January 21, 2012

White Dog and The White Dog Army want to remind all of our friends that today is National Squirrel Appreciation Day. Although we have no little furry pigeons to celebrate with in our area, we want to provide a special tribute from afar.

 YoYoMa, the Meister Jokester, offers some levity to share with your neighborhood pests friends:

Q. Why did the squirrel sleep on his stomach?
A. To keep his nuts warm!

Q: How do you catch a mechanically inclined squirrel?
A: Climb a tree and act like a 9/16 12N nut.

Q: How do you catch a Polynesian squirrel?
A: Climb a tree and act like a coconut. ...

A police officer sees a man driving around with a pickup truck full of Squirrels. He pulls the guy over and says...
"You can't drive around with squirrels in this town! Take them to the zoo immediately."
The guy says "OK"... and drives away.
The next day, the officer sees the guy still driving around with the truck full of squirrels, and they're all wearing sun glasses. He pulls the guy over and demands...
"I thought I told you to take these squirrels to the zoo yesterday?"
The guy replies...
"I did . . . today I'm taking them to the beach!"

Quinn did a bit of scholarly research about the Squirrels that live in New Mexico, although his research agreed with our observations that we have NO squirrels that live in our neighborhood.  All of the White Dog Army loves to watch and stalk the Prairie Dog communities out on the mesa where we hike sometimes.

 Chipmunks: Gray-footed Chipmunk, Gray-collared Chipmunk, Cliff Chipmunk, Least Chipmunk, Colorado Chipmunk, Hopi Chipmunk

Ground Squirrels: Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrel, Mexican Ground Squirrel, Spotted Ground Squirrel, Thirteen-Lined Ground Squirrel, Rock Squirrel

Tree Squirrels:  Albert's Squirrel, Arizona Gray Squirrel, Mexican Fox Squirrel, Red Squirrel

Antelope Squirrels: White-Tailed Antelope Squirrel, Harris's Antelope Squirrel, Texas Antelope Squirrel

Prairie Dogs, Marmots

Puff, our farm girl from Kansas, knows all about how tasty the furry ones are (if you are fast enough to catch one). Here is her favorite recipe for the delicacy:

Squirrel Delight Thanks to Realto Nosky for sending in this recipe. ~ 1 - 2 squirrels, quartered ~ 1/4 cup olive oil ~ salt ~ pepper ~ fresh chopped rosemary Par boil the squirrels for 10 minutes. Place in a large skillet with the olive oil. Season to taste with the salt and pepper. Sprinkle on the rosemary. Add water to pan to just the top of the meat. Cover and simmer for 3 hours. Serve with mashed potatoes. Enjoy.  Nuka, shared a great literary contribution made in honor of la ardilla (“Squirrel” in Spanish) : The Squirrel by Anonymous Whisky, frisky, Hippity hop; Up he goes To the tree top! Whirly, twirly, Round and round, Down he scampers To the ground. Furly, curly What a tail! Tall as a feather Broad as a sail! Where's his supper? In the shell, Snappity, crackity, Out it fell. And if you are feeling very festive, White Dog suggests you make a few of these and hang them where your tree rodent friends can enjoy them: Take a pinecone and tie a string around the center with about 4' left for hanging. Use a butterknife or spoon to fill all the crevasses with peanut butter. Roll in birdseed, then hang it outside from a tree or other support. You might want to use a thin wire to hang it, as one squirrel we know keeps chewing through the string and dragging the treat away! So there you have it, all of the makings for a terrific Squirrel Appreciation Day...now, get out there and let  little the bushy tails know just HOW much you care!