[austlar1]

In my part of Austin (SW) we see deer, coyotes, rabbits, raccoons, armadillos, skunks, red fox, squirrels, and, every once in a while, a bobcat. Supposedly there are feral pigs out and about, but I've yet to see one around this part of town. I've had a couple of coyote encounters (they took off running thankfully) when out with my dogs. The coyotes kick up a lot of racket at night down in a greenbelt below my house. Lots of yipping and wailing. I rather like the sounds. My dog Mike had more than one encounter with a skunk. Not fun for Mike. Not fun for me. A few different kinds of hawks are regularly circling in the sky year round. Lots of other birds as well, with grackles being the most obvious and noisiest. We also have rattlesnakes, copperheads, water moccasins, and coral snakes. Lots of dogs get snake bites in this part of the country. I expect to see a lot of wildlife this summer since it is so very dry and hot. They are going to be foraging for scarce food and sources of water, so they are likely to come a lot closer to homes than they otherwise might.