I caught a squirrel today!

[Kajinku]

I was walking in the garden when suddenly I see a squirrel eating a nut or something at about 2 meters from me! :x

He was just sitting there, very calm, very cute. When I finally realised it was a squirrel I made a few small steps and sat next to him. He stopped eating, looked at me, and continued his meal. I first thought he was sick or something, but what surprised me is that he was eating. Sick animals, especially wild animals don't eat when they are sick... apparently he was fine, no blood, no weird angled legs, nothing.

Then my cat came, fixing the squirrel, ready to jump on him. I took (!!) the squirrel, which was much easier then I thought and put him in a cavia cage, which belonged to my cavia, a couple of years ago. May he rest in peace.
Anyway, now I have a very, very calm squirrel that eats nuts and drinks water. I don't know what to do with him.
If I set him free, he won't survive a whole day with all those predators (buzzards, cats, dogs, ...).

My possible conclusions:

1) He escaped from his previous owner and doesn't know what it's like to be in the wild. That could explain a lot. Even though it's illegal to have a squirrel as a pet in Europe.

2) He ate poison :(

I called a vet, and she didn't know it either. She advised me to keep him inside for the night and see how he is tomorrow.
He's in the garage for the moment... I just hope he'll be OK. And I still don't know what to do with him after that.

Suggestions and ideas are welcome.
This was my adventure today. ;)

[Law]

it's illiegal to keep squirrels for pets in Europe!! i didn't know that. there goes my childhood dreams of having a pet squirrel.

[Alex]

what did you name him/her?

[Kajinku]

Well, it is illegal in the whole Benelux, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Finland, Sweden and the UK. So I think it's just illegal in Europe, period. Wild squirrels that is.

"You may not catch them or try to catch them"
"You may not disturb them"
"You may not touch their nest"

These are a few rules about wild squirrels, hedgehogs and many other small wild animals.
Some shops sell Australian, Canadian and other species of squirrels though, which is still legal.

[Ryall]

get rid of it... they are disease infested - Hanta Virus (which would prob kill you), Rabies (which would just suck to get those shots), Black Death (you should know what would happen...), and I could go on.... these animals really do carry these diseases (hence the law). GET RID OF IT. I'm not saying kill it - I love animals, but let it go. If it gets eaten by something else, it is natures way of saying "Game Over, you loose"

BTW - I am an Environmental Science student so dont think I am blowing smoke up your a s s.

Peace

[Kajinku]

Originally posted by Alex
what did you name him/her?

Oh, it's a him allright. :P
*If* I keep him, probably "Scrat", like the squirrel in the movie Ice Age. :)

@ Ryal: That's what I was afraid for... I think it's strange that the vet didn't say anything about that.

EDIT :: By the way, I *always* used gloves to pick him up. I think that if he's allright tomorrow, I'll set him free.

[Law]

aaahhhh that explains the rules. well now i just have to pick which country.
Australia or Canada
Australia or Canada
.......

[Ryall]

Originally posted by Kajinku
@ Ryal: That's what I was afraid for... I think it's strange that the vet didn't say anything about that.

I also find that odd..... but I wouldn't consider it something to bet my health on. :-\ Esp. since I doubt (well I know, cuz they couldn't afford the tests) they tested for much - they prob didnt test for anything beyond its physical health (I am sure they did just that).

Peace

[Ryall]

oh yeah, but yes I would think a VET would inform you of the dangers..... then again, their job is to determine the health and fix those cute little guys... not know what diseases are endemic in their populations... though they prob should.

[Kajinku]

Well, I didn't wait for the next day... I set the squirrel free this evening, in our wood. He didn't bother to climb up the tree I put him on. He jumped on the ground and stayed there. I tried to scare him, but he didn't care. He ran away after a couple of minutes. I feel bad for him.

We get sick or injured animals now and then... most of the time they die the next day or something. Catching a wild animal without too many problems isn't "natural".

[fester8542]

My friend marie works with this lady that has a pet "wild" squirrel.

She was in the same situation, but it turned out that it was not sick, it just liked people. It comes in and out of her house but basically lives in the wild. She feeds it and pets it and all that good stuff.

I hvae been hearing stores for over two years about it and the lady is yet to get rabies.

