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Is it OK to feed my little garden squirrel?

Tracy Gilbert
30/03/2019 19:10

I am severely disabled and wheelchair bound due to sickness. I am not well enough to keep a pet anymore. I am new to this specially adapted home I live in  I innocently started feeding the wild birds and a little male gray squirrel whom I have called Hamish  I have a bird feeding station and thoroughly enjoy watching all the different species of birds who now visit every day. It has given me a new lease of life and I have learned a lot about the different species of birds  and what kind of food they like. I even scatter some seed for the pigeons who now recognise me and sit up on the back porch peering down into my living room window waiting to be fed  It's comical. I had no idea that birds even pigeons can learn to recognise people, especially those who feed them. They get fed in the morning and at lunchtime, the rest of the day they are good at cleaning up all the spilled seeds and pieces of suet from underneath the bird feeding station. I love the cooing noise they make it so relaxing to listen to. I am really worried about feeding Hamish. I didn't know anything about birds or squirrels till now. I am really worried about my neighbour who lives across the back door from my garden  His son who lives a good bit away, hates squirrels and works for pest control with his local council, although he is in a very different area, I am terrified he will kill Hamish who I have grown very fond of. I fear also that I have upset his dad who do not like squirrels either although way before I met his son, he helped me erect a little squirrel Feeder on the fence  He is a kindly old man  Sadly though he has become very seriously ill with cancer, and its now terminal. He is a gentleman. I feel awful because I really like him. But when I met him one day with his son, who I right away felt very uneasy with, and he admitted he utterly hates gray squirrels, and then told me about his job at pest control, I couldn't hide my horror  but I still respect him and really like his dad. The other neighbours feed both the birds and the squirrels too. However I fear and sense I may have caused tension without meaning to. I have a soft spot for animals and although I genuinely love animals dearly  I am not a person who prefers them to people. Can you kindly offer me some advice on what I should do? I'm torn between my hobby and my attachment to Hamish  I will mention that it's definitely a male squirrel and a young one. He has also chased every other squirrel away from my garden. He is fiesty and aggressive and the other squirrels are absolutely terrified of him! I am thinking that is actually a good thing. He visits several times throughout the day and is really only interested in his feeder and scurrying around burying food and eating. I love watching him eating and his cute little antics. There are loads of squirrels in the area as myself and my neighbours have a lot of woodland nearby and that's where Hamish lives. Again, any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks so much for taking time to read my post  

  • 0 03/04/2019 17:26

    Hello Tracy,

    Grey squirrels can become pests in the garden, however, they are part of nature even though they were not native to this country originally.

    They can become very territorial, we have quite a few that visit our garden, and provide many amusing moments, but then we do seem to be gifted with total headcases for squirrels.

    When I say headcases, I make no exaggeration, they regularly chase each other round the garden and more often than not, run head on and crash into each other. If you don't believe me, see this video I put on YouTube some time back...

    GARDEN VISITORS: Crash get out of here

    A word of caution, grey squirrel will dig holes in any grass that you have, it is a perfectly natural thing for the to do, as they stash their food away for a later day to eat.

    They can also gnor away at feeders, so be prepared for a little expense, but they can and will provide amusing moments.

  • 0 03/04/2019 21:08
    Thanks for sharing your thoughts and advice Mike and I look forward to viewing your video. I love the squirrels and birds equally, and I admit that I have become quite attached to the little beggars! And yes they are fun to watch. I have saved many YouTube videos of them doing crazy things. I also follow a vlog on Seymour the squirrel, well worth checking out eating his avocado. There is absolutely nothing more adorable than watching him eating! Personally I don't mind them digging. They're just doing their thing and it's really Cuteness overload to watch them do it. They only dig little holes. I did laugh to find tiny little holes in my potted flowers. I found it very amusing! I even found the shells of peanuts which I found hysterically funny. I love all animals with a passion. I hate cruelty. Nutmeg did get up at the feeders and destroyed one. But it didn't know how to use the squirrel Feeder. As long as they have access to their own food then they stay away from the bird feeding station. I have greased the pole halfway up, so they will not be able to climb it. Hamish does not touch the feeders. He is the boss, I think I will put up another feeder for Nutmeg so he can eat without being terrified by Hamish. They are amazing and I have grown very fond of them. I do get scared someone will harm them. I don't encourage them too close incase they get in or go to people who would hurt them. Not everyone loves animals. I look forward to enjoying your video. There is a video on YouTube called "squirrels are funnier than cats" I may not have the title correct but I think you can find it anyway. I actually laughed till I cried so enjoy!
  • 0 08/04/2019 17:00
    Tracey, you're welcome.

