If you’re planning a hike along a path called “Bumblebee Ridge“, don’t wear flowery lotion or perfume. Yes, I did it and I won’t do it again!

It was our 6th wedding anniversary and we were hiking in FDR State Park near Callaway Gardens in Georgia. We’d chosen the Wolf Den Loop trail which passes over Bumblebee Ridge. There wasn’t a bee in sight. In fact, we hadn’t encountered many bugs at all which was unusual in Georgia.

Then I saw it, a solitary wasp flying erratically as if he were drunk. Particularly I noticed his long legs dangling as he flew sideways in a zigzag pattern toward me. Since he wasn’t making a straight beeline at me I wasn’t worried. I figured he’d fly on past as bees usually do. I don’t worry when gardening around bees. As long as I leave them to their flowery pursuits they don’t bother me.

This wasp, however, was different. I was on his radar. Who knew how far he had flown in response to my lilac body lotion? Lilac flowers have a powerful scent and they aren’t common in Georgia. Perhaps the wasp wanted to investigate this new flower and found a human intruder instead.

Once he zeroed in on me, he flew toward my face and before I knew it he had bounced off my forehead as if by accident. I didn’t know it at the time but wasps sometimes attempt to warn you away if you get too close to their nest by head butting you. This is a warning shot and doesn’t usually involve a stinger. My wasp apparently didn’t read the Patrol Wasp Handbook because he stung me as part of his warning.

Thankfully he flew away and didn’t bring his buddies for a more forceful warning. Maybe we were headed away from the beehive and he figured he done his job. It’s a good thing because if we’d been seriously attacked there wasn’t much chance of us running away. We hadn’t chosen an easy trail. The Wolf Den Loop trail was riddled with tree roots, rocky streams and sometimes required a bit of climbing. It wasn’t the sort of trail you could make a run for it on.

Since then I’ve learned a few rules of navigating wasps and bees.

• First and foremost, don’t enter their realm smelling like a flower. Bees are attracted to flowers and if you smell like a flower you might as well send out the challenge to “Come and get me!”
• Don’t swat at wasps and bees. Swatting just pisses them off which incites them to sting you whereas they might not have originally planned to.
• If a bee or wasp bounces off of you or bumps into you, get the hell out of there quick. It means you are near a beehive and it is a warning shot. If you don’t heed the warning his buddies will gang up on you to send a more painful message.
• If you are attacked by a swarm of bees, run as fast and far as you can. Wasps and bees can fly faster than you can run. However, the farther you get from their hive the more likely they’ll lose interest in stinging you. They might follow you a long way so just keep on running until they’re gone. If you can, try to get out of the open. Look for cover but don’t jump into the water. Get into a car or building and close the door to limit how many bees can get at you. Jumping into the water will not protect you. If they are serious about the attack they will hover over the water waiting for you to come up for air and sting you more. You can’t hold your breath forever.
• Protect your head. Cover your head and face with your shirt or anything else that’s handy. Your head will be the prime target so you’ll definitely want to protect it. Remember, wasps can sting you over and over again.
• Once you are safe, get the stingers out. Scrape them out with a credit card, fingernail or similar object. This is preferable to pinching, pulling or tweezers. First aid can include ice, antihistamines, pain relievers, washing the sting and treating it with an antibiotic ointment. If you are allergic to bee stings, seek medical help immediately. If you have access to an EpiPen (usually found in allergy kits) and are experiencing an allergic reaction, consider using the EpiPen until you can get medical help.

Tags: attacked by a bee, attacked by a wasp, attacked by bees, bee, bee hive, bee sting, beehive, beesting, bumblebee, bumblebee ridge, callaway gardens, fdr park, fdr state park, georgia, head butt, stinging wasp, stung by a wasp, swarm of bees, wasp, wasp flying sideways, wasp sting, wolf den loop

Category: Wild Kingdom

We were never bothered by flies in the house. Our dog Gypsy Rose could catch a fly in midair. Catching bugs, especially flying bugs, was one of her favorite pastimes. She could also catch wasps.

The first time our dog tried to catch a wasp I stopped her, afraid that she would get stung. Hovering like an overprotective mother I would intervene. Wasps in the house were an uncommon occurrence so I didn’t expect to encounter this again right away.

The next day brought more wasps. So did the day after and many days to follow. The wasps kept coming. Apparently they had some secret door into the house.

Gypsy Rose was mesmerized by these loud, buzzing creatures. Flies had always been a favorite treat and the wasps were bigger and noisier. She yearned for the hunt and I was growing tired of being the bad guy who kept spoiling her joy so one day I decided to just let her be. Gypsy Rose would get stung and she’d learn not to mess with wasps again. That would be the end of it.

