SQUIRREL APPRECIATION DAY Is January 21: Are You Ready?

Today is squirrel appreciation day. While everyone can celebrate squirrels in their own way, we wanted to point you to some useful resources around the Web to get you started.

First off, if you're short on time -- and who isn't these days? -- there's always the quick Squirrel Appreciation Day e-card route.

There's also a guide to Squirrel Appreciation Day activities at eHow -- here's a teaser for that:

1. Check local television listings for documentaries about squirrels. The National Geographic Channel and Animal Planet are likely to have a special presentation.

2. Look out your window. Squirrels are everywhere. What can you learn about squirrels just by watching them in your own backyard?

3. Read a book about squirrels and their natural habitat.

4. Research squirrels online. You'll find several sites dedicated just to our furry friends. Did you know, for instance, that there are 365 species of squirrels?

Hey, by the way, that's a squirrel for every day of the year. Do the math.

Maybe you're wondering where Squirrel Appreciation Day came from. Well, it came from Asheville, N.C.:

Christy Hargrove from Asheville, North Carolina started Squirrel Appreciation Day on January 21, 2001. Christy is a wildlife rehabilitator in North Carolina, and is is affiliated with the Western North Carolina Nature Center.

Comments

[robXdion]

02:18 PM on 01/22/2009

Squirrels are funny lil critters. Ground squirrels in CA can be fed by hand and squirrels in TX will play chase games with you. Too bad my uncles like to eat 'em though :(

[drkazmd65]

12:54 PM on 01/22/2009

Do they taste like (or better than) Chicken?

[Ray46]

12:27 PM on 01/22/2009

Squirrel Information and Recipes
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/martin/wildrecipes/index.php

Broiled Squirrel
Buttermilk Squirrel Pie
Squirrel Pot Pie
Squirrel in Dutch Oven
Squirrel or Rabbit in Crock Pot
Squirrel Fricassee
Squirrel with Rice and Potatoes
Jim Graham's Tar Heel Brunswick Stew
Squirrel Casserole

[bulldog6]

11:34 AM on 01/22/2009

I, too am a squirrel-hater, especially because I have about nine or ten bird feeders around our cottage, and they're annoying and destructive.

What works best for my feeders is cayenne pepper. For hanging feeders, I spray WD40 on the roof and liberally apply ground pepper. Usually, if a tree-rat jumps from a tree onto the roof of the feeder, it won't stay long, once the pepper gets onto their paws. Of course, rain and snow requires reapplying frequently. For a couple of years, I tried the method of mixing the pepper with the birdseed, but it wasn't as efficacious.

[dysfunctional]

04:58 AM on 01/22/2009

I've got a whole bunch of flying squirrels living in my attic, and I'd like to find a way to humanely get them to move back to the woods around the house. They seem to be most active between 5 and 6 AM, rolling hickory nuts and acorns around the attic. They are very annoying, but also very cute. One got into the house last week, and it took a while to shoo it out. My dogs often kill grey squirrels, but they didn't know what to do with the little animal ping-pong ball that jumped from one piece of furniture to the next.

[bradygirl9]

11:42 AM on 01/22/2009

I love flying squirrels. I tried to save one that was hurt but the vet said nothing could be done. I live in MD how far are you from there. I would try to help you with them

[mlaiuppa]

01:42 AM on 01/22/2009

And they're all named Petey. My Mother told me that.

And if you look closely, they all have arthritis.

[doriath22]

08:43 PM on 01/21/2009

Awwwright! Squirrels are terribly underrated (as food)

[kittyarmy]

07:50 PM on 01/21/2009

About damn time!! My cat & I love squirrels!

[fem56]

07:03 PM on 01/21/2009

We have a very friendly squirrel who hangs around our yard. He says a bag of nuts please for his day.

[WilinMpls]

05:32 PM on 01/21/2009

Hum .. that was weird.. I was replying to WM1066 and it posted on top!

Anyway .. that last bit got chopped off .. It should say where ever your favorite feeding place is.

What can I say .. things got squirrelly! Hey ya!! *rimshot!* ; )

[mamacat]

05:29 PM on 01/21/2009

On behalf of squirrelly people everywhere, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the good people of Asheville, North Carolina, for this very gracious nod to those of us too preoccupied with the minutae of everyday life to fully engage in the self-appreciation for which we are truly entitled.

[WilinMpls]

05:28 PM on 01/21/2009

Oh dear! Well .. I am in Mendota Heights and I can tell you .. without supplemental feeding a lot my guys would be in dire straights thanks to several walnut trees in the area that died this summer due some bug infestation. Mine also can't "dumpster dive" because it is a city law to have your garbage cans stored where animals can't get to them.

So .. over here, down here, up here - relative to your locale - our grey and red squirrels are having a time of it. So .. remind your squirrels of their less well off cousins - kinda like the old "Remember the starving children in China .. eat your peas!" lecture from Mom!! ; )

Did my part .. tossed out my supply of sunflower seed that I use for my salads and some left over toasted pecans from my holiday baking for an extra special treat today in addition to the regular feed I send out to them. Here is a great mix that the squirrels and birds love that won't leave a shellie mess on your deck, patio, grass .. where ever your - http://www.acehardware.com/sm-national-audubon-society-no-waste-delight-birdseed-national-audubon-society--pi-2325377.html

[SquirrelHaterVa]

05:16 PM on 01/21/2009

I hate squirrels. I have 4+ of them in my attic right now. Chewing, scratching, gnawing, destroying the structural integrity of my home. I will destroy them. I just haven't picked which method I like the best, tho I tend to be leaning towards this one: http://www.factsfacts.com/MyHomeRepair/squirrel_pool.htm

So take your Squirrel Appreciation Day and stick it!

Die Squirrels Die

- :)

[mamacat]

06:07 PM on 01/21/2009

Squirrels of the world unite, and descend upon the attic of this heretical non-believer! Only through united action will we be able to overcome such intolerance and hatred! Onward! (Wait a second. What is that, a peanut? You guys go on without me, and I'll catch up later, maybe when winter is over. I think I feel a hibernation coming on.)

[Smirk]

06:24 PM on 01/21/2009

:0)

[wm1066]

01:51 PM on 01/22/2009

Thanks for the funny!

[clevelandchick]

06:24 PM on 01/21/2009

Please learn to love the squirrels. You can do that by sealing the holes in your house that allow them to enter. Bonus is that you'll also save on energy costs.

If you refuse I will be forced to send the squirrels I have trained in the Ninja Arts to finish the job on your house. They show no mercy, be warned.

[nononana]

04:33 PM on 01/21/2009

On a sadly related and coincidental note:

http://www.koco.com/cnn-news/18530377/detail.html

[karela]

04:04 PM on 01/21/2009

While we're appreciating them, it would be good if we also put some peanuts out for them because in many places they're starving this winter. There were no acorns at all in many places in the country and very few in other places. Look for an animal feed store that might sell grain for horses.
They often also sell bulk quantities of broken peanuts for wildlife. Squirrels also like dried corn such as is sold for lifestock. Both corn and peanuts are high energy foods and the animals need that during a cold winter. And if you see them stealing from your bird feeder, don't chase them away. They're starving to death.

[wm1066]

04:22 PM on 01/21/2009

I have yet to see a squirrel starve to death. Up here in Minnesota they are all fat and happy.
"Starve to death'??? you must be kidding. They have been raiding dumpsters for food, they naw through the lid to get the garbage.

[Smirk]

06:27 PM on 01/21/2009

Oh sure--give the squirrels salmonella! That's no way to show appreciation. ;0) (On a serious note, bird seed might be better.)