I was thinking about the time I nailed that squirrel...

[Ex-MA Hole]

...and had to laugh...

I'm quoting myself from another forum...it's an old post that I happened upon for some reason...

My old boss (many moons ago) was a member of PETA. He ALWAYS dressed impeccably. Always. He once told me that he ironed his socks. He was in his early 30's and wore a bow tie. 'nuff said?

I picked him at Logan airport. He didn't want his luggage (all leather, of course) in the trunk with my camping gear, because (gasp)- it might get dirty. I was driving, he was the passenger. I saw a squirrel run across the street.

I remember my Driver's Ed. teacher tell me 2 things:
1. You stop for a squirrel, I will flunk you. They deserve to be killed.
2. You see an animal crossing the road, aim for it. By the time you get to it, it will be out of the way.

So, being a good doobie, I aimed for the squirrel.

The little guy stopped when he saw me.

I hit him dead on with my left front wheel. Squirrel carcass EVERYWHERE. Unfortunately, the windows of the car were open. Yes, we heard the thump. Then the crush, then were showered with squirrel kibbles. Not only me, but his prized luggage. A rather large chuck of what looked like a hind leg his my sunroof and rolled onto his lap.

I couldn't stop laughing. He, on the other hand, wasn't impressed. All he kept saying was "I can't believe that you aimed for him". Over, and over, and over, and over again.

Yeah, I had a new job a couple of weeks later.

[AZRedhawk44]

Untrue.  No pics.   

[Ron]

That one commercial where the squirrels high five after making the car swerve is soo true.

I've seen the damn things pausing at the side of the road and then run out at the last second. I just ignore them and haven't hit one yet.

I did cream a rabbit (hare actually) though using my ignore them method. It was a big one and I was afraid of the mess I'd see when I got home.

[AmbulanceDriver]

Reminds me of an incident that happened a couple years ago.  Mom was driving my younger siblings somewhere, and sure enough, a squirrel darted out in front of the car and literally stood up in front of her (almost daring her to hit him).  She tried to avoid, but just didn't have enough time.  Bumper hit him square in the head, and you know, apparently a steel bumper will ring if you hit a squirrel with it just right?  

Mom was of course mortified, but my younger brothers were laughing hysterically at the "gong" sound of the bumper.  We still give her a bad time about it to this day....  :)

[makattak]

I don't think I've ever killed a squirrel. However, my funniest memory of a squirrel while I was driving:

I was on the way to our Church while I was a teenager and while driving along, this squirrel darts out of the woods beside the road and rockets towards the car. There's no way I would have been able to avoid it, so I wait for the bump.

Only, there's only a thump. As in, I get the sound of having hit something, but the car doesn't feel as though it ran over anything.

I glance into the rearview window and see a squirrel rolling along the road, hop up and dart back into the woods whence he came.

I have to laugh when I realized: he hit me! He ran into the side of the tire, bounced off and ran back into the woods.

I still chuckle thinking about the odds of that happening at 50 miles an hour.

[Regolith]

Never hit a squirrel with a car myself.  I see a lot of dead ones on the roads around here, though.

I remember one time seeing a squirrel fall out of a tree, though.  It hit the concrete head first with an audible *thud.*  After a moment or two, it got back up and started weaving its way woozily back to the its tree.  Funniest damn thing I ever saw.

Also, did you know that if you hit a ground squirrel in just the right place with a .22lr, it will jump two feet into the air before expiring? 

[AmbulanceDriver]

Never hit a squirrel with a car myself.  I see a lot of dead ones on the roads around here, though.

I remember one time seeing a squirrel fall out of a tree, though.  It hit the concrete head first with an audible *thud.*  After a moment or two, it got back up and started weaving its way woozily back to the its tree.  Funniest damn thing I ever saw.

Also, did you know that if you hit a ground squirrel in just the right place with a .22lr, it will jump two feet into the air before expiring?  

I've thought about going squirrel hunting, but don't think they're considered a game animal here in OR.  Might have to look into it.

Dare I ask, but what does squirrel taste like?  (And so help me, if someone says "like squirrel"....)

