Photo: DPA

Drunk badger blocks traffic

Published: 8 Jul 09 09:01 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/society/20090708-20453.html

Road kill reported by a driver in the German state of Lower Saxony turned out to be a drunk badger taking a nap, police in Goslar reported on Wednesday morning.

Late on Monday night, a driver reported what he thought was a dead animal on county road 32 near Groß Döhren to police.

But when officers arrived on the scene to remove the traffic obstruction, they were stunned to find that the animal was not dead or injured.

“Right in the middle of the street there was a badger sitting and staring at the officers incredulously,” a police statement said.

The officers quickly discovered that the animal – which was not frightened by their presence – had been snacking on the overripe cherries on a nearby tree.

“The animal’s belly digested the fruit to alcohol and the badger was, as the saying goes, ‘drunk as a blackbird’,” the statement said, adding that the little mammal was also suffering from “diarrhoea containing cherry pits.”

Officers directed the badger off of the road, where he could “sleep off his intoxication in a meadow.”

The Local (news@thelocal.de)

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14:42 July 8, 2009 by HerrDinksbumps
That's one lucky badger.
14:57 July 8, 2009 by Kuzzer
Lucky he was a "happy" drunk - a "punchy" badger would be a right nasty piece of work...

K
21:21 July 8, 2009 by Coillte
This is just too cute!!! Nice to read a happy ending for a change ;)
21:50 July 8, 2009 by HerrDinksbumps
And who knows what kind of hell he'd been raising before passing out in the street??..
22:24 July 10, 2009 by jozhik
The animal?s belly digested the fruit to alcohol and the badger was, as the saying goes, ?drunk as a blackbird?
In English we would say "drunk as a skunk". Does "drunk as a blackbird" in sound particularly pithy when translated into German? I can't think of a translation that rolls smoothly off the tongue, but my command of German nuance isn't all that great.

Or was that supposed to be an ironic bit of humor?
15:04 July 11, 2009 by Mapleleafdude
If the cops are real nice they can give him a bowl of peanuts and a mint before he goes home to get a whooping from his better half.

I can see him waltzing into the "den" -dont say anything I've a splitting headache and feel like I've been hit by a truck-
15:11 July 11, 2009 by NoBullJim
And where does one find these "overripe cherries"?
18:19 July 18, 2009 by joey.carbonet
i've noticed an increase in drunk animal sitings lately.

the trend is somewhat disconcerting.
18:32 July 18, 2009 by NoBullJim
At least their not driving. Or are they?
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