A sound brought me out of my sleep just now. At first, it sounded like a cat fight, but this sound was different. There were high pitched squeals much like a baby pig sounds and harsh gutteral growls. I flew out of bed and grabbed the flashlight, the dogs were up and barking wanting out of their sleeping cages so they could help me investigate. I ignored them.

I followed the screams and growls with my flashlight- the pine tree over the house (the 60 + foot one) in the topmost branches looked like it was having an epileptic seizure. My light caught a pair of glowing red lights, belonging to a very large coon. He was attacking something in the smaller branches over and over. Whatever that something was it was squealing in fright like a pig and he wouldn’t let up.

I shouted but couldn’t do anything. Whatever was being attacked continued to be attacked. I was grateful it wasn’t one of the barn cats up there, as I have heard that raccoons can kill a cat. I didn’t believe they could, not really, at least not until tonight. Then I heard a series of growls t hat raised the hair on the back of my neck. I heard a long thin squeal, then saw the branches moving below the main fight, and after a bit, I heard a thud.

I raced around to the back and stood by the fence seperating the tree from me, at the base lay a possum. She did not look good. 🙁 There was nothing I could do. To go closer meant confronting that angry coon- not me. I saw the possum drag herself under the front fence (I was at the little fence that keeps the dogs out of the area) and last I saw of her, her tail was dissappearing.

I have never seen or heard anything like this before, and we will have been here now for over ten years. I am scared for my cats that are outside, but there is nothing I can do. I don’t know if the coon is rabid, or what that was about, but I am still shaking.