P.S.  Or, "like chicken"

[Nick1911]

I've thought about going squirrel hunting, but don't think they're considered a game animal here in OR.  Might have to look into it.

Dare I ask, but what does squirrel taste like?  (And so help me, if someone says "like squirrel"....)

P.S.  Or, "like chicken"

It's pretty unremarkable.  Reminded my of pork, mostly.

[Ex-MA Hole]

I have a lot of then in my yard.  I have one red one, which I'm told is REALLY bad.  I guess they do a lot of damage.

I was watching him move for a bit one day and decided to pop the little bugger...

Loaded the 121 with a CB, tried to get him through the scope and all I could see was tan?

Looked up and a deer was in front of him.

Yeah, not going to take a deer with a .22CB.

[Nick1911]

I have a lot of then in my yard.  I have one red one, which I'm told is REALLY bad.  I guess they do a lot of damage.

I was watching him move for a bit one day and decided to pop the little bugger...

Loaded the 121 with a CB, tried to get him through the scope and all I could see was tan?

Looked up and a deer was in front of him.

Yeah, not going to take a deer with a .22CB.

See!  That's why you always grab the 30-06.  Multipurpose round for life's little surprises! 

[charby]

Braised squirrel with carrots and potatoes is pretty tasty.

[Regolith]

I've thought about going squirrel hunting, but don't think they're considered a game animal here in OR.  Might have to look into it.

Dare I ask, but what does squirrel taste like?  (And so help me, if someone says "like squirrel"....)

P.S.  Or, "like chicken"

I think gray squirrel are considered varmints, and are fair game.  I'm pretty sure ground squirrels are treated the same way (ground squirrels are somewhat like prairie dogs, rather than regular tree squirrels; they have no bushy tails and live in holes in the ground). 

I've never hunted tree squirrels, so I don't know what they taste like. In Nevada, where I do most of my hunting, ground squirrels are considered pests and aren't eaten, rather like coyotes.  'Sides, they also have a reputation for carrying bubonic plague, so you don't really want to handle them anyway.

Edit:  Doing some more research.  Gray squirrels require a hunting license to take; not sure about ground squirrels (Oregon's F&W website is poorly designed).  Washington ground squirrels are under protected species, so either they require a license or are completely off limits.  Not sure. 

Gray squirrel season is as follows:

OPEN SEASON: Aug. 28 - Nov. 10
BAG LIMIT: 5 squirrels daily.
POSSESSION LIMIT: 15 in possession.
OPEN AREA: All units west of the eastern boundary of the Santiam, McKenzie, Indigo, Sprague and
Interstate units. Exception: No bag limit or closed season in that part of the Rogue Unit south of Rogue Rvr
and S Fork Rogue Rvr and north of Hwy 140.
OPEN SEASON: Sept. 11 - Oct. 19
BAG LIMIT: 3 squirrels daily.
POSSESSION LIMIT: 6 in possession.
OPEN AREA: White Rvr and Hood units.

[Monkeyleg]

You're a mean one, Ex-Ma Hole.

OK, another story.

A friend of mine was a mean-looking biker type back in the 70's. He was tooling along on his beater Harley when he hit a chipmunk. He loved animals, and couldn't stand to see the chipmunk in pain. He rolled his bike back and, to put it out of its misery, stomped on it with his heavy motorcycle boots.

He looked up and saw a car stopped. Inside were three nuns watching him.

[280plus]

Also, did you know that if you hit a ground squirrel in just the right place with a .22lr, it will jump two feet into the air before expiring? 

Works just as good with .177 pellets. They actually jump around like that for a few seconds. Kind of grisly, the story is they're dead but their body just doesn't know it yet. I've also see a car do that to them.

[Tallpine]

Back when we lived in western CO, we became convinced that the little striped ground squirrels (the ones that all the tourists feed at campgrounds) have some sort of rite of passage where they have to run across the road right in front of vehicles. 

[Regolith]

Works just as good with .177 pellets. They actually jump around like that for a few seconds. Kind of grisly, the story is they're dead but their body just doesn't know it yet. I've also see a car do that to them.

