I spotted this little Ground Squirrel (Chipmunk) by our shed, with its cheeks filled to capacity...just daring me to take a picture (so I did!).
Squirrel Pics (and Conversation) Vol. 18
That is so so cute!
Reminds me of Chip & Dale cartoon when they are robbing the garden and
have everything possible stuffed in their cheeks! LOL
Oh my goodness ... perfect shot! lol.
Thanks DD & CG!!
These litttle guys can be quite destructive with their constant digging, but they're so darn cute they get away with it.
Everybody loves a pretty face. lol. :)
I posted this pic (I think) on a different forum a couple years ago. I can't locate it right now, but I thought you guys might enjoy it. It's a rare shot of one of these little "Crumb Snatchers" before it started jamming food in its cheeks.
So cute!
Did I mention that one of the bunnies in the yard comes when I call for it and is always accompanied by a chipmunk? Very strange pair, but cute!
Thanks Amanda!! Oh, I bet your Bunny & Chipmunk friendship is simply adorable!!
Have any of you read this book? It will melt your heart!!
When it first came out about 2 years ago the picture on the front cover went viral immediately!! It was so popular I couldn't even get it from my local library (they had about a one year waiting list!).
Since then they even released a calendar of some of the pictures.
Anyway, I finally decided to buy a copy and after searching found Walmart.com to be the cheapest at the time and I could pick it up for free from a local store. Now they're even cheaper.
I wanted you to see the cover photo just in case you haven't. These links are from both Amazon and Walmart
http://www.amazon.com/Unlikely-Friendships-Remarkable-Stories-Kingdom/dp/0761159134#reader_0761159134
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Unlikely-Friendships-47-Remarkable-Stories-from-the-Animal-Kingdom/15440999
This message was edited Aug 12, 2013 7:10 PM
I bet I would be crying through half those stories! Such cute faces and pictures. I will keep an
eye out.
Hahaha. Debbie I was about to say what a softie you are then I almost welled up myself when I followed the link. ;)
A lot of inter species lovin' going on here. ;)
LOL I have inter species going on here also...with lots of loving.
Spencer the bunny gets around with everyone. I couldn't find one with the kitty nursing on Izzy (the dog).
Aaaaaack! I love the bunny! Had a dwarf in college named him "Cadbury." Never tried to let him mingle with other critters. Thanks for sharing.
I just remembered a series of images of our cats and dogs mingling with a crippled "meat chicken" that I rescued from the 4-h program at the Extension once upon a time.
Good times. ;)
Both of you...CUTE, CUTE CUTE!!! How could anyone not be an animal lover? So good of you to rescue that chicken, Amanda.
Many years ago I did a lot of rescuing and then, later, my husband and I did a quite a bit together. It takes a lot of dedication.
I'm going to attempt to catch a glimpse of the Perseids Meteor Shower very late tonight (or just before dawn). We have the first clear night since they started several days ago.
Have a great night!
Hi All...Thank you so very much for the birthday wishes! So very sweet and love the photo of the squirrel birthday greeting, Nuts...just adorable. ☺☺☺☺☺
We went to the beach in our camper for two weeks for my birthday and we just got back last Sunday...I don't have a fancy Internet phone so cut off from seeing Dave's Gardens until back home. My best friend came and spent a few days with me and that was the nicest gift of all.
I love all the pet photos, and Amanda from your profile pic you have an iguana also??? Debbie the bunny and cat together is amazing, I've had lots of different pets, but never a bunny rabbit.
And Nuts love the double squirrel photo, that one needs to go into DG photo contest.
My "Peanut" had disappeared for about two weeks and I really was bummed, figured something happened to her. She lived in our huge live oak out front. Then one day my son was out washing the cars and saw a squirrel watching him from across the street. He called her and she seemed hesitant at first but came over and let him pet her head, that is how we know it is our "Peanut". My son, my husband and me all were so happy, so funny for adults to get attached to a squirrel. She has apparently moved to a smaller tree across the street. But she is coming up into our garage when we open it and getting her nuts from us. I miss her being here on my property, but glad she is okay and nothing happened to her.
