Nippit

Over the last few days we've had clear skies. Night-time temperatures have dipped to a cool -7 Celcius and the days have been brilliant and crisp. That description might also have applied to the washing on our line, though a metaphor involving armour-plating would maybe be more appropriate, if I could only think of one.

The photos I've (hopefully) posted with this blog show a beast that I shot last Friday. I had stalked into a group of about 100 animals and was sorting through them when I noticed a large yeld hind with a 'protuberance' on her belly. From that distance, and the fact it was shaded, it looked for all the world like she had some of her guts hanging out. (Although she did seem remarkable calm about it. Certainly more calm than I would have been!) Anyway, it was that that put her top of my 'hit list'.

When the smoke cleared and I walked up to her I was surprised to see that it wasn't her guts hanging out but this large area of...er...carbuncles (for want of a better word.) It has to be said that it's not terribly unusual to see one or two of these things on an animal but never so many or so big.

I had to skin that area of her belly to gralloch her and found nothing unusual under her skin except a slighly enhanced blood supply. Furthermore there was nothing out of the ordinary with any of her lymph nodes or internal organs. In fact, she was in really good shape- apart from being dead.

I'd be interested to know if anyone else has come across this condition, or what causes it. And, yes, I realise that one of my pics makes her look remarkably like a kangaroo!