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One very aggressive turkey has been terrorizing a neighborhood for years.
In the summer of 2021, 41-year-old Rachael Gross was climbing the steps of her Coon Rapids home when a turkey dropped from her rood and forced her to the ground. Gross began asking the state's wildlife authorities that evening to relocate the wild turkey, but they have declined to do so. Now, the turkey has set up camp on Gross' lawn.
Gross recently told the Washington Post the turkey has placed her and her neighbor's lives in turmoil. It gobbles through the night, nips at her car's tires, and glares at her through her kitchen window. She now wears safety goggles when she leaves her home. Gross also said she carries a broom, a golf club and a water bottle for self-defense. Other residents have also starting wielding golf clubs around the neighborhood. “I’m pretty stressed out and pretty anxious all the time,” Gross said. “I can’t even have peace.”
The turkey first appeared in the summer of 2021 with seven others, but when the rest of the pack departed a few weeks later, it stayed. It apparently became attached to Gross, and would follow her on drives to Chipotle and to her work at a local nursing home. “It thinks I’m his mom or something,” Gross said.
Gross said the turkey typically sleeps on her roof or on a tree outside her home. According to Gross, her neighbor's blame her for the turkey's chaotic presence in the neighborhood. “I’m so exhausted,” she said. “I hope this gets a solution and somebody comes to help, so I don’t have to deal with this anymore. And so that we can all have a peaceful summer with our kids and our grandkids and actually have a barbecue and just relax.”