EVERY CLOUD

.. and hope still springs eternal

 THERE'S still an awful pall of gloom hanging in the air since the brutal demise of Swedish goose Queenie who steadfastly sat on a clutch of eggs through all weather in the hope of becoming a Mother Goose. Sadly, on the eve of them hatching, her plans were brought to an abrupt end by at least one badger.
 But there's little time to dwell on death in the countryside and yesterday I was given a timely reminder of the hope which springs eternal courtesy of a tiny little ball of yellowish fluff seen in the video.
 I'm not sure what name to give him/her - yes, I
know I shouldn't give my animals names or get too attached to them but I am an accidental farmer and didn't sign up for producing livestock without becoming emotionally involved.
 Farmers might seem a cold, detached  bunch but from some of the private messages I've received, following the death of Queenie, it seems there are a number of great big softies out there who genuinely share my pain.
 To lovingly raise livestock only to have them cut down in their prime by pests like badgers and foxes is extremely frustrating.
 However, now I have to focus on the living and Jack and Vera still have a few more eggs left to hatch though I'm not sure if they're duds. Interestingly enough, when they take junior out for a stroll Bluebell, another Swedish goose, sits on the remaining clutch.
 The whole Queenie episode has really distressed her because the incident probably reminded Bluebell about her own near-death experience caused by a group of wild mink several years back. Her then owner nursed her around the clock and miraculously she survived. Unable to mate and lay her own eggs she now seems to have assumed a matronly role and is more than happy to help out Jack and Vera.

'BADGER HATES SOCIETY, AND INVITATIONS, AND DINNER, AND ALL THAT SORT OF THING,' Kenneth Grahame

.. And I no longer like him either

LIKE millions of kids, I was brought up on the Wind in the Willows childrens' classic by Scottish writer Kenneth Grahame which probably explains my romantic notions of the furry creatures who inhabit our countryside.
 Well my love affair with Mr Badger has now officially ended, quite dramatically and in tears. He is the prime suspect in a brutal slaying, a silent, ruthless killing machine which shows no mercy.
 This morning I went to visit Queenie, a beautiful Swedish goose of mine who has sat patiently for nearly a month on a clutch of around 10 eggs - not only had she vanished but the eggs had disappeared as well.
 With my limited knowledge of the countryside, I ruled out Mr Fox. Had it been him there would have been a right kerfuffle, lots of feathers and smashed eggs. This was not the case but there were very few other clues at the crime scene.
 I was going to call the local constabulary thinking the culprit may be human but
before bringing in the Old Bill, I picked up the phone to consult Jedburgh's answer to CSI Miami's Horatio Caine. As you can see from the 25 second video above there was very little to go on in terms of culprits and clues.
 Yet without the benefit of all the hi-tech kit and glamorous staff on hand to assist Caine, my man in combats had the whole crime sussed in under 30 minutes.
 Confirming what we knew already - no nest disturbance or fighting at the crime scene - he went off to search the surrounding area.
 And from what he discovered he deduced poor Queenie had been seized by an opportunist badger who dragged her off to a lair about 200 yards away and then killed her. He took me to the hollow under a tree where there were a few tell tale grey and white feathers which resembled the ones Queenie once sported. Badgers have immensely powerful jaws and this one left no other trace of my beautiful goose, given to me as a gift by a very good friend. Had she been 'done in' by a fox there would've been traces of rib cage and other non-chewable bones and debris, said my forensic expert.

QUEENIE: Tragic end

 Badgers also find eggs hard to resist and the silent killer would have returned to the nest to then devour all of the eggs and their contents thereby leaving very little trace of what had happened. As a protected species these creatures polarise opinion. This lot absolutely love the nocturnal villain: http://www.beautifulbritain.co.uk/htm/wildlife_gardening/badger_facts.htm as do folk like me brought up on stories from the pages of Wind in the Willows. However living in the country, trying to rear animals, has completely revised my opinion of Mr Badger and now I find myself at one with most of the farming community.
 The badger who attacked Queenie not only robbed me of a beautiful pet goose but he - and his accomplices - also destroyed any chance for the next generation of geese and her chance to be a Mother Goose.
 Apparently badgers are opportunistic so it is likely a terrible coincidence that they set about her just as the eggs were due to hatch. But I feel very angry and helpless and wonder what I could've done to prevent this from happening. The answer, in short, is nothing if I want my animals to roam freely.

SILENT KILLER: Badger like this one

killed by goose

 Unless I keep the livestock under lock down 24/7 I suppose they will be a target for predators. I've spent so much time and effort focussing on Mr Fox that I hadn't taken in to account the badgers - there are more than 50 setts within a mile radius of where I live in the Scottish Borders so I now need to pit my wits against a totally new predator ... within the confines of the law, of course.
 Any suggestions would be most welcome.