Which pet do you think would make the better “guard animal” for your house?
An 80 lb German Shepherd with sharp teeth?
Or a 10 lb black cat?
If you picked the dog, you’d be wrong – at least in our case. Since we lost Maui and adopted Sorcia, we’ve been robbed blind … of fish.
Last week I reported the loss of our beautiful 8 lb golden koi. Now most of the rest of the fish are gone as well. It’s like the Rapture happened after all, but only the fish got to go. However, I suspect the fish have gone NOT to a better place, but into a heron’s tummy.
A heron has terrorized our neighborhood goldfish ponds for years, but he always left us alone. We figured this was because our pond is sheltered under the deck and too close to the house for the bird’s comfort. But I also saw Maui take him on and chase him off the property – never mind that the bird was WAY bigger than the cat.
Maui was hit by a car about 18 months ago (breaking our hearts), and then we got Sorcia. Since then Mr. Heron views our pond as an All-You-Can-Eat-Buffet. Where is Sorcia while the bird is chowing down? I don’t know – maybe snoozing in the garage?
A neighbor suggested stringing fishing lines across the top of the pond. That’s probably one of the first things we could try. My husband checked out the internet for suggestions, but what he learned only confused us more.
1)Herons don’t like ponds that are sheltered under an overhang.
Well, this one got over it, or it’s not a heron after all.
2)Once a heron has discovered a good source of food, he will return again and again, emptying the pond.
Yeah, we’re at that point. There’s nothing left in our pond but 1-2 inch minnows.
4) The very, very best thing you can do to keep away a heron or a raccoon is buy a great big dog.
Sigh. That’s a big FAIL, Sorcia. Shame on you.
So frustrating. It reminds me of when I was a kid in Indiana and our ducks kept disappearing from out of their enclosure. We ended up rigging a trap … and it was a weasel. I hope you figure out how to stop whatever’s marauding your pond!
Ugh. Hope you figure out a way to outsmart the culprit!
lol- too funny! I never understood the expression ‘scaredy cat’- our cat grizzly is a realy rebel. Our huge dog Rudy, however, scares pretty easily. I wonder if there isn’t some kind of sonor system you can use to ward off animals from the pond…
And the mystery continues. 😀
ROFL — good luck with that!