    Grey squirrels do have a very cheeky nature about them, often we have one that will stand on it's hind feet, just like a meercat...
  • 0 20/04/2019 23:11
    I really enjoyed your YouTube video Mike B with the squirrels. You should post some more videos and longer ones. Made me laugh Joy
  • 0 20/04/2019 23:11
    I really enjoyed your YouTube video Mike B with the squirrels. You should post some more videos and longer ones. Made me laugh Joy
  • 0 27/04/2019 16:39

    You're welcome Tracy.

    I tend to do more still photography than video, but there are plenty more to view, not just the squirrels, other visitor to our garden, day and night.

    The following are some more recent videos I've posted to YouTube:

    BLACKBIRD ON FOUNTAIN

    BLACKBIRD BATHING ON FOUNTAIN

    MAGPIE DRINKING

    WOOD PIGEON CONTEMPLATING THE FOUNTAIN

    WOOD PIGEON ON POND NETTING

    With an old one from last summer;

    JUVENILE GOLDFINCH COMING IN TO DRINK WATER FROM FOUNTAIN

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmommoFSJwQ

    There are quite a few videos posted on the forum, if you have a look at the "Videos anyone?" thread, there are some very good and interesting ones to view.

    https://community.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/f/all-creatures/193659/videos-anyone/1240472#1240472

  • 0 27/04/2019 21:34
    Mike these are amazing videos! I am so ill just now but I loved the first one with the black bird. I have a lot of Siskins. They are beautiful and I have a video of them eating. I feed them sunflower hearts and they are such laid back little birds. They all perch happily on the seed feeders eating away. I get amused at the sound of the sunflower hearts cracking in their little beaks when they eat. I have some Goldfinches too. The occasional black bird. The Starlings like their suet which keeps them busy squabbling even though there is plenty, plus it keeps them away from the little birds. They mimic other bird calls, they are very clever. The pigeons all recognise me. They wait for me everyday up on the porch peering in cooing peacefully away. Their little faces with their orange eyes. They are the ones I'm closest to out of my garden visitors and the ones I'm most fond of including the squirrels. I have Hamish, and still the little male who I will call Peanut Peanuts and a female who is lactating. I think she has a nest over in the woods. That's where they all come from and race back to if they get startled and at the end of the day. The pine trees they live in are plentiful and extremely tall. I watched a squirrel run up one recently. The woodland is dense and wild with a mixture of different trees and bushes, perfect for wildlife and its a squirrel paradise! I will certainly enjoy the rest of your videos when I am better. Thanks so much for sharing. So encouraging.
  • 0 28/04/2019 22:46
    Sorry to hear that you are unwell Tracy, hope you are better soon. In the meantime enjoy all the birdies and beasties that visit. I think that would be a good Medicine indeed.
  • 0 29/04/2019 12:58 in reply to Catlady
    I have been asked to stop feeding my little garden visitors and I'm devastated. This is why I have suddenly deteriorated. They're OK about me feeding the small birds but not the bigger ones. I had become very attatched to the pigeons because they had come to recognise me and they are now distressed. My physical and mental health has suddenly deteriorated. I had no idea that I was upsetting anyone. I am also very upset about not being able to feed little Hamish because one of my neighbours is very upset that he is burying his peanuts in her garden. I am new here and people don't know me or anything about me. They notice that I'm a bit different and I have always been different. People tend to bully me because I am different. I have always been very emotional about animals ever since I was a child. I have not changed in the slightest. I wouldn't hurt a thing, either an animal or a person. I want to give my feeders and bird food to someone else who will enjoy and make good use of them. Even if I was allowed to feed them I'm now unable to take care of the feeders by cleaning them. So it's best to donate them to someone else. I have emailed the RSPB and am waiting for a reply. I'm just very sick at the moment and afraid of my neighbours.