Magpie Threat - please read

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mummyemily

mummyemily

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I haven't posted for a while (piggies all good and healthy!) but I felt I needed to post this.
A couple of weeks ago whilst my piggies were enjoying their daily munch on the lawn in their run I went out to give them some veggies, i opened the netting that protects them from cats, birds ect when the phone went I went in to answer it and after a couple of minutes i heard my piggies screeching when i got there a magpie had got through the 6inch opening that I didnt shut when answering the phone and had one pinned down and pecking on his leg (the other one was hiding in the hid out) the bird had in a matter of minutes gone to the bone on the pigs hind leg and even when i went out was not going to give up easily. Thankfully Joe has made a full recovery after a lot of washing and creams and shows no side effects from his attack apart from the scar his now has.
Please please do not leave you piggies for even a minute unprotected I did and have had to learn the hard way and the guilt that because i didnt think i could have lost him.
I now have changed to a mesh roof and have saftey clips fitted.
 
So sorry to hear about your piggy getting attacked. Its a good warning to us all.

There are a lot of magpies around my home and they are very persistent creatures.

Glad your piggy made a full recovery and you got to him so quickly,
xx
 
Oh my word how horrible, glad he is ok and has recovered well though. I've seen a huge magpiein our back garden so will be extra cautious putting the piggies out as this isn't the first story I've heard of magpies attacking piggies
 
Honestly this all happened in the space of a few minutes, I am still amazed that the bird even attempted to get through such a small gap in the netting and was not fazed by me shouting and flapping to get him off
 
I am so sorry that this happened, but glad that Joe survived his experience!

We learned our lesson the hard way in my childhood when our neighbour's dog not only managed to wiggle underneath a bit of fence, but also break into a supposedly safe run with a firm top in order to kill both guinea pigs while we were away. It usually takes only seconds or minutes for these things to happen.
 
I had never thought magpies would be so nasty till a few weeks ago I posted about a mysterious wound on mintys head and ear thinking someone in the herd had done it, to my horror later that same day I saw a magpie peck through the run at minty. I resolved there and then to change from the triangle runs to a square one as the magpie wouldnt be able to angle properly at the piggies in the run, didnt help that minty had gone right up against the sides to say hello to the muderous bird :{

Magpies are nasty little blighters
 
I already know what Magpies are capable of, after seeing one attack a baby Swan and try and take off with it. They are not pleasant creatures at all and I am glad that your piggy was not killed during that attack.
 
oh gosh I'm so sorry, Magpies are just evil, i hate the way they rule the roost in the garden.

Is it cruel to think they should be culled?
 
Thank goodness Joe is ok now. That must have been so scary for you and the piggies. Thankyou for sharing this.
 
Gosh what a nasty shock that must have been for all concerned. Good job your telephone call was brief. Mine are in square runs but the top only just flips over, will make sure that they are fastened securely now. Thanks for the warning.
 
That must have been really scary for you. We get a lot of cats in our garden as the women opposite is a bit of a cat hoarder, therefore i am extremley vigilant when i put my pigs out in the run. Glad Joe is ok xx
 
poor piggy! i'm so glad he's ok. thanks for the warning, my dog tends to scare off anything that goes near the pen, but i never leave the dog out with them unattended x
 
How awful .... We get lots of magpies in the garden and it didn't even cross my mind ! Poor guineas ! I always assumed cats were the biggest threat when in the run ! Thanks for the warning !I'm glad joe is on the mend x
 
doglovinpiggylover said:
oh gosh I'm so sorry, Magpies are just evil, i hate the way they rule the roost in the garden.

Is it cruel to think they should be culled?
Click to expand...

Magpies are a lot less "evil" than we humans! They are clever opportunists and part of nature's way of keeping the balance by culling off the weakest and easy to get, as well as taking care of killed animals. And they do that job much better than us! With us humans having successfully done away with any bigger animal that used to do the job, magpies are just filling a widening niche.

But it is certainly a good reminder not to overlook the bird vector when we think of protecting piggies in the run and also to remember how quickly something CAN happen!
 
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