I dunno man... good luck

[Mik3]

Originally posted by Kajinku
no blood, no weird angled legs, nothing.

angled legs, lol
I LOVE SQUIRELLS I WOULD HAVE ONE EVEN IF THEY ARE ILLEAGLE! I LOVE SQUIRELLS!

[!*@&]

i am with ryal just get rid of it
all what he says is true plus u dont know if it was for someone or it was wild. speeking of catching an animal i once cuaght a wild frog in Eygept but it took me and my brother like 3 hours to catch only one. but it does not look like kajinku's it was fat, rounded and stupid.
ok later

[Mik3]

Originally posted by !*@&
but it does not look like kajinku's it was fat, rounded and stupid.
ok later
LOL

[lostinbeta]

I used to have squirrels for pets when I was younger, we used to let them roam the house, but we always HAD to let them go at a certain age because if you keep them they tend to start to get a bit violent and destructive.

So I recommend just letting him go.

[johnBlaze]

I have two sugargliders....they are awesome, i love them. "Marley" and "Ziggy" they are kinda like flying squirel's, but they are not rodents. Anyway..just thought I would tell ya's. I have to get rid of them b/c I am moving :*( I'm so sad.

[mjULTRA]

squirrel meat makes a great pizza topping!

[reverendflash]

lol!

I was just about say this sounds like a Cajun potluck...

If it's a Varmint, they'll catch it and grill it...

aaaaaaheeeeeeeeeee!

Revhttp://www.aulman.com/rev.gif

[RelandR]

...and if it grows close to the ground and is leafy - it's Greens...

Squirrel FreakaZaay N' Greens - Lawday Lawday

[Kitiara]

There's a lot of squirrels living near my parents house. They come into the gardens all the time to look for food. :)

My mum has taken to leaving peanuts out for them on the patio, and they come in and eat them. The problem came when they quickly worked out the deal and if there were no peanuts out there, they'd hop over to the window and start knocking until someone fed them. :)

They're not tame in any way, they run away most times people are around, but they do know how to exploit humans. :)

[reverendflash]

I saw a special on the brown squirrel of England... it was a study to see how quickly they adapt.

Very clever little fellows figured out all of the obstical courses real quickly.

raccoons are very similar in that way.

Revhttp://www.aulman.com/rev.gif

[Kitiara]

Except we call them grey squirrels. :)

There was a beer commercial many years back for Carling Black Label, where a squirrel ran an assault course to get to some food. Apparently this footage was of a real experiment set up to test their intelligence. Didn't take them long. :)

[Kajinku]

Yeah, I see squirrels every day here during spring & summer. We have a wood behind and around the back yard + a pond. As a matter of fact, ducks are erm... making babies at this very moment. ;)

The squirrels don't really come near the house in the daytime. It's during the evening and around 4 or 5 am that you might see one on the wall or something. During the summer we get a lot of hedgehogs that are looking for food near the house. It's fun to watch them eat. :) Cute animals... but those too are *always* full of worms, ticks and other parasitic insects.

[Kitiara]

We get hedgehogs too. They also eat the peanuts left out for the squirrels. :) My mum has taken to buying proper hedgehog food from the pet shop now, to keep them happy...

[Kajinku]

Yeah, we used to do this too. Don't give them milk though, it gives them... erm... liquid poo. ;)

[Kitiara]

Water is best. :)

Now I think about it, my parents back garden is teaming with wildlife. Not least my dad when he finds the squirrels have dug up his plants to bury their food... :P

[andr.in]

cool! Once I saw a squirrel chased by a crow or a raven or sth on the street! And I just chased the birdy away and the squirrel jumped on a tree... end of story!

[Kajinku]

OK, I don't want to sound like a nature geek here, but was it a magpie? You know, the long-tailed black & white bird with a chattering call. Hm? ;)

'Cause by what I'm seeing in the garden sometimes, squirrels and magpies are not best friends. They actually fight and all, which is a weird scene.

[andr.in]

man I have no idea! I think it was just a black crow or something! I was mostly paying attention to the cute lil squirrel running away from the big awful bird than the big hairy awful birdy! :P

[Kajinku]

You're a hero. ;)

[andr.in]

lol! :P Maybe the crow returned after I was gone and caught the lil thing after all! :)