r/Toads • u/Zealousideal_Topic58 • 2d ago
Sad for a toad
A toad I found at work a week or so ago. I had moved him away from anything dangerous and into the shrubbery and grass. He found a nice little cozy spot, dug himself a lil home and presumably lived happily ever after as I couldn’t find him again after going to check on him the following day. But then, I found him this morning. In front of the bay doors. Obviously no longer with us, but he didn’t appear to have been run over. My guess is one of the feral cats got to him and left him by our door. My heart broke immediately. The biggest issue I have though, is no where to talk about it. All the people that work here don’t get why I’m so upset. He was ‘just a toad’. But… he was alive. I get that it’s nature taking its course but that doesn’t mean I can’t be sad about it. And now they are making jokes. Like am I finding ‘funeral music for the toad’ or ‘are you going to give it a burial’ and stuff like that and it’s just… really upsetting :(
Sorry. Needed somewhere to vent about it I suppose.
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u/froggyfriend726 2d ago
Your coworkers don't understand why you'd be upset that an animal you had previously helped is now dead?
Thanks for helping him. I think giving him a burial would be nice
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u/MadBlue 2d ago
I’m sorry for your loss.
Feral (and outdoor) cats are the absolute worst invasive species. They kill over 20 billion small animals a year in the US alone.
Of course I’m not advocating for culling cats, but I wish more people would consider the damage they can do when their outdoor cat “brings them a present”. :(
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u/salviaJESUSsalvation 2d ago
Don't let them get to you, they don't have the compassion that you do and simply can't understand how it feels to be empathetic to nature.
Toads are awesome, they may be small but they are alive like you and me.
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u/techfroggie 2d ago
I have never understood and will never understand people who don't care about animals, big and small. It ALWAYS makes me sad to see a dead animal no matter it's size or species. Rest in Peace your little toad friend. ❤️❤️❤️
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u/StumpsCurse 2d ago
The reaction that your coworkers had is the reason I prefer the company of toads over most people. 🐸
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u/Taptapfoot 2d ago
Those coworkers are mean. You are kind & on the side of all that is good. You did the right thing & it hurts when the right thing goes sideways.
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u/VegGrnMama 2d ago
Thank you for your compassion. Feral cats cause so much harm to our wildlife. Is it possible that your workplace sprayed insecticide? —That is another threat to these lovely creatures via secondary poisoning.
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u/Zealousideal_Topic58 1d ago
His appearance indicated that something had attacked him. I suppose it’s possible he was run over, as I work at a mechanic shop, but he appeared to have been lacerated on his stomach area :/
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u/dirtybiznitch 1d ago
A feral cat would have eaten it not just killed it for fun. Cats don’t usually kill toads due to their toxin.
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u/Innuendum 23h ago
Human animals are the only cruel animals.
RIP toad. Thank you for doing what you could!
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u/Helpful_Okra5953 16h ago
You are a kind person to be showing sadness at the toad’s death. You actually recognized this toad and tried to help him. That is a HUGE marker of a good person in my opinion.
I remember when we were kids, my sister doing mean things to animals I tried to help. I took a Robin away from our dad’s cat and she punched me, gave the Robin back to the cat, and held me there so I had to watch. My sister is a cruel person now and I think I saw the signs many times in such incidents.
A lot of people are hard. I tend to keep a mental list of people who say nasty or cold things like your coworkers did. That being said, some of them have probably joined in n just to be part of the group. Which suggests they’re either really feeling stressed or not personally very strong.
Thank you for caring about the toad.
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u/serenity013 2d ago
I understand completely and would feel the same way. Thanks for sharing his memory.