To my utter disbelief she caught the wasp in midflight, pulling her lips back from her teeth and snapping the wasp in half. Several quick snaps of her teeth chopped the wasp to pieces before it could extend the stinger and the pieces disappeared down her throat as happy little dog treats. I was in awe. Surely this was a fluke.

The days passed and our dog caught wasp after wasp, thoroughly enjoying this tasty new morsel. I developed a morbid fascination watching her accomplish this daring deed. If she got stung it did not faze her because for all the rest of her years, Gypsy Rose happily caught wasps and ate them. Gypsy Rose was our bug catcher.

Dakota on the other hand preferred much bigger game. Dakota was an Australian Cattle Dog / Husky mix. These were two dog breeds from some of the wildest, untamed territories known to man. Cattle Dogs were bred to herd cattle out on the open range, running for hours on end to keep the cattle in line, risking their lives when a frisky cow would try to kick them away. Siberian Huskies were bred for the wilds of Alaska. Neither was a dainty breed.

While Dakota would happily tackle a bug on the floor and eat it, she could not master the art of catching flies in midair as Gypsy Rose had done. She preferred the chase of a squirrel or chipmunk, pursuits that fed her need to run fast and hard in the great outdoors.

More often than not she ignored my calls to come in. The Call of the Wild was an aphrodisiac full of irresistable temptations. Dakota was a house dog who loved the outdoors. The treats I offered to lure her back inside paled in comparison to the wonders that Mother Nature offered.

One particular morning I let her out for her final morning potty, the potty that would hold her the rest of the day while we were at work. I let her have a few extra minutes outdoors while I prepared my lunch. When I called for Dakota to come back in I was answered with silence. Something had captured her attention again. I called and called and several minutes passed before she finally came trotting up the stairs carrying something in her mouth. To my great surprise Dakota laid a four inch round turtle on the floor at my feet, her face alit with pure joy. He was tucked tight into his shell and appeared to be unharmed.

“Look at the really cool thing I found in the woods!” her eyes seemed to say. “Can I have it please? Can I keep it?” Joy and innocence shined in her eyes as she shared her greatest moment with me.

Being more focused on getting to work I didn’t stop to think how I should handle this important moment in our dog’s life. I picked up the turtle and gently told her no, she couldn’t have the turtle, then I took it outdoors and let it go free and off to work I went.

The event haunted me. I’d missed a golden opportunity. I got halfway up the street when I had to turn around. All I could think about was how I should have taken pictures of Dakota and the turtle before taking it away. I should have taken a picture of the turtle up next to something to demonstrate its size. I should have taken a photo of Dakota’s happy face, of her holding the turtle, of the turtle on the ground at her feet. I should have preserved this special moment to remember it always. This was an important moment for her, sharing this big find. I had to go back. I had to take pictures.

I turned the car around and went back home with the intention of bringing the turtle back in for a couple of quick photos then setting it loose again. A five minute delay, that’s all I needed. But there was one giant dilemma: the turtle was gone. I searched high and low for that turtle, all thru the woods and across the yard, circling wider and wider. Surely he couldn’t have disappeared so quickly! How far could a turtle have possibly have gotten? I searched and searched to no avail. The turtle was nowhere to be found.

All the way to work I tormented myself over an additional mistake I’d made in reacting to Dakota with the turtle. I realized that I’d handled the whole affair totally wrong. Dakota had brought that turtle to me having no idea I’d take it away from her. She’d never attempt to bring another in. From that moment forward she simply wouldn’t come when I called her. I’d worked so hard in trying to train her to come in from outside on command and now I’d sent the message loud and clear that to keep her tasty dog treat she’d have to stay outdoors and ignore my calls. We’d been struggling with this stage of her dog training.

What should I have done? I’m no dog expert but I believe I should have given her something in trade. The moment I took the turtle away I should have given her a desireable dog treat in its place. That’s how we taught her what she could chew in the house. We traded legal dog chews for illegal objects.

This tactic had worked well and Dakota had learned not to chew anything except what we gave her to chew. Rather than focusing totally on the negative, the NO, we were swapping it with a positive. We didn’t just punish her by taking something away and leaving her frustrated, we offered a replacement to entice her to make a good decision.

Had I traded for the turtle I would have sent the message that the turtle was not okay but that I would give her something enjoyable in its place. Instead I sent the message that she’d better go find a hidey hole if she wanted to keep her turtles. If mama calls you’d better run and hide!

Tags: ausky, australian cattle dog, bee, bug catcher, call of the wild, dog, dog catches flies, dog catches wasps, dog catching a fly, dog catching a wasp, dog chews, dog doesn't come, dog doesn't come when called, dog eating a fly, dog eating a wasp, dog eats a turtle, dog eats flies, dog eats wasps, dog got stung, dog prefers outdoors, dog stung, dog training, dog training tips, dog treats, teaching a dog not to chew, turtle, wasp

Category: Dog Tails of Adventure