usurpers!! pirates!! expropriation!!

[kcpopps]

Meet Ringo!
http://KCVIDEO.COM//squirrels/squirrels/ringo-upclose400.jpg
Ringo was born last fall, so he is now only about 7 months old. He might be a she for all I know, but for now I use Ringo. He and his brother, Mingo, were abandoned at a pre-weaning age and were nearly blind from dehydration/malnutrition when they made themselves known to me. Mother was gone and hunger had forced them to leave the nest before they were really ready to do so. I captured them and after a couple of days took them to a rehabber. My earlier post tells that story - here:
10 weeks? - blind & orphaned (http://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25073)

I brought them home in a box given to me by the rehabbers. The were 3 squirrells in the box. Two were litter mates that I rescued, and the third guy was a single rescue of about the same age. I decided to call them Dingo, Mingo and Ringo. There is a blog post on my own website (http://kcvideo.com/home/blog/46-health-home-a-garden-/170-squirrel-report-2) about the release day, with lots of pictures of their first venture out. BTW- I hung the box incorrectly at first, as seen in the photos on my blog.

It's now hung (semi-) correctly, as seen below. The other board is hung as a a windbreak.
http://KCVIDEO.COM//squirrels/squirrels/ringo-house400.jpg
Above - Ringo on top of HIS condo.

Two of the juveniles disappeared after a couple of days of staying in the box. Ringo stayed. Unlike the others, Ringo was cautious but unafraid of humans right from the start. He lives in a tree in the edge of my yard that borders a forest area. He lives with the wild squirrels but he still is tame enough to come to me when I call (usually) and he will climb on my shoulder with no fears.

http://KCVIDEO.COM//squirrels/squirrels/ringo600.jpg
Ringo is identifiable by a concentration of red on his waistline. Plenty of food is provided for Ringo... as you can see, he's well fed. And up to now, he has lived contentedly in his box in that tree, which I view from my office desk all day. I keep an eye on him. He goes out and does squirrel stuff - he occasionally disappears for most of the day, but there has not been a day where I did not see him at all. There is a community of squirrels here. They always seem agressive and treat Ringo rudely.

Up to now, other squirrels would not go into his house. They'd stare at it and climb up close to look, but never would they go in.

The past few weeks that has changed. A number of PIRATES have EVICTED Ringo from his own house!

I cannot accept this EXPROPRIATION of Ringo's property with no protest! Ringo has since taken up in a nest in a hollow break of a tree with a twisted top. Long before he lost his nest to these USURPERS, I observed him working hard on that nest many times. Now, he comes to his tree like always, because that's where I still go to give him his Henry's Healthy Blocks every day, but for the most part he seems to have relinquished his rights to the house. He will go in occasionally it if no others are around.

I will walk up to the house, which is about 15 ft high in the tree and call out Ringo's name. If Ringo is in the house, he will stick his head out, look at me - and yawn - before coming down to see if I have a treat. The others run out and run away as wild ones do.

They really anger me. Sometimes after I scare them out, they run over to the tree where Ringo has taken secondary residence in and run him out of that nest! The nerve!

I want Ringo to be in his house in his tree. Any suggestions I can get these SQUATTERS out? I am wanting to associate unpleasant experience with that house, so that they won't be so keen on it anymore.

I'm thinking of trapping them in box and then terrorizing them while in there. No physical harm - I just want to scare the hell out of the criminals, so that they never want to go into that house again. Problem is finding some tactic that does not affect Ringo.

He's special.

[Skul]

Trapping if possible, and relocating a couple miles down the road may help.

[muffinsquirrel]

Just hang more nest boxes and make them ALL happy! At any rate, as Ringo matures and becomes more sure of herself, she will run them off if she wants them gone.

As you probably noticed, I think Ringo is a girl. :D For one thing, I see no male parts visable in the photo, and for another, the male squirrels usually wander off to new territories, while the females stay in their home area.

He or she, as the case may be, enjoy your own little piece of nature in the form of a loving squirrel. And remember - if you provide more nest boxes, you will have even more fuzzy friends!

muffinsquirrel

[JLM27]

It's hard to scare squirrels off. The more you try to do it, the more they think there is something really good where you are trying to run them off. They will even try to take it from him if he doesn't have a protected place to eat it. I suggest you lure them away to another spot. Put some bird or squirrel food out elsewhere, maybe a 100 yards if possible, and make sure that Ringo eats all he/she gets from you and it isn't left there for others. In that case, shelled nuts are better than in shell nuts, and I would bet other things you are giving him are not too much of interest to the wild boys.