The ones I've seen only do it once.  When they hit the ground they're usually ex-squirrels.

It's almost like they think the ground is attacking them.

Another fun fact:  Ground squirrels are curious to the point of idiocy.  Either that or they're cannibals.  In densely populated areas, if you kill one, it's almost a given that one or two squirrels will pop out of their holes to see what the hub-bub is about, and walk right up to the one you just shot, presenting you with yet another target.

They'll do this even if you're standing a mere 20 yards away.

[TMM]

only live animal i've hit is a deer. i was going about 35 at night, saw a bunch of glowing eyeballs in the road ahead, so i started slowing down. about 5 deer were in the road, 4 ran away while one stood in the road, dead center of my lane. i was down to about 15mph when the brakes locked up and i hit the poor sucker. she bounced off and fell down, and i thought i had knocked her out but she got up and hauled ass out of the way... i'm pretty glad my airbags didn't go off there.

oh, and i have a vegetarian friend who will slam the brakes if A BIRD FLIES BY HIS CAR....

TMM

[Viking]

You're a mean one, Ex-Ma Hole.

OK, another story.

A friend of mine was a mean-looking biker type back in the 70's. He was tooling along on his beater Harley when he hit a chipmunk. He loved animals, and couldn't stand to see the chipmunk in pain. He rolled his bike back and, to put it out of its misery, stomped on it with his heavy motorcycle boots.

He looked up and saw a car stopped. Inside were three nuns watching him.

Was it you who had the story about the house-breaking squirrel who got splattered by a .45?

[Nick1911]

only live animal i've hit is a deer. i was going about 35 at night, saw a bunch of glowing eyeballs in the road ahead, so i started slowing down. about 5 deer were in the road, 4 ran away while one stood in the road, dead center of my lane. i was down to about 15mph when the brakes locked up and i hit the poor sucker. she bounced off and fell down, and i thought i had knocked her out but she got up and hauled ass out of the way... i'm pretty glad my airbags didn't go off there.

oh, and i have a vegetarian friend who will slam the brakes if A BIRD FLIES BY HIS CAR....

TMM

I once hit a European Starling with my car.

[jackdanson]

I was thinking about the time I nailed that squirrel...

Oh... in your car, I get it now.

[Boomhauer]

I once hit a European Starling with my car.

I once hit a frickin' OWL with my car.

Was taking a girl back to her house early one morning, we were doing about 50 down the road, and I saw a whitish feathry object catch some of the headlight beam before hitting the windshield with a sickening smack.

Oh... in your car, I get it now.

IN the car or WITH the car?

[Ex-MA Hole]

IN the car or WITH the car?

Yes.

 

[Tuco]

A squirrel or eight took up space in an attic over an upper flat I rented years ago.   They'd run along the railing of a deck, along the eves, and dash up under a loose soffit, gaining access to the ceiling space above my bathroom.

I was still keeping late hours at that age, and was surprised by the actual noise those critters made while (assumedly) sleeping.  I recall their respiratory rate being well over 100 breaths per minute.  After losing sleep,  I loaded up the old Crossman CO2 pistol and emptied out on those suckers every chance I got.  Luckily for me, within a week of starting my assault, the owner decided to re-roof the place, and the soffit was replaced.

I have seen, with my own eyes, the father of a friend, in fresh snow, sneak up on a fat fox squirrel at a bird feeder, grab it by the tail, and fling it up into a tree.  Don't try that at home, boys and girls.  Squirrel bites can be pretty nasty.

[Monkeyleg]

Was it you who had the story about the house-breaking squirrel who got splattered by a .45?

Yes.

[41magsnub]

I've hit a couple of pheasants over the years, bounced them off my windshield.  Never stopped, I assume they were dead.  

I've hit a large number of smaller birds as well, last year I was driving way too fast on a gravel road and took out 3 what looked like mourning doves at once.

I've never hit a squirrel or rabbit, hit a large number of gophers though.  The only deer I ever hit was in the middle of the day around a blind curve, had time to slow down to about 15 MPH and knocked it on its side and sent it skidding down the road where it got up and limped off.  All I had to do to my truck was pick some hair out of the bumper.