Peanut.....
Hi sunkissed,
Sounds like you had a wonderful Birthday vacation! I don't have a fancy phone, either, and that wouldn't have been a very good camping trip, anyway, with all that to deal with.
Thanks for such a nice compliment of my (slightly blurry) pic of the two squirrels!! It was quite a sight.
I'm so glad you found Peanut!! I think your little guy is growing up (I believe Peanut is a male) and getting curious about the rest of the neighborhood. But I bet he'll still come around regularly as long as you've got peanuts for him!
Edited to say: But since Peanut is still small, it's still kind of hard to tell from a picture if it's a He or She. But I'm sure you'll know soon enough. Either way, one of these days you'll probably have some little baby "Peanuts"!! How cool is that!
This message was edited Aug 14, 2013 3:46 PM
All the shots are great. Don't they just look like they are posing?
Love Peanut! Super cool that s/he lets you touch him.
Today while I was sitting in a garden chair after putting out seed a squirrel was eyeing me from one of the trees. Seemed he wanted to come closer but he couldn't bring himself to do it.
I picked up some "cookies" and "donuts" on clearance at Petsmart for the bunnies. They are a big hit! "Chip" showed up without "Beebee" this morning. He ate a peanut while sitting about three feet away instead of stuffing his face and running. I haven't seen one this close in a very long time. I will be enjoying more time in the garden with this lovely mild weather, but o my, it feels like September.
A.
It's very cool here right now - in the 50s. Brrrr. It will warm again but just so unusual for this time of year. I haven't had my bird feeders filled for awhile since there is so much growing out there for the birds to eat. So the squirrels haven't been as busy trying to raid feeders, but they still love the big old Norway Spruce in the backyard. They have a field day chasing each other around and around in it.
Chip and Beebee...that's cute! And critter cookies and donuts? Boy, don't they have us well-trained!!
We're lovin' the cool weather AND sleeping at night with the windows open instead of the air conditioner.
I still fill my feeders and put out a bit of food for the squirrels all summer. I know they don't really need it and at times the food goes slower (which is nice for our bank account), but it still allows us to see more birds and critters than otherwise. We also keep the bird baths clean and full of fresh water all year (heated in the winter). The squirrrels use the baths as much as the birds (and more than the birds in winter), to drink, not bathe.
Not cool down here, having some of the hottest days so far this summer, last three days hit 97 our highest temps yet, at least last night we had some rain to cool us down. I'm ready for cool weather...just too hot to go outside unless it rains.
I'm still unsure of Peanut's sex, I've never seen the swollen...you know whats, when it is mating season...but I'd think if she was female she would have had a litter by now. That last pic the fur was pulled out and why there is a pink spot on her belly. It has grown back since.
That's certainly warm! Peanut definitely likes it up close. Our squirrels don't visit the deck due to the three cats, I'm sure. But the cats don't bother them around the big Spruce tree out back. The youngest cat did try to climb up after them once, but that didn't work out too well and hasn't happened since that I know of. lol.
Sorry about the heat, sunkissed. About how old is Peanut? It's possible, if Peanut is a male, that he may have gone across the street to follow a female who may actually have a nest somewhere, or maybe he/she just isn't ready yet.
Glad to know your squirrels have a safer place to be, Cville_Gardener, with that Spruce tree!
Well, no new pics of Squirrels, but one more of the Ground Squirrel and, since we've been talking about Bunnies as well, an older pic of a bunny at dusk.
The earliest photos I have of Peanut are from the summer 2012 , I believe I started seeing her around in the early spring of 2012, so I'd guess Peanut is about 1 1/2 years old. I put some photos that show more of the belly underneath area, maybe you can tell, I still can't. :D
The first photo was mid Nov. of 2012, and the last on the pavers was Mar. 2013, and I'm positive all these are pictures of Peanut.
Awwww cripes. The rodents of unusual size have appeared. :/
Can't be spreading nuts and berries indiscriminately around the yard now. Had to stop feeding altogether one year it got so bad.