Is Ringo a male or a female? I'm sorry, but this competition is inevitable. The wilds have a hierarchy and Ringo has to find his or her place in it and respect it. Sneaky and feisty is always the best plan.

[CritterMom]

First, Ringo looks like a girl. Males have some pretty obvious testicles - VERY obvious part of the year.:shakehead You can see Mister P's from space...

I have an idea which is brilliant on paper - I wonder if it will work. Get an old T-shirt and wear it for a while - like sleep in it. If you can climb up to the nest box with a ladder, tuck the t-shirt inside. Ringo knows you and comes to you willingly - he won't be bothered by your smell, but a wild might.

[loophy11]

He is so cute! Im glad you're taking care of him I wish I could take care of a squirrel but that might be better suited for other people like you! .................................................. ..................... squirrels rule!!!!!!!!

[kcpopps]

Just hang more nest boxes and make them ALL happy! At any rate, as Ringo matures and becomes more sure of herself, she will run them off if she wants them gone.

As you probably noticed, I think Ringo is a girl. :D For one thing, I see no male parts visable in the photo, and for another, the male squirrels usually wander off to new territories, while the females stay in their home area.

He or she, as the case may be, enjoy your own little piece of nature in the form of a loving squirrel. And remember - if you provide more nest boxes, you will have even more fuzzy friends!

muffinsquirrel

I have been thinking Ringo might be a SHE... I might have to change the name!
Also good idea about other boxes... I wouldn't care if they shared boxes, just worry about Ringo being out in the cold. It has been very cold here in Kansas. The first night it got below zero, I worried all night about that squirrel!

[kcpopps]

It's hard to scare squirrels off. The more you try to do it, the more they think there is something really good where you are trying to run them off. They will even try to take it from him if he doesn't have a protected place to eat it. I suggest you lure them away to another spot. Put some bird or squirrel food out elsewhere, maybe a 100 yards if possible, and make sure that Ringo eats all he/she gets from you and it isn't left there for others. In that case, shelled nuts are better than in shell nuts, and I would bet other things you are giving him are not too much of interest to the wild boys.

Is Ringo a male or a female? I'm sorry, but this competition is inevitable. The wilds have a hierarchy and Ringo has to find his or her place in it and respect it. Sneaky and feisty is always the best plan.

CritterMom and MuffinSquirrel have me thinking Ringo is a female... I haven't really tried to get a definitive look yet - but I've never noticed any male parts.

I only give food when Ringo is there to take it. She might leave a few crumbs and leftovers that attract the others to the house area.

We've had snow, so I've been putting out lots of bird seed lately and that attracts squirrels... like this one;
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/other2.jpg
This little guy must be from a fall litter too - possibly one of Ringos original mates (?)... or maybe not - but both have to be from fall litters. Ringo is much larger even though he went through a health crisis. Could Ringo's now luxurious diet account for that much difference in size?
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/other1.jpg
Above:Not Ringo

[JLM27]

Or it's a cousin, or it has a different Daddy. Spread the bird seed farther away if that is what is drawing the others. THEY HAVE YOUR NUMBER NOW, THOUGH. AND DON'T THINK THEY DON'T SEE RINGO GETTING HER NUM NUMS FROM YOU! They have GREAT distance eyesight.

[spykitten01]

I dont think anyone on here would condone "terrorizing" any squirrel - no matter the circumstance :nono However, Im sure we all understand your wanting the very best for your baby. We all do! I would suggest combining the ideas of other nest boxes, putting the other food supply farther from the box - and the well-worn shirt in the nest box ideas.:goodpost with that idea, CritterMom!!! Love it! And theres a good chance it will work =) Also, just fyi - birdseed and peanuts do not make good squirrel food. Great job giving HHBs but that peanut in her sweet little paws is a no-no. Try pecans, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts - IN THE SHELL is obviously best. A good variety of fruits and vegetables make even better treats! Im sure your little girl would go NUTS over some avocado :rotfl (yeah, pun intended LoL)

Also - Nice to meet you! I hope we see you and some of those great photos around more often! :poke :D

[kcpopps]

OK experts - Ringo was kind enough to pose... so this should be easy for you!

male or female?

