Hilarie Stelfox: Save our squirrels

Nov 7 2009 by Hilarie Stelfox, Huddersfield Daily Examiner

ONE of our neighbours has been trapping and getting rid of squirrels.

Apparently, he doesn’t like the way they steal the food he puts out for the birds, and considers them vermin

He’s obviously been successful because we no longer have any of these delightfully entertaining and attractive creatures in our garden.

You can see from this last sentence where my sympathies lie. They’re certainly not with my neighbour.

It has been open season on grey squirrels for such a long time now that the word vermin (or tree rat) has become inextricably linked with the word squirrel.

In fact, squirrels are nothing like rats. They don’t carry disease, don’t eat rotting waste and, most importantly, don’t have horrid scaly tails. No, Sciurus carolinensis (from the Greek meaning shade tail) has a wonderful fluffed up, elegant and yet amusing-at-the-same-time tail.

Squirrels are definitely one of the cuter animals and they do less harm to the environment than many other species – humankind included.

Of course I speak as one who has suffered from Fluffy Bunny Syndrome most of my life. But, to be fair, I also feel protective of the much less cuddly frogs and toads that live in our garden and I’d be just as upset if someone was torturing them.

As a veterinary surgeon, the Man-in-Charge is bound by a code of professional ethics that says he should provide care and treatment for sick or injured wild animals, without charge.

It’s something he’s happy to do and over the years he’s brought home a succession of healed wild birds, bats and hedgehogs to be released into the woods near our house.

But one animal he can’t help, without breaking the law, is a grey squirrel. Although the native red squirrel is protected by law, it is an offence to keep a grey squirrel or to put one back into the wild.

For this reason the RSPCA has made it official policy to destroy all squirrels handed to the organisation by members of the public.

The Man says the veterinary profession feels to be trapped between the proverbial rock and a hard place. The code of conduct says vets have to do their best for animals in their care while the law of the land effectively demands the death penalty for squirrels.

The piece of legislation that has led to this conundrum, the Destructive Imported Animals Act, dates from 1932.

However, those who think this archaic law gives them the right to do whatever they like to grey squirrels should note that the Wild Mammals (Protection) Act of 1996 makes it an offence to mutilate, kick, beat, nail or otherwise impale, stab, burn, stone, crush, DROWN, drag or asphyxiate any wild mammal (including squirrels) with intent to inflict unnecessary suffering. Of course, like many laws, it’s a matter of interpretation. But I’d say that any gratuitous killing is causing unnecessary suffering.

The grey squirrel has long been the victim of a smear campaign. It is not, as is widely thought, entirely responsible for the demise of the native red squirrel. Greys were introduced in the 1870s from America and adapted well to our countryside. They were larger, stronger, better at surviving our cold winters and had the distinct advantage of being a less attractive colour than the native red-heads. Our little red squirrels, prized for their fur, were hunted until 1927 to make fashionable coats. What’s more their numbers were dramatically reduced by a virus between 1900 and 1920. They really didn’t stand a chance.

Ironically, the grey squirrel itself is now under threat. A genetic mutation has produced a new black squirrel, which is stronger, more aggressive and rapidly taking over in the south. Black could soon be the new grey.

To kill any wild animal, without a really valid reason, is in my view a senseless act. Most wild creatures struggle hard enough for survival, without persecution.

In the days when we had squirrels in our garden we hung one bird feeder in a tree for them and put another on a squirrel-proof pole for the birds. I felt privileged to be able to watch wildlife from the comfort of my own home.

Now I just feel sad – and sickened.