Hawk snatches then drops small dog

BY Greg Golding

A resident who lives near Canyon Lake Dr. North and Red Setter posted a message on January 7 (Canyon Lake Lounge Facebook page) that a “huge red-tailed hawk” picked up her 13-pound dachsund from her backyard. After being challenged by her husband and 8-lb. Chihuahua, the hawk finally let go of the doxie.

The owner reported the dog had cuts to his face from the talons but both dogs were safe. She said she had noticed two hawks hunting in the area and the one hawk was continuing to watch her yard.

There were several comments on this post about other pet owners who had heard or seen similar incidents take place with hawks and owls. Melba Brooks took time to do some research and reported the following:

“I read that this particular hawk first soars above to see if there is adequate prey before taking up residence. While performing such act, they store exactly where they have spotted prey for future feedings . . . They use two attack methods, which are the swoop-and-grab and the perching on a fence/tree and patiently awaiting for prey to re-appear after storing such previous sightings in their memory banks. They have keen eyesight, with the ability to spot a grasshopper at 100 yards away. Most shocking is that they are not afraid of humans and will still pursue an attack with a human only two feet from their prey.”