WILD
ANIMAL
The
difference between the East and the West
A
NEW JERSEY COLLEGE CAMPUS
"Official
Email Advisory Regarding Wild Animal on Campus"
"On
Wednesday February 13, 2008, a student was bitten in the leg by a raccoon
in the Metzger Garage. The student was transported to the hospital and
has been treated. Campus Police and Animal Control were unsuccessful
in their attempts to capture the animal.
Members
of the campus community are urged to exercise every precaution. It is
advisable to move away and not approach any wild animal on campus. Individuals
are asked to contact Campus Police immediately if the animal is seen."
•
• • A
CALIFORNIA COLLEGE CAMPUS
"One
wonderful aspect of campus life is sharing our space with wildlife.
There are numerous vertebrate species that inhabit the campus lands.
It is not uncommon to be treated to the sight of a mother gray fox taking
her kits out for a midday hunting lesson, a coyote loping through the
lower campus meadows, or a bobcat slinking through the tall grass. Some
have even had the opportunity to catch a rare glimpse of the elusive
mountain lion on campus (seeing a lion is not justification for alarm,
but we still want to be called!). Raccoons, skunks and opossums are
very common and are usually seen at night. Most of us are thrilled to
experience the privilege of sharing this space with the wild inhabitants,
and indeed many of us only have to gaze out of our office window or
step outside of or offices to enjoy the antics of a stellar jay, or
the serenity of a grazing deer."
• • • ANALYSIS
My
first thought after reading the New Jersey Official Advisory was, "wow,
the only wild animals I've ever seen on campus are squirrels and birds."
My second thought was that the student wasn't bitten "in" the leg. The student was bitten "on" the leg. My third thought was that, if we exercised "every precaution," then everyone would
leave school and not come back. Having
lived and experienced both coasts and the space in between, I've encountered
a variety of wild animals in various situations, and they always run
away from me if I try to approach them – which I don't recommend.
This includes many animals much bigger than I. Raccoons, like most wild
animals, will choose flight over fight if they are given a chance. Even
raccoons with rabies won't display any outward symptoms of the viral
disease, and won't seek you out to bite you. But they will bite you
if they feel threatened and cornered. Many people, especially young,
testosterone-laden men, are curious about furry little wild animals
and approach them – as I often do. I suspect this was the case
with the campus garage raccoon bite. Personally I feel sorry for the raccoon. Like an escaped
killer, he (or she) is being hunted while the bureaucrats do their
best to instill fear and paranoia in the local population. I can only
imagine the chaos that would ensue if one of those California campus
wild animals, like a bobcat or coyote, were spotted on a New Jersey
campus. If a mountain lion were spotted, I expect the National Guard
would be called out.
I
recall sitting in a meeting with about 30 people at that same New Jersey
campus when someone screamed, "A bat!" Sure enough, high up
on a drapery by the window was a bat. A lot of people panicked. I heard
the word "rabies" mentioned frequently, and many people fled
from the room. I was embarrassed by the behavior of my fellow humans,
and if I had not rescued the bat, I'm sure that some idiot would have
beaten it to death with a broom or textbook. It was a cool fall day,
and I was wearing a sweater, which I removed. I approached the bat,
gently put my sweater over it, pulled the bat off of the curtain, and
carried it outside, where it flew away. Perhaps
it is my Midwestern, small farm town mentality that gives me a more
rational and humane perspective on wild animals. Of course I have had
my moments of being less than humane, like the time I caught a wild
opossum and put it in my high school homeroom late one night. The next
morning, at the start of class, someone noticed the opossum back in
the corner. There was no panic - just curiosity. I wrapped my jacket
around the opossum and carried it outside. No one called animal control
or the police. In fact, I don't think we had Animal Control back then.
Our animal control folks were called "farmers." Personally
I'd rather see a lot more wild animals and a lot fewer people. Animals
did not cause trouble until people began invading their territory and
persecuting them, much like we did with the Native Americans. I've never
been cheated, lied to, or wronged by an animal. And as the saying goes,
the more people I meet, the more I like my dog.
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