Two Legged Squirrel......there's a first

[Rolfe 2]

CHALKIE ......

 

A VERY GOOD POST FROM ONE THATS SEEN A BIT

 

THE FOX OFTEN KILLS POULTRY IN EXACTLY THE SAME MANNOR .......... IT CHASES THE BIRD ROUND THE PEN TILL THE SCARED STIFF POULTRY PUSHES ITS HEAD THROUGH THE MESH IN AN ATTEMPT TO BREAK FREE .......... THEN THE OWNER COMES DOWN TO FIND A HEAD LESS BIRD ..............

FOXY DOES THE SAME WITH OTHER CAPTIVES IN A SIMILAR MANNOR

 

 

ALL THE BEST

 

 

DUCKWING

 

I have seen it many times with rabbits in cage traps........even ones that were staked down, some of them had been quite badly mauled by having limbs pulled through the mesh. Had this been the case with the squirrel i feel the skin would have been badly ripped. These were dead straight cuts as if they had been sliced by some cutting implement, I did think it was something like it had landed on a roof extractor fan and its feet had gone through the mesh......but surely it would be to sure footed for that........oh well the mystery goes on.

 

Archie.......It was as active as any squirrel i had ever seen in a cage and it wasn't till i had culled it that i noticed the injuries. It came down from a walnut tree so it could certainly climb........wish i had seen it doing though.

 

Nice reply chalkie.......does anyone still use the multicatch cages nowadays? I stopped using them a while back now but they were quite effective if you could spend time pre-baiting an area first.

[unlacedgecko 1,466]

could possibly be an injured squirrel given vet treatment and released 'into the wild' by a well meaning member of the public? i have heard of urban foxes given treatment following RTAs, some of which included surgical amputation of badly damaged limbs. last time i was getting my dog vaccinated there was a couple in the waiting room with a wood pigeon which they had spent a vast amount of money getting its broken wing re-set.

 

Ug

[klashnekoff 3]

could possibly be an injured squirrel given vet treatment and released 'into the wild' by a well meaning member of the public? i have heard of urban foxes given treatment following RTAs, some of which included surgical amputation of badly damaged limbs. last time i was getting my dog vaccinated there was a couple in the waiting room with a wood pigeon which they had spent a vast amount of money getting its broken wing re-set.

 

Ug

 

Exactly what i would of thought. Wouldnt suprise me if this was a vet job then released back into the wild. Which im pretty much sure is Illegal to release a captive grey squirrel back into the wild?

[Rolfe 2]

could possibly be an injured squirrel given vet treatment and released 'into the wild' by a well meaning member of the public? i have heard of urban foxes given treatment following RTAs, some of which included surgical amputation of badly damaged limbs. last time i was getting my dog vaccinated there was a couple in the waiting room with a wood pigeon which they had spent a vast amount of money getting its broken wing re-set.

 

Ug

 

Exactly what i would of thought. Wouldnt suprise me if this was a vet job then released back into the wild. Which im pretty much sure is Illegal to release a captive grey squirrel back into the wild?

Yes it is illegal to release a grey squirrel into the wild as it is a mink........both being non-native species.

The vet theory is one i hadn't thought of....but the rear leg wound was open but clean, i would have thought it would have been closed by sutures had it been a vet job though.

[micky 3,325]

could possibly be an injured squirrel given vet treatment and released 'into the wild' by a well meaning member of the public? i have heard of urban foxes given treatment following RTAs, some of which included surgical amputation of badly damaged limbs. last time i was getting my dog vaccinated there was a couple in the waiting room with a wood pigeon which they had spent a vast amount of money getting its broken wing re-set.

 

Ug

 

Exactly what i would of thought. Wouldnt suprise me if this was a vet job then released back into the wild. Which im pretty much sure is Illegal to release a captive grey squirrel back into the wild?

Yes it is illegal to release a grey squirrel into the wild as it is a mink........both being non-native species.

The vet theory is one i hadn't thought of....but the rear leg wound was open but clean, i would have thought it would have been closed by sutures had it been a vet job though.

a couple of years ago two youths were up before the court for mutalating a cat ,then burning it alive,the court heard that they liked to harm animals after sniffing glue ,or other substances,that sort of thing could be a possibility, though my thoughts say, fenn trap

[comanche 2,801]

I wonder if it had a close encounter with a tree surgeon . My mate has had squills run over him when he's been up a tree with a saw .

Just another possibility.

[Steve Albano 21]

Interesting question here....

 

The squirrel appears to be in very good condition, other than the missing parts, and I would have to think that the given the constant competition and fighting amongst squirrels over food and territory and the squirrels climbing habits, a squirrel with 2 missing limbs wouldn't stay in good condition for very long. I think the injuries have to be very recent. It the animal had those injuries for any period of time, I don't think it would be in good health as it appears to be.

 

I've seen many squirrels and birds in cage traps get attacked by foxes, raccoons, and other predators working from outside the cage. In some cases, animals are actually pulled piece by piece through the wire mesh.