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck01.jpg

More pics from this afternoon in a sec...

[Lanatwo]

Looks female to me, but I am FAR from an expert. :)

[spykitten01]

DEFINITELY lady bits there - If Ringo were male the little "pink bit" would be higher up on the belly and there would be some impressively large (usually dark grey) testicles proudly on display LoL

You have a very lovely little lady there!:thumbsup

[kcpopps]

Here are some more of todays pics...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck02.jpg
coming down the deck post to investigate...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck03.jpg
... this red bowl >>> which contains acorns! She picks one and...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck03a.jpg
...returns above to eat it.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck03b.jpg
soon back for more...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck04.jpg
on my arm, eating a pecan

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0125_ringo_deck05.jpg

[kcpopps]

DEFINITELY lady bits there - If Ringo were male the little "pink bit" would be higher up on the belly and there would be some impressively large (usually dark grey) testicles proudly on display LoL

You have a very lovely little lady there!:thumbsup

Thanks spykitten!

I saw a grizzled looking older squirrel getting aggressive with her earlier today. He either knocked her out of the tree or she fell out when they tangled.
It always seems like the others are picking on her.

On your earlier post - no peanuts? Dang! I've got 2 big bags of "raw & natural" peanuts in the shell. If they're in the shell she will run off and hid them... fun to watch that. I knew from this board that corn was a no-no. Yet I see products labeled squirrel food that are mostly corn. Confusing...
I thought I was doing good with the peanuts... been feeding her lots of them.I guess humans aren't the only ones subject to marketing of foods that aren't good for them.
:crazy

[Jackie in Tampa]

:Welcome :wave123 Welcome to TSB!
Yes, gorgeous sq!:Love_Icon

[JLM27]

A sweet girl squirrel! For sure. The squirrels have a pecking order (or should I say nipping order). The older squirrel may have been an older female trying to teach her her place. It's tough for singles. They have to gain acceptance into an existing clan without any support from siblings. The females are more territorial than the males, too.

[kcpopps]

Or it's a cousin, or it has a different Daddy. Spread the bird seed farther away if that is what is drawing the others. THEY HAVE YOUR NUMBER NOW, THOUGH. AND DON'T THINK THEY DON'T SEE RINGO GETTING HER NUM NUMS FROM YOU! They have GREAT distance eyesight.

LOL :D yes I am learning that
the trees have eyes! :eek:
all these years - they've been watching me! :rolleyes:

Sometimes I call for Ringo and SHE doesn't come... and later I spot her at a distance, just sitting still, up high and motionless on a branch, watching me.

From her condo, she also watches me, watching her through the window
http://kcvideo.com//squirrels/squirrels/ringo-house400.jpg

The birds are watching me too...
http://kcvideo.com//squirrels/squirrels/cardinal001.jpg

Both shots above are taken out of my office window as the critters are watching me inside.

[JLM27]

They're all bums and can you blame them? We humans have been spectacularly successful at stockpiling much more than we need.

[Kristal]

Trapping if possible, and relocating a couple miles down the road may help.

Hehe, I have a funny story for you... An acquaintance of mine's Dad used to trap the squirrels that would steal from the bird feeders in his yard and release them about 20 miles away. After a while he started to wonder if he had indeed seen these squirrels before. He then started to spraypaint their tails when he released them out in the forest.

Lo and behold, the cat came back, as it were.

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/27652/the_cat_came_back/ :D

Anyway... that probably won't help.

[JLM27]

What a story! That's amazing. I have this fantasy that there is an animal network that passes from animal to animal flowing generally eastward to give news of things like the weather, and that's how they know ahead of us. So why not getting a message from back home to guide them back.

[Kristal]

Also, yes, Ringo is quite a beauty with that lovely, red coat. She is adorable :Love_Icon

You could try putting up a nesting box right on your house. The wilds would probably be too timid to want to set up digs right next to the strange humans, but she is obviously not afraid of you at all, so that might work out well for everyone.

Also, they move around a fair bit. A well built drey or dug out nest will have many different inhabitants throughout the year with each one improving on it from year to year. It's kind of normal that they leave homes for better ones or kick each other out of homes, if they can manage it.

