **Reply #3 on:** September 22, 2012, 09:16:24 am »

I saw one here, playing in our little stream a while back, told my dad who reckoned it must've been a duck or a rat (in other words there was no way it was an otter - I must've been seeing things

) A few days later he was out checking his trees when he came face to face with it

I think they're great

and love watching them !

goosepimple · « **Reply #4 on:** September 22, 2012, 06:55:25 pm »

Ha ha HH, that was my attitude to OH - must have been a rat or Loch Ness Monster - but I know dog otters are big, really big some of them - there was one dead on the road this morning on the way to the Carlisle show. It was the calls last night which attracted us - not like anything we'd heard before.

SteveHants · « **Reply #5 on:** September 23, 2012, 03:47:28 pm »

I've seen loads of them - at fisheries/trout farms I've worked on.

More recently, to tide me over I had been doing nights at a very big earth-pond based trout farm, involved me driving around all night shining a spot lamp from a landrover onto ponds... It kind of throws you at night because you can see the track you are on and around it are ponds and the earth banks between them and you think 'oh, a cat.....hang on thats in the water...not a cat...er...' Either that or one shoots across the path in front of you and you crap yourself trying to avoid it and nearly drive into one of the ponds......

Hermit · « **Reply #6 on:** September 23, 2012, 05:34:18 pm »

We have a few round here, there is a big dog otter that runs up our burn from the sea to fresh water. They are our equivelent of a fox, they do love duck!

goosepimple · « **Reply #7 on:** September 24, 2012, 11:32:05 am »

Yup, I always feel that if they are going to take edibles then they can at least let us have the benefit of sighting them!

robbiegrant · « **Reply #8 on:** October 09, 2012, 02:28:44 am »

Quote from: goosepimple on September 21, 2012, 09:06:55 pm

OH went to investigate and found an otter along the banks of the river - the sound was from a baby otter not a bird, obviously calling for it's mum.

Awwwww....... Cutesy Babies...

When I first came to Cupar in 94 there was an Otter living upstream from the house. It had a limp, and was often sited wandering around Cupar in the dead of night. It was even in the Courier! Havent heard about it for a long while. But we do worry mink have moved in though Maybe its an otter!?!. ( ... I honestly dunno which is worse....) Shame for your ducks..

On a tangent. When I was a kid our alsation brought hope a baby hedgehog, we raised him as a dog, starting him on milk n glucose, then baby food. eventually he graduated to dogfood. he was totally tame he would amble over from his box beside the fire, put his front paws on my knee,stretching himself and ask to come up to be petted. They put their spines back flat when not under threat... He loved getting his tummy tickled he would even ask to get out to the toilet ( just like a dog ) The dogs didnt know what to make of him. He would become fully awake at night and run around the kitchen like a remote controlled toy, squeeking loudly! ( whilst the dogs tried to get up on the chairs )Eventually he went to Edinburgh Zoo as he got a bit of a handful. "Oggy" was a wonderful wee creature. Mum even took him sailing with her at one point!!!

I have a cutting somewhere from the front page of the Dunfermline Press with a photo of shona ( the alsation ) and oggy the hoggy... funny pet.

HappyHippy · « **Reply #9 on:** October 09, 2012, 07:28:25 am »

Great story

goosepimple · « **Reply #10 on:** October 09, 2012, 08:16:59 am »

Oh brilliant! Big claps from all of us in this house for that, brilliant.

MAK · « **Reply #11 on:** October 09, 2012, 08:23:22 am »

The day we bought this house we had a picnic at the lake. Chris had driven up and down England and Wales looking for otters but never found any. That day by the lake we saw 2. We then saw 2 playing in the snow a few months after. We named the house "The lazey Otter".

The thing is our neighbours tell us that there are no otters here abouts and that there are very many COYPU. So many in parts of France that you can even buy Coypu ( ragon) pate. The neighbours blame the coypu ( vegetarians) for taking their chickens.

sabrina · « **Reply #12 on:** November 10, 2012, 12:34:08 pm »

We have watched the otters when on holiday in Shetland, they are great fun. Lovely story about the hedgehog. One animal we do not seem to have near us. My friend picked up a badger cub that had been knocked down last week. He is now recovering in the Ark Rescue Centre but more worrying was the one a few days later that she came across very dead and the police say he had been mauled by dogs. There is a dog fighting ring going on something the local police at working on.