Sunkissed, you're right, it's really hard to tell from just the pictures.
Well, Amanda, like my husband always says, as soon as we put out the sign that says "Free Buffet", everybody's gonna show up!
I scared this little "Mommy" by accident ... I really didn't mean to! She was so engrossed in her lunch that she didn't realize I was there, than all of a sudden spotted me closer than she would have liked.
Edited to say: Oops...this was a very tall pic that I forgot to resize. See the next post for easier viewing.
This message was edited Aug 17, 2013 3:00 PM
Okay, this should be better.
Wow, even at web page size this is still a little too tall!
This message was edited Aug 17, 2013 3:03 PM
The pictures open just fine. Nice shot. The critters here know about that "free buffet" thing. :-D The raccoon took down an empty feeder last night and it's out there on the ground. The squirrels and birds always finish off the crumbs at the bottom so that's okay. Just hope it survived the fall ... again. :)
We were getting quite a few large rats the beginning of early spring, they were coming for the bird seed and would even get up on the bird feeders. We did manage them and right now I'm not putting out any seed since I have plenty of wild berries for the birds. Some of those rats were bigger than the squirrels...creepy. Never seen any raccoon in my garden, but have down by the creek that runs through the neighborhood. We mostly get possums, and armadillos and I did see the one bunny.
Peanut has been coming back in the back garden again, out there pretty much every morning now.
Yes, I've had to take a long break with filling the feeders as well. The raccoon seems to search throughout his territory and come around every so often when there isn't food ... every night if there is. I'm just happy the groundhogs don't bother the feeders! The cats have taken care of the mice and sometimes the shrews (unfortunately). But I haven't seen any lately. I don't think of rats in FL but I know they are everywhere.
I understand that the most difficult time of the year for squirrels to find food is early spring when seeds begin to sprout. I find black walnuts from the woods behind us sprouting everywhere. They are in the pots, planters, yard. If I didn't pull them, I'd have a forest of black walnut trees. lol.
I do have feeders filled for my goldfinches and other finches right now but the squirrels don't typically like nyger seed and the pole can't be climbed because of the baffle.
I will put out more corn shortly since squirrel activity has slowed down in the backyard. It's always a fine balance.
Reminder to keep the finch feeders clean.
The conjunctivitis disease is passed among finches by the tube feeders. I found a fledge recently sitting in the middle of the hot road in my neighborhood chirping for its mother. Its eyes were completely swollen shut. Poor thing. I handed it over to my rehab lady and it died overnight despite appearing otherwise healthy.
The conjunctivitis itself is not lethal, however, it hinders their movement, agility, flight, ability to see, the ability to find food, and leads ultimately to predation or starvation or whatev.
Just sayin. Might be better practice to use one of those "socks." I dunno.
It's terribly heartbreaking and cleanliness is so important. I've only seen it in House Finches and they eat out of all types of our feeders...trays, tubes, screens and also spilled seed on the ground. I don't see it often, but I wish there was an antibiotic or something you could mix into the seed to prevent it altogether. :-(
This little ground squirrel was trying to look like a tough guy (not too convincing unless you're the size of a cricket!). I thought he looked cute.
These finch feeders are disposable. I've used socks. They work okay but tend to get very wet when it rains.
Great thread! I love all the pictures!
I try to wash and clean my bird feeders at least once a week to cut back on spread of disease. I have used the socks. They tend to get tore up by some critter in my yard. They only last a day or two before they get torn open. I have 2 tube feeders and a double sock feeder and a platform Feeder I use for the finches. I have the platform feeder up high and they seem to love it. They tend to fill it up first and the over flow goes to the tube and sock feeders.
Nutsaboutnature, You get the best squirrel picture's. Love them all they are very cute!
Welcome taylordaylily!!
Glad you're enjoying the thread. We're just a bunch of members that LOVE Squirrels and birds and animals of all kinds. Also, Thanks so much for your flattering words!!