[kcpopps]

Other areas across the Midwest are getting it worse, but we have had blizzard conditions today. (Near Kansas City)

Ringo was out early despite the nasty weather... I was happy to see her to make sure she got her Henry's block. She ate that in her tree... and I thought because of the bitter conditions she might hole up after that but...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0201_blizzard1.jpg
...about fifteen minutes later she came to the deck looking for more goodies.

You can see her house in the background... but I don't think she's staying in it. Since the others kicked her out she has taken up a nest in a broken treetop. Looks like there's a hollow cavity and I've seen here work on that nest a lot. Especially yesterday, she spent a lot of time on it --- I think she knew the storm was coming.

I'm worried a bit -- the temperature is going to down to 4 degrees tonite, high of 9 tomorrow and minus -7 tomorrow night. BRRRR. How can they take it???

I sure hope that some of those hostiles will let her huddle up with them tonite.

Here's another pic braving the blizzard... not Ms. Ringo...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0201_blizzard2.jpg
-- this is one of the neighborhood squirrels that I'm getting to know. He likes to raid this bird feeder and today it was one of the few options.

CM2029

[kcpopps]

Also, yes, Ringo is quite a beauty with that lovely, red coat. She is adorable :Love_Icon

You could try putting up a nesting box right on your house. The wilds would probably be too timid to want to set up digs right next to the strange humans, but she is obviously not afraid of you at all, so that might work out well for everyone.

I've been thinking about that --- :thankyou
maybe I could even direct a teeny bit of heat into it...:rotfl hmmm

[spykitten01]

Haha yeah, I gave my girls a few unsalted, raw peanuts when they were first nibbling on hard foods (unshelled, at that point) and got a fingershake :nono from some of the more experienced board members. Theyre not very good nutritionally speaking. Sunflower seeds also gave me a :nono , though they were the unsalted, raw kind also LoL Oh well - its a learning curve for all of us at some point!

Your girl has a GORGEOUS, THICK fur coat - that goes a long way in this nasty Midwest weather (Im in southern WI now, from Central MN haha so I KNOW me some COLD!) - squirrels in canada deal with this stuff constantly and do quite well. Its pretty incredible, but thats what evolution is for :wott

[Kristal]

I was walking through parc lafontaine the other day which is FULL of squirrels. They are tame enough there to eat right from your hand if you are patient. We had just had an awful cold snap due to an arctic cold front. It was around -32C or -26F just the night prior... There were some record breaking lows for Quebec, and BRRR I was even cold indoors!

Anyway, I had to be in that neighbourhood, so I brought a bag of hazelnuts. One ragged looking boy was out eating snow, so I tossed him a nut. I was looking around the bare trees for dreys, wondering where they sleep... Then pop, pop, pop - about 6 of them popped right out of the branches in the tree. I guess a few generations were all living together there. Two were obviously smaller. Fall babies, I suppose. They just kept popping out of these little holes that I could not even see from the ground. They have little chewed out holes in the thicker branches, and I guess they snuggle up in there during the cold. The whole tree was like a condominium for squirrels. The tree did not seem to be affected at all, so I guess the holes are quite snug.

Well, they came out for hazelnuts and then probably magically disappeared back into the tree. Anyway, it was surprising to me how many squirrel sleeping places there are that are out of sight for us ;)

[Kristal]

Mmm, I was trying to think of what they reminded me of... Tree sprites ;) Or leprechauns or something :p These big, puffy things just appeared out of these tiny, invisible holes as if by magic :) You would never have guessed they were in there by looking at them... or the tree.

[asweetdiversion]

Basically, the same thing happened to me when I released my four boys in October 2010. All four of my boys were kicked out of their 2 story Taj Mahal after a month or so and I was really upset too. So... I decided to hang some 8x10 pictures of clown faces on my fence to gently scare off the other neighborhood squirrels. After carefully tacking up these clown faces I basically scavenged from Google images and printed out in a hurry, I didn't realized I had chosen that horrible clown face of serial killer John Wayne Gacy. My Dad comes to visit me just a day or so afterwards and I can't even put into words the facial expression of confusion and concern when he walked into my squirrel sanctuary and saw pictures of a serial killer clown in my trees. To make a long story short it did not work and now my Dad thinks I need some sort of serious philological help.

I say build that beautiful Ringo her own home closer to yours and put you teeshirt in it, that sounds good to me.

