Monday, 10 January 2022
The fluffy tailed rat
Just lately I've been sitting watching the blimmin grey squirrels pinching the food from our bird feeder. I'm currently watching one hanging upside down off the pergola with its head in the seed dispenser. They do look funny but Tony considers them to be fluffy tailed rats and loathes them. They've pinched so many of our bulbs over the years and are constantly digging around in the plant pots causing damage. One year a squirrel ate the skin off all courgettes in my garden. Bizarrely it didn't touch the flesh of the courgettes leaving ghostly fruit on the plants. Apparently it's against the law to release grey squirrels into the wild in the UK if you happen to trap one and the RSPCA will have to dispose of it humanely.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I love watching squirrels from a safe distance. They look so light and delicate as they waft over the ground. On the other hand, apart from one sighting on the bird feeder, I haven't had them in my garden. My uncle loathed them. His bungalow had a tin roof and the squirrels used to fight on it and steal all the nuts from the stand of hazel trees. It's strange about the courgettes.
ReplyDeleteI used to love them until I started gardening.
DeleteHi Cherie, the article that you linked to proved an interesting read. I have long been in favour of stricter controls on cats due to decimation that 'Tiddles' causes to our already depleted fauna. I believe there may be stricter controls in New Zealand where they seem for more concerned with the protection of native species. As for the Grey Squirrel problems I am definitely in favour of encouraging better management of woodland to encourage our native Pine Martin population to expand, they find the Grey a far easier target than our native Red Squirrel as the Reds of evolved alongside of the Martins.
ReplyDeleteJust some thoughts...John
The local cat population seem to think my garden is one big litter tray. We aren't cat lovers... nuff said. :-)
DeleteOur local cats eat rats (yay!) and birds (boo!). A neighbours cat even dragged back a massive rabbit one day! I usually find a well place water gun shames them into not using a particular bed as their toilet again ;)
DeleteMonsieur is of the same opinion - rats with fluffy tails, but he is also scared of hamsters (weird right?!) x
DeleteLulu, there's a ginger one that stares at me through the window while it's about to cr*p in a large planter. I'm sure it's sticking two claws up at me. It will be getting a water pistol to the nether regions if I catch it again.
DeleteThey are vermin, for sure. A shame they are so fluffy and cute.
ReplyDeletexx
Their faces are remarkably ratty.
DeleteSquirrels are a pain when it comes to the feeders, but you're right they are funny to watch. We put up a baffle thing that is supposed to stop squirrels getting up to the feeder and they still tried to reach it, one even tried to jump up from the ground. Hilarious.
ReplyDelete