And then there are the red squirrels...
As a child in the Adirondacks, one of the favorite summer pastimes was to tame the chipmunks so they would take a peanut from you. Over the course of a month or so we got them tame enough that they would climb your leg, go up your back and take a peanut from behind your ear- or sometimes the little buggers figured out that I had them in my shirt pocket and would dive right in.

We also had red squirrels up there, rather aggressive and quick-moving little bastards who hate chipmunks. But as chipmunks prefer the ground and the squirrels prefer the trees, they have a sort of uneasy truce.

One summer when I was about 12 my neighbor had managed to tame a red squirrel to climb up on his shoulder, so I took to feeding him too. This was fun, as he acted differently from the chipmunks, and the novelty value was pretty good.

I was doing this one day and had the squirrel on my shoulder busily chewing up the shell of the peanut I had given him when I felt something on the back of my right leg. The thought "oh shit" had just enough time to form in my mind when the squirrel and the chipmunk saw each other.

You know how in the old Looney Toons they showed a fight between a cat and a dog as a sort of tornado blur with claws popping out of the cloud at random places? Picture that happening on my back and chest as the two of them chased each other around my body.

I screamed and they both took off, leaving me with dozens of scratches and an aversion to red squirrels.

Little bastards...
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 13:46, 9 replies)

I am now going to call you Grizzly Adams.
Friend to all the animals of the forest.
( girlinthehole, Fri 25 Apr 2008, 13:49, closed)

Actually
I do have another good one to tell about the deer up there. They too can be downright rude...
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 13:51, closed)

I think subconciously
I always thought of you like Grizzly Adams as your a bit hairy and you like cutting down trees.

Tell the deer story! Tell the deer story!
(Bazongaloid, Fri 25 Apr 2008, 13:53, closed)

Well, maybe a little.
My hair is a lot shorter at the moment, though, and my beard is trimmed short. And I live in the suburbs.

But for a fact animals do tend to let me closer than most.

What's really funny, though, is when a deer gets annoyed with me and stomps and snorts. I respond by maintaining eye contact while stomping and blowing raspberries back at them. They get thoroughly agitated at that point and get stompier and snortier, so I keep it up until they're about ready to truly attack. Then I laugh, and that confuses them and they stomp off in a huff.
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 14:32, closed)

Red squirrels
We've got 3 (yes, 3) separate groups in the North East of England dedicated to preserving red quirrels. 3 separate groups, all working to the same objective, and all chasing the same sources funding to do it.

I say working to the same objective; one is actively trapping and killing greys, one is educating the public about the indigenous reds and tellin joe public to keep an eye out for them, and the other is doing what it bloody well pleases...

I did the grant application for the first one...
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 15:04, closed)

I own a Havahart trap
that I am going to use to catch the squirrels that are in my yard here, as they seem to be driving our dog insane. I figure it will involve several steps:

The Baiting of The Squirrel. I need to find something that they cannot resist- I'll probably use peanut butter.

The Catching of The Squirrel. Pretty self-explanatory.

The Taunting of The Squirrel. Picking up the trap I will point at it and laugh. The word "owned" may or may not be used, depending.

The Driving of The Squirrel. I'll need to get the little bastard far from my house- I figure Rockwood Park might be a good new home for it.

The Launching of The Squirrel. I'll point the trap at a tree and cautiously open the end farthest from me. I'll bet he gets some serious air time on his way toward the tree.

At this point I will have a beer in honor of The Squirrel as I reset the trap for the next one...
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 15:17, closed)

If it's reds you're catching
you could make a fortune shipping them over to Blighty - protected species, fast dying out because of the greys, national icon, North East England and Scotland the last remaining populations of any significance, etc...

Would probably be quicker than trying to eradicate the greys, too.
( Davros' Granddad a voice of calm reason in a world of spastics., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 15:39, closed)

Unfortunately, no.
Here in Virginia I have grey squirrels, the fat lazy variety that are nowhere near as entertaining. My intent is to catch them, show them to the dog, then get them as far from my house as I can manage. There's a nest of them in a neighbor's tree. I want to see if I can empty it.

Although it is fun to watch the squirrel sit in a branch while the dog tries to run up the tree...
( The Resident Loon Not a demographic. Do not measure., Fri 25 Apr 2008, 15:51, closed)

there are still red squirrels near me
in formby. i see them at least once a year when i go up there with the kids. there are rare natterjack toads and crested newts as well.
( Smash Monkey lowering the tone of the whole internet, Fri 25 Apr 2008, 15:53, closed)