[Kristal]

Basically, the same thing happened to me when I released my four boys in October 2010. All four of my boys were kicked out of their 2 story Taj Mahal after a month or so and I was really upset too. So... I decided to hang some 8x10 pictures of clown faces on my fence to gently scare off the other neighborhood squirrels. After carefully tacking up these clown faces I basically scavenged from Google images and printed out in a hurry, I didn't realized I had chosen that horrible clown face of serial killer John Wayne Gacy. My Dad comes to visit me just a day or so afterwards and I can't even put into words the facial expression of confusion and concern when he walked into my squirrel sanctuary and saw pictures of a serial killer clown in my trees. To make a long story short it did not work and now my Dad thinks I need some sort of serious philological help.

I say build that beautiful Ringo her own home closer to yours and put you teeshirt in it, that sounds good to me.
:rotfl :rotfl :rotfl :rotfl

[CJStork]

Basically, the same thing happened to me when I released my four boys in October 2010. All four of my boys were kicked out of their 2 story Taj Mahal after a month or so and I was really upset too. So... I decided to hang some 8x10 pictures of clown faces on my fence to gently scare off the other neighborhood squirrels. After carefully tacking up these clown faces I basically scavenged from Google images and printed out in a hurry, I didn't realized I had chosen that horrible clown face of serial killer John Wayne Gacy. My Dad comes to visit me just a day or so afterwards and I can't even put into words the facial expression of confusion and concern when he walked into my squirrel sanctuary and saw pictures of a serial killer clown in my trees. To make a long story short it did not work and now my Dad thinks I need some sort of serious philological help.

I say build that beautiful Ringo her own home closer to yours and put you teeshirt in it, that sounds good to me.

Oh my gosh your story had me rolling!!
:rotfl :rotfl :rotfl :rotfl

[asweetdiversion]

It's funny how threads get started only to discover others are having the same troubles. Today my four guys are squabbling with all the other's over housing issues and none of them will go into either of the nesting boxes. It's non stop around here over who gets to live where. The good news is that my Henry's Blocks got here today and the boys loved them. Yippy!

[kcpopps]

Basically, the same thing happened to me when I released my four boys in October 2010. All four of my boys were kicked out of their 2 story Taj Mahal after a month or so and I was really upset too. So... I decided to hang some 8x10 pictures of clown faces on my fence to gently scare off the other neighborhood squirrels. After carefully tacking up these clown faces I basically scavenged from Google images and printed out in a hurry, I didn't realized I had chosen that horrible clown face of serial killer John Wayne Gacy. My Dad comes to visit me just a day or so afterwards and I can't even put into words the facial expression of confusion and concern when he walked into my squirrel sanctuary and saw pictures of a serial killer clown in my trees. To make a long story short it did not work and now my Dad thinks I need some sort of serious philological help.

I say build that beautiful Ringo her own home closer to yours and put you teeshirt in it, that sounds good to me.

:jump

[kcpopps]

It's been terribly cold. Last night it got down to 15 degrees (F) below zero. Today it got up to about 18 in the late afternoon.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0202_shadow.jpg
This is the view from my office window. You can see Ringo's condo and tree on the left.To the right, back in the woods a bit, you can see the broken tree that Ringo has moved into. (It's right in the sun gleam) The treetop has broken and formed a hook - horseshoe shape, and there's a cavity inside the horizontal section on top.

The shadow on the ground reaches out to me - earlier, I saw her in the shadow on the ground there, on top of that hook.

Here's a closer look at her temporary residence....
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0202_drey1.jpg
There's a hollow cavity in that flat section on this upside down horseshoe.

So though it's been brutally cold, Ringo seems to be doing fine. I've seen her every day, even though there's not been much activity with the other squirrels.

She's been getting a Henry's block and a lot of walnuts and pecans every day.

Here are some pics from Feb 3 - the day after the blizzard. I followed her in the woods with a telephoto lens and got some "wild" shots...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_2.jpg
On the ground here looking for the stream under the snow and ice. With a full belly and a drink, she then just started playing. It's about 10 degrees F but there's no wind and sun is out and actually pretty nice. For a squirrel.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_3.jpg
I'm trying to get action shots when they are speeding through the trees. Above is one of the few good shots... hard to do! It may not look like it in this frozen action shot, but she is moving up the tree at a fast rate here.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_run.jpg
...another action shot that is actually in focus! Look at the feet in the air.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_4.jpg
She stops to survey her kingdom for a few moments...
---zoom ----
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_5.jpg

Where's Ringo?
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_6.jpg
After a while, I lost track of her. It took me a while to spot her... but she's in this photo - do you see her? This is what I mean by the trees have eyes... they sometimes just sit there motionless and watch... and you'd never see them if you're not looking hard.

