When you're hungry, you'll eat anything...

[AngelikDemonik]

http://news.**********/s/nm/20080122...a_survival_col

CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - A Canadian man survived 96 hours pinned under his all-terrain vehicle in the Rocky Mountains by eating rotting animal carcasses, drinking melted snow and thinking of his grandchildren, he said on Monday.

Ken Hildebrand was trapped face down for four days and three nights in the Crowsnest Pass area of southwestern Alberta, where he tried numerous ways to free himself in below-freezing temperatures.

Throughout the ordeal, he kept wolves and coyotes away by blowing on an emergency whistle.

"I thought of my family and God and that was it," Hildebrand, a paramedic, told Reuters from his hospital bed in Lethbridge, Alberta.

He was finally rescued from the wreck on a little-used trail in the foothills by hikers.

Hildebrand, who declined to give his age, was taken to a hospital in the Crowsnest Pass then transferred to Lethbridge, where he has spent the past eight days being treated for leg injuries and frostbite.

He said he was checking animal traps on January 8 in an area about 80 miles southwest of Calgary, where ranchers had complained of wolves preying on livestock.

The vehicle hit a rock, throwing him off and settling on his legs.

He tried into the night to pry the ATV off with an axe that he had on the vehicle to no avail. He also attempted to lift it up by pounding animal bones into the ground, but his awkward position made that impossible too.

"So I'm in survival mode now," he said. "I had to use what I had at my disposal."

He stayed alive by eating the animals he had collected, although the rotting flesh made him sick, the Calgary Sun newspaper reported.

A hospital official said Hildebrand's injuries are not described as life-threatening, but the newspaper, quoting an Emergency Medical Services official, reported that one leg that was pinned might have to be amputated.

[Underwater Ophelia]

Isn't 96 hours like...only a few days?
I feel like eating rotting flesh isn't necessary at that point.

[Delkaetre]

Originally Posted by Underwater Ophelia

Isn't 96 hours like...only a few days?
I feel like eating rotting flesh isn't necessary at that point.

In cold temperatures, the body burns more energy in trying to keep warm. It may have been that he felt it necessary to eat to try and keep up enough energy to keep approaching predators away and maintain his body temperature.
Not a pleasant experience, I would think.

[ZyklonB]

But take note of the temperature and his surrounding environment. That makes a BIG impact.

*edit* Damn it, same time post!

[raggedyanne]

Point. I think that if he was going to shoot animals it was karma, but that's still a pretty uncomfortable situation. One leg may need to be amputated . . . that sucks.

[HumanePain]

I know it was a serious story, but I could not help smiling in my morbid, twisted thinking when I read he was hungry, eating dead animals and then "thinking of his grandchildren"...so plump and juicy...mmmm grandchildren...with barbecue sauce.

[Underwater Ophelia]

Originally Posted by raggedyanne

Point. I think that if he was going to shoot animals it was karma, but that's still a pretty uncomfortable situation. One leg may need to be amputated . . . that sucks.

Yeah, I don't think so. If karma is a natural rule, wouldn't it observe that humans NATURALLY eat meat?

[bleedingheart344]

I think I'm with Ophelia on this one.

[AngelikDemonik]

I don't think he was shooting the animals. He was clearing traps farmers have set, because the wolves and coyotes were attacking their livestock.

[Tam Li Hua]

Originally Posted by Underwater Ophelia

Isn't 96 hours like...only a few days?
I feel like eating rotting flesh isn't necessary at that point.

Along with the cold thing, unless you have an eating disorder or are a Buddhist monk, most folks are used to eating at least every few hours. To go a few days without food, with nothing else but your own thoughts to distract you...

Egad, talk about horrific! =O

On the other hand, it would make an awesome dark short story....

[Haex]

He was checking traps(that he laid out?) and got trapped himself by his own vehicle... Hmm...

Think I'd find it funny in a similar situation, in a moment of catharsis.

[Lapin]

Is there something wrong with hunting that I'm not aware of? Because I thought humans were omnivores, to judge by our canines, and that it was perfectly natural to hunt and eat meat.

On topic, poor guy. Amputation sucks. Prosthetics are often more uncomfortable with the elderly for some reason. And it will make his life quite a bit more difficult with trap-setting, gathering, hunting, and just generally getting around.

