Thursday, April 02, 2009

Caught!

Well, after 3 days Jake has outwitted a squirrel. We've had 2 days of false alarms (trap launched, no squirrel) and one of no activity. But today, after a long day at work, Jake could finally claim VICTORY. One little, furry beast was in the trap when we got home.


It's a zoo here right now. The squirrel is freaking out and the dog is going crazy. CRAZY. She's been chasing squirrels all winter and now she is able to come nose to nose. And did you know that squirrels growl? Today I learned that when in a cage face to face with a black lab, a squirrel will growl.


Next comes the question of what to do with the little bugger. First, let me say...I HATE rodents (When I was 5 and saw a rat on the woodpile in our back yard, I screamed so loud that my dad came running out of the house with a shotgun). I hate rodents and really, squirrels are rats with tails. That said, I really don't want to KILL them - which is Jake's first solution. If he had it his way, he would be shooting them with a bebe gun. But, I don't want all those deaths on Jake's conscience - or that karma at our house. So, tonight we are going to try the relocation method. Hopefully that will work out best for all parties.

On the topic of squirrel relocation....someone (on the internet - the source of all things true) said that you have to drive them 30 miles away, so they don't find there way back. I would like to ask that person, how they know it's the same squirrel. Are these people tagging squirrels to identify which ones are on their property? I've personally seen 5 squirrels at once in my yard...they all look the freaking same. We're going to take this squirrel to the park 5 miles away, and hope it's not industrious enough to run back 5 miles (crossing roads and a river, I might add).

3 comments:

SnarfySnee said...

My murine relocation program has a radius of less than 10 miles, and I don't think they are coming back. I figure, they have got to pass something better along the way, and if they are determined enough to make it back to my house, then they probably deserve to be here!

Rae said...

My thoughts exactly.

Sue Isbell said...

I remember personally you wanting to see a marmot up close and personal, but you never tagged that one, or wait was that a mormon? Love ya Aunt Sue