Here's a closer look:
http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_7.jpg
I move my position so I can get a better shot.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0203_ringo_8.jpg
She's just sitting there watching the world and napping a bit...

Those were all from yesterday,
here's a couple shots from today (Feb 4):

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0204_ringo1.jpg
This feeder hangs on the back porch - she is looking at me inside through the glass patio doors.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0204_ringo2.jpg

She's made it through a real Midwest blizzard and several Sub-Zero nights... and all that after being evicted from her condo! So I no longer worry about her so much. She seems to be doing just fine!

[spykitten01]

Shes so pretty, with her fashionably red girdle :p

[kcpopps]

Over the past couple of weeks, I've seen a large red tailed hawk land in the small wooded area where Ringo lives. But what I saw this morning tops that - I looked out my back door and saw this guy sitting in a tree!

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-001_600.jpg
He spotted me as soon as I came out of the house

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-002_600.jpg
and his attention was focused on me.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-003_600.jpg
I took 10-15 pictures of him sitting and then he launches...

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-004_600.jpg
...the branch he was sitting on breaks into pieces and falls as he departs.

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-005_600.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-006_600.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/eagle/600/11.0222_eagle-007_600.jpg
And away he goes...

It was neat to see one this close, but at the same time, he's a little TOO close. I have a precious chihuahua - and now, a new squirrelfriend!!

I'd just as soon he keeps his distance.

:poke

[asweetdiversion]

OMG ALL SQUIRRELS .....Quick 130606

[kcpopps]

Thought I'd update a bit on my girl Ringo. She made it through the winter OK, despite being evicted by the "others".

The other day there was a squirrel dead in the road as I drove home. I went out to inspect the body -so afraid it was Ringo. I was hoping it was a male - but no - it was a female and had markings similar to Ringo. I could not be sure. As I carried the corpse away through the yard, suddenly Ringo showed up in the trees above me! YAY! I was so happy to see her!

Here's some pics from this morning --

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0424-600ringo3.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0424-600ringo4.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0424-600ringo5.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0424-600ringo6.jpg

http://kcvideo.com/squirrels/squirrels/11.0424-600ringo7.jpg

I have been a bit worried because she is looking skinny compared to a couple months ago. See how thin she looks in the front shoulder area? Do squirrels lose their "winter fat" come springtime? Is that all it is? Is this normal?

As spring greens everything up, she has not been seen as much. I still have seen her every day - but only once a day lately, rather than multiple times per day.

Is it OK for me to continue adding updates to this post like this?
Or should I start new threads to update?
Or am I posting too much about Ringo?

[Kristal]

My Rifa is looking slim since she lost her winter fur. That could be all it is :)

[Ronda]

I love all the pics and stories about Ringo, and would definitely call her a success story - so if you do start a new thread about her..maybe in the Success Stories section?... at any rate please keep posting, you have beautiful photography, and there can never be enough squirrel postings!

The Bald Eagle shots were magnificent...when I actively rehabbed birds of prey were my specialty..I still have a soft spot for them.... but they gotta stay away from my fuzzers!

[Kristal]

I love your photos, too. Maybe you should keep a single thread like Stosh did and ask to have it moved if it gets very long and you want to :)

[crazysquirrels]

DON"T FEED Avacodo skin. Posionius. The meat is the only safe part. The skin and seed will kill them. Just an FYI. Your girl is beautiful. Love the pics. That eagle's take off was so powerful it destroyed that branch. Or it was too fat for it. Looked great either way.

[kcpopps]

It's been awhile - here's an update on Ringo. She is now about a year and a half old. I still see her and give her treats just about every day... but she is free in the wild at the same time. I had been watching for pregnancy last fall and this spring... but she never really showed that I could tell. But then one day a few weeks ago, I noticed the two rear nipples on her belly were wet and obviously being used!