[Kanedawg]

[quote=Lapin]Is there something wrong with hunting that I'm not aware of? Because I thought humans were omnivores, to judge by our canines, and that it was perfectly natural to hunt and eat meat."


I would agree with you. Which is what the wolves and coyotes were doing in order to survive even though the land was given over to cattle ranching. His being trapped so does seem a bit ironic. And losing a limb as a result? That is how many animals end up surviving leghold traps. Including him it would seem.

[Lapin]

I know that. I saw the irony.

I actually feel pretty bad for the predators in that area. They're only doing what comes naturally to them. People need to remember that they're just trying to survive the winter as well. I'm not saying I'd welcome one in my yard, and yes, I would probably shoot at it if it went for my cat or something, but I understand they're only following instinct.

[Kanedawg]

Hey. Wasn't sure if anyone had taken it as far as the trap and loss of limb. Glad that you understand. On that note you're avatar looks just like my beloved house-rabbit... who fortunately stays in the house!

[Kanedawg]

And yes, humans do seem to be omnivirous by nature. There was that study awhile back about different blood types supposedly including those who need to eat meat. A friend of mine of Jewish ancestry has a physical intolerance for any sort of pig meat, and I think it is a generations-long enzyme issue or something.

[Lapin]

Best be keeping it in the house. Rabbits are easy prey for a scarily large number of predators. At least my cats can defend themselves for a bit while I get the gun.

[Kanedawg]

Yeah. I once ended up rescuing a very large owl here in Albuquerque. (Forget what kind of owl.) It had fallen at my brother's house after getting zapped by a power line while trying to get at a neighbor's rabbit hutch, and they figured I would be the only one whacked enough to engage the large scary creature. Took the owl to an animal rescue organization.

[Lapin]

I'd have called them to come get it. Those things bite, and I'm not fond of birds to begin with. Except geese and crows, just because they're really smart little things.

Poor thing. Probably got some brain cells fried, what little an owl has.

[Kanedawg]

He/she behaved well enough although it had some nasty talons. Might have sensed my intention as animals often seem to do. If I recall something like 83 per cent of an owl's cranium is eyeball for taking in low light levels at night. It had damage to a wing and the wildlife rescue people said it would slough off dead cells and then be good as new. On another thread I was talking about how naturalist Konrad Lorenz argued that corvids; crows, ravens, magpies and so on, are the most adaptable and intelligent of birds, moreso than raptors as their way of life is quite narrow. Chock another one up for omnivores. Regarding geese, Lorenz is probably most famous for using them to study imprinting, as you might know.

[Breathless Horror]

Originally Posted by HumanePain

I know it was a serious story, but I could not help smiling in my morbid, twisted thinking when I read he was hungry, eating dead animals and then "thinking of his grandchildren"...so plump and juicy...mmmm grandchildren...with barbecue sauce.

Mwuahahaha! HP, you're deliciously evil!

[Agent17]

Originally Posted by HumanePain

I know it was a serious story, but I could not help smiling in my morbid, twisted thinking when I read he was hungry, eating dead animals and then "thinking of his grandchildren"...so plump and juicy...mmmm grandchildren...with barbecue sauce.

I thought of the exact same thing when I read it.

How many of you would eat someone in a life or death situation? Because I would given the right circumstances. Like if they are a stranger (not a friend).

[LadyStardust]

Originally Posted by Underwater Ophelia

Yeah, I don't think so. If karma is a natural rule, wouldn't it observe that humans NATURALLY eat meat?

Um, according to Buddhist belief (or at least according to the Dalai Lama, in his book "How to Practice"), vegetarianism is encouraged.

[Born Again]

Originally Posted by Underwater Ophelia

Isn't 96 hours like...only a few days?
I feel like eating rotting flesh isn't necessary at that point.

That's the first thing that ran across my mind.

But considering the fact that he didn't know how long he was going to be trapped there, he probably went ahead and took advantage of what food that was available at the time....because it may not be there when his body was really aching for it.

[Beneath the Shadows]

Originally Posted by Delkaetre

In cold temperatures, the body burns more energy in trying to keep warm. It may have been that he felt it necessary to eat to try and keep up enough energy to keep approaching predators away and maintain his body temperature.
Not a pleasant experience, I would think.

It also keeps dead animals from rotting. Especially in Canada in the middle of winter.