Our finches also use our tray feeders a lot and I have two "Dinner Bell' feeders from WBU That I've had for years. They cost more now or I'd buy one or two more since pretty much all the birds love them. They're easy to clean and the dome roof keeps the seed dry during rain and snow plus I think it helps the birds feel a little safer. Our finches also love the round tube-shaped feeders with hardware cloth screen that they can cling to instead of perches. They're nice because if the seed gets wet, it drys quickly.
I've really only seen Golden Finches here in Florida, and mainly in the winter and spring, they do come to the feeder in flocks when they visit.
We haven't had a dog for four years since our German Shepherd died of old age at 13. Anyway a rescue Golden doodle came into our lives a few days ago, we kept her for a couple days and yesterday decided to keep her permanently.She is a real sweetie. She won't be out in the garden without my constant supervision, and it is an adjustment having a dog again in the garden. I know Peanut already knows she is here and waits till I'm out there without the dog to come get her peanuts.
Here is picture of her with my son, she is big, not even 10 months old and already 60 pounds. We changed her name from Merida to Marabelle, she was called Mer Bear and knows the name very well, but husband didn't like the other name, guess it is a Disney character. We can still call her, Mer Bear, and she is even responding well to Marabelle, pronounced- Mare-uh-belle, aka: Mare Bear...since she looks like a big ole Bear. Kind of nice having a dog again.
The dinner bell type feeders are good. I have squirrel baffles over a couple of my feeders. Lots of finches here.
What a beautiful dog. She looks very happy at your house. :) Peanut is keeping a wary eye out, I know. But they will learn to coexist. Just like they learn to train us. :-D
Cute dog. Looks like a keeper!
However, I have to tell some grave news.
There was a knock at the door around 330 this afternoon.
Neighbor lady said a squirrel nest had come down in th storm that had just passed. My house faces a small city park with adjacent houses and open back yards that make a pretty green open space with benches and playground.
Anyway there are concrete walkways and giant old trees. The nest happened to come down on the sidewalk. Not forgiving as mother earth would have been. Three babies laying on the cold wet pavement. I picked em up carefully and breathed deep over them to warm em, but ultimately two were gone and the third likely mortally wounded. We got them to a lady who does wildlife/squirrels. I've done a lot of rescue but never had baby squirrels.
Precious babies. They had short hair on their heads and tails but kinda bald elsewhere. I didn't log on to tell you, but there you are, all loving squirrels with me, and I know you know how I feel.
xox
Oh phooey. I always hate it when I can't help them. :( Sometimes life is mean like that. None of our squirrels have electrocuted themselves in the transformer so far this year and that's very unusual. I'm happy about that. :)
Sunkissed, your new dog is a beauty!
One of our next door neighbors has a Labradoodle (named Lucy). Their own brown Lab is her Daddy (Charlie Brown...but they just call him Charlie). It's fun to watch the two of them run around the yard together (they're inseparable). One is so dark and one so light that it almost looks like Charlie is Lucy's shadow.
I'm sure she'll bring you guys a lot of joy!
Amanda, that's just too, too sad and I'm so sorry you had to be the one to deal with those poor little babies.
When I first read your post my initial reaction was, "I wish I hadn't read that", but you know...that's who we all are on this thread. We're passionate about and compassionate for wildlife. We're all aware it's not always joyful yet none of us would ever change. So, of course, you SHOULD tell us when something like that happens because you're right...we know how you feel and vice versa.
Thanks so much for caring and for trying to help those baby squirrels!
Yeah, sorry. I had totally put it out of my mind somehow with some other distractions, but when I logged on to DR there were new posts on the squirrel thread, and here you all were, helpless participants!
When "something bad" happens I remind myself how many critters I've helped before successfully and hope that somehow there is cosmic balance. For instance, this morning when I bent to pick up Snoopy's water bowl to rinse and refill I saw a tiny spider floating on the surface. I exclaimed, "oh no you didn't!" And put my index finger under it to lift it out. It immediately sprang to life and I dropped it off on the slats under the coffee table which is where it probably dropped from.
Yeah, I'm crazy . . . So??? ;)