In the quiet town of Boerne, Texas, just outside San Antonio, one man’s peaceful morning took a sharp turn into the bizarre when a massive vulture swooped down on his 6-pound chihuahua. Harold Greeley, 61, says the bird was so big that at first, he thought it was a drone—or a shadow.
“I looked up and saw this huge thing circling low,” he said. “Next thing I know, it’s dive-bombing my backyard. It had eyes on Cinnamon.”
Cinnamon, his loyal chihuahua of eight years, was sniffing around a garden hose when the bird struck. “It came in fast—talons out, wings flared. I didn’t have time to think. I just grabbed the nearest rake and went after it.”
Harold says the bird tried to lift Cinnamon, but couldn’t get a grip. “She was yelping, I was screaming, and the buzzard flapped off into a tree like nothing happened. But the way it looked at me… it was personal.”
Cinnamon escaped with a few scratches and a serious case of side-eye for the sky. Harold? He’s keeping a rake by the back door now.
Black Vultures: Protected, Persistent, and Pushing Boundaries
What Harold saw is likely a black vulture—a native species in the southern U.S. that’s been making headlines for all the wrong reasons. Unlike the more familiar turkey vulture, black vultures are bulkier, more aggressive, and not at all shy about wandering into human spaces.
“They’re not out here hunting dogs like hawks or eagles might,” said Dr. Margo Teague, a wildlife ecologist at Texas A&M. “But if a vulture is hungry and your pet is small, injured, or just unlucky… yes, it’s possible they’ll go after it.”
Black vultures can have a wingspan of up to 1.6 meters [5.5 feet] and are known to scavenge livestock, garbage, and roadkill. Lately, though, they’ve been popping up on porches, rooftops, and in rare cases—like Harold’s—right in backyards.
And here’s the twist: they’re federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. That means it’s illegal to trap, harm, or kill one without a special permit. So even if they’re scaring your pets—or your children—you can’t just take one out with a BB gun.
Backyard Defenses: What Locals Are Doing
With legal options limited, some Texans are getting creative. One Boerne resident hangs strips of shiny aluminum foil in her trees. Another swears by motion-activated sprinklers. Harold’s setup includes a leaf blower, a Bluetooth speaker, and a playlist of heavy metal. “They don’t like Metallica,” he said. “They flinch at Enter Sandman.”
Wildlife officials recommend removing food sources (such as garbage and pet food), trimming tall trees where vultures roost, and scaring them off with noise or movement. But the birds are smart and bold.
One woman in New Braunfels reported a group of vultures dismantling her pool float collection “like angry toddlers.” Another man found a nest of buzzards living in his unused hunting blind.
“This isn’t normal bird behavior,” said Dr. Teague. “But then again, these aren’t normal birds.”
When Nature Feels Like a Horror Movie
For now, Harold is keeping Cinnamon close, the rake closer, and his eyes on the skies. “I’ve lived in Texas all my life. I’ve seen snakes in the kitchen and coyotes on the driveway. But this buzzard? This thing wanted my dog. That’s a first.”
And if that doesn’t feel like something out of a low-budget horror movie, we don’t know what does.
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