 

Rolfe, is there any change the squirrel was attacked while it was inside your cage trap?

 

Guess I'm stumped on this one too.

[Rolfe 2]

Rolfe, is there any change the squirrel was attacked while it was inside your cage trap?

 

 

Hi Steve.........makes a change from discussing moles buddy don't it?

NO.....is the answer to your question, the front leg injury was healed and closed over and the rear leg was an oldish wound that was still open but on the way to closing up. The squirrel was in excellent condition and obviously could climb and feed as normal. I still go with some kind of trap theory, but i have had foul caught greys in a Mk6 Fenn before now and all have been securely held by a leg. I know rats will gnaw a limb off to escape but find it hard to believe a squirrel would but stranger things have happened i suppose.

 

Best Wishes

 

Rolfe.

[borntoshoot 1]

My first thaught is that it could be a vets job. probably the ARSEPCA doing thinking they are above the law by releasing greys back into the wild.

[JoeD 24]

Probably something stupid like the RSPCA found it with broken legs when it was young after falling out a tree or something,and amputated them and then reintroduced it to the wild.

 

JoeD

[john b 38]

It's not an answer to the riddle, but it does shed a little light on the survivability after such injuries

 

Searching about on the net for anything similar I came across a USA forum dedicated to rescuing squirrels. Fair enough and each to their own I suppose and they are a native species over there.

 

Anyway there were a couple of threads; this one is quite short and is a question about a squirrel that has turned up with a foot neatly missing. Never gets to the bottom of why, but it mentions that in NY State, the code of practice allows the release of 3 legged squirrels as they are just as agile and able to survive.

 

http://www.thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=19794

 

This second longer thread is the detailed and slightly mushy tale of an individual nursed back to health and released on 3 legs - if nothing else testament to the theory in the NY State ruling.

 

http://www.thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9869

 

 

Back to our own mystery though; Rolfe I'd be interested in hearing more about the locality if the site where you found it. If you Google Earth it is there anything in the immediate vicinity that might give a clue ? Are we talking urban or rural ?

 

I must admit I am drawn to the vet amputation theory and it's possible that someone has rescued it and paid to treat it with the intention of keeping it in captivity. Then underestimated it's ability to escape !

 

Any animal sanctuaries in the area ? Gardens with aviaries ?

[Rolfe 2]

It's not an answer to the riddle, but it does shed a little light on the survivability after such injuries

 

Searching about on the net for anything similar I came across a USA forum dedicated to rescuing squirrels. Fair enough and each to their own I suppose and they are a native species over there.

 

Anyway there were a couple of threads; this one is quite short and is a question about a squirrel that has turned up with a foot neatly missing. Never gets to the bottom of why, but it mentions that in NY State, the code of practice allows the release of 3 legged squirrels as they are just as agile and able to survive.

 

http://www.thesquirr...ead.php?t=19794

 

This second longer thread is the detailed and slightly mushy tale of an individual nursed back to health and released on 3 legs - if nothing else testament to the theory in the NY State ruling.

 

http://www.thesquirr...read.php?t=9869

 

 

Back to our own mystery though; Rolfe I'd be interested in hearing more about the locality if the site where you found it. If you Google Earth it is there anything in the immediate vicinity that might give a clue ? Are we talking urban or rural ?

 

I must admit I am drawn to the vet amputation theory and it's possible that someone has rescued it and paid to treat it with the intention of keeping it in captivity. Then underestimated it's ability to escape !

 

Any animal sanctuaries in the area ? Gardens with aviaries ?

 

Thanks for the input John i will read and digest the links later.

The location was in a rural garden that backs onto a churchyard near to Pitsford Reservior In Northamptonshire. No animal sancturies that i am aware of and i don't think the land in the near vicinity is keepered although there are a couple of small shoots. The squirrel was number 10 out of a total of 11 squirrels i caught in just over a week all of which were fit and healthy. I just think the rear leg wound would have been stitched up and closed if it had been a rescue job........but who knows.

Anyway.........it was in about as rural a location as you can find so the mystery goes on.

 

Rolfe.

[Steve Albano 21]

Rolfe, would you have any objection to me posting your pictures on one of our US trapping boards to see what people think? I'm curious about this.

[Rolfe 2]

Rolfe, would you have any objection to me posting your pictures on one of our US trapping boards to see what people think? I'm curious about this.

Feel Free Steve............let me know how you get on.

[J Darcy 5,871]

Probably something stupid like the RSPCA found it with broken legs when it was young after falling out a tree or something,and amputated them and then reintroduced it to the wild.

 

JoeD

Thats on a similar vein to what i was thinking. To be honest, over the years, i have found various critters with damage and they all have healed neatly. So the condition of the injury now is nothing to go by IMO>

Its a riddle and just goes to show why the Grey Squirrel has taken over the UK in the manner in which he has. Thanks for giving us all food for thought.