This week I saw the babies for the first time. Lo and behold they were in the same box that Ringo was evicted from last year! I really didn't think it was being used. Anyway, after being upset that the neighborhood squirrels had evicted her, now she has reclaimed the box for her birth nest - all is good! :)

I did some video this week of the babies on their very first day coming out of the nest. The first minute of the video is of day old goslings... and then the final three minutes is squirrel video.
It's on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDInqWRbNHE

Can I embed YouTube videos here?

This is a rehab success story! Thanks to Operation Wildlife in Linwood, Kansas (http://owl-online.org/) for the rehab which saved a life and has now led to reproduction!

[island rehabber]

:goodpost oh that was SO much fun! What a great video --- all the springtime sounds and that beautiful scenery. Funny I never thought of Kansas like that.....:D. Ringo has such a beautiful face -- a real poster squirrel. You are so lucky to be able to follow her life and see her babies!

[redwuff]

Love love love Ringo and her babies.

[kcpopps]

We live on the edge of a 100 acre lake... lake scenes can look about the same anywhere in the country. It is Kansas though, and there are fields of grain nearby! :thumbsup

Here's another video of Ringo... from March, 2 minutes
http://youtu.be/fhJ5p8-PjXo

[skippy]

What a great video. Love the sounds of spring. The goslings are precious and the two little heads popping out at the end of your video was priceless.
Thanks for the smile!:)

[skarabrae]

Amazing video! :thankyou for posting it.

[kcpopps]

Thanks for watching! My favorite shot is the two heads popping out at the end too :thumbsup

I don't think the babies are going to share Ringo's "tameness". They run and hide when anyone gets too close. They haven't been handled at all - and the first sight of human was just like in the video - when they were old enough to peek out the hole the first time, they soon saw me!

They're now venturing out a little more each day. In the past few days, they've mapped out the reaches of the tree they were born in, and now are starting to explore the connecting area. Very soon they'll just merge into the community, and I won't know them from any of the other wild squirrels. And that's the way it should be. It's not about me. Besides, I couldn't handle 3 Ringo's stalking me for treats every day!

Ringo is still wild too. She's not a pet. She just knows me. She is spoiled by our relationship - but not dependent on me for survival. I like that. :peace

[jakid709]

:jump Your Ringo's story is so like my Rocky's. After I released her, shortly after winter begin, she was chased out of her original box. I was so mad at the other squirrels for chasing her out, I remember one night after feeding her (it was cold-Georgia cold) she kept trying to get into her nest and all I hear is noise of squirrels fighting, then my baby comes out. I tried to get her to come back to me( I was going to put her in her soft cage), but she wouldn't come. She found her own shelter and was fine. I had my husband build her a new and improved box with a porch and roof overhang. For a couple of days we left it on the ground with the roof off, i would sit on the ground and feed her getting her to go into the box. Then we added the roof, in and out playing. I put a dirty t-shirt( my scent) in the nest and we posted it near our porch. She has lived in it with no problems. It is such a joy to step out on the porch on a rainy day and look over at her house and see her pancaked on her porch watching the rain.
I even have almost the same bird feeder swing, here is her in it enjoying March madness with her basketball.:goodpost

[stepnstone]

Just caught up on this thread, Ringo is beautiful! I'm happy for you she has hung around to share her life. :grouphug
I had a wild that was very friendly with me, I built her a nest box and got to share the birth of her babies from it. She has long since been gone but two of her babies still live in the trees here and still come for handouts.

[kcpopps]

I made a new video of Ringo today. She's 2 and a half years old now, will be 3 in the fall of 2013.

http://youtu.be/-5n5GAKHOOU

[TubeDriver]

Great to see that she is doing well! :thumbsup

[island rehabber]

I made a new video of Ringo today. She's 2 and a half years old now, will be 3 in the fall of 2013.

http://youtu.be/-5n5GAKHOOU

That is awesome, kcpopps! This thread is such a strong reminder that when we rescue and raise and release, our squirrels can and do succeed in the wild for years to come! How lucky you are that you can keep an eye on her, too. Best of both worlds!

[kcpopps]

:thankyou Yes she's doing fine - hope I can help her have a longer than average lifespan. She should be having a second litter soon. I'll update here then...!

[MJS]

:wave123 LOVE YOUR VIDEOS...I'M SURE IT'S NICE TO HAVE A GOOD FRIEND ALWAYS READY TO JUMP ONTO YOUR SHOULDER WHEN YOU GO OUTSIDE!!! :tilt