Ethics of Squirrel Hunting

[TimSr]

It was the information given by those most likely to respond and make a decision on charges if there is a complaint. I believe the point being throwing the animal away makes it clear the purpose is to rid a pest and not "hunt". I can tell you in my experience ODNR really does not seem at all interested in dealing with city squirrels or rabbits instead pushing that off on local police.

I'll agree on both counts that city police, and the ODNR (Ohio Dept of Natural Resources aka game warden) would not have a lot of interest in discreet removal of nuisance city squirrels even though it's technically unlawful with a depredation permit. I do not believe that either would advise you that they must be thrown in the trash, and that doing so insulates your from being charged with state game violations, and city non-hunting/trapping ordinances. Maybe an extremely ignorant city police officer, but certainly not a state game warden. There is exception in Ohio game laws for "ridding a pest", so throwing them away as evidence you are "not hunting" serves no purpose.

My town is overpopulated with nuisance city squirrels as well, but they tend to be well fed from bird feeders, and thus more tasty than your average woods, nut eating variety, so I would not advise anybody to throw them away out of bad legal advice from a city police officer. You want to throw them out, its your choice, but it serves no legal purpose and will not help you if you get charged, and could add another state charge.

[bamaranger]

I've shot a lot of "pests" over the years, that I did not eat, groundhogs, coyotes, armadillos, the logic being that they were destructive and that I was doing myself and the landowners a favor by ridding them off the property. I've only met a few people who have eaten any of the above.

I don't see a squirrel in open hardwood tracts as pest and many will attest, they are perfectly edible. And legally, a squirrel is a game animal, and there is a "wanton waste" law here.

My vote, unethical and illegal as well.

[johnwilliamson062]

I doubt that a squirrel is any more related to a rat, than you are to a monkey.

Close enough to convince me then.

My town is overpopulated with nuisance city squirrels as well, but they tend to be well fed from bird feeders, and thus more tasty than your average woods, nut eating variety,

Right now I have a problem on a rental property where squirrels are getting in the dumpster(located below the walnut tree they inhabit). I put a lock on the lid, which no one liked, and the squirrels ate through the plastic top in a manner of days. The tear up the trash bags and carry all sorts of trash half way back to their tree, eat it, which usually seems to include some packaging, then leave it in the yard. The population has exploded. Ten plus squirrels in the tree. It seems chipmunks and rabbits are doing quite well off of the trash left in the yard also. No idea how many chipmunks, but I believe at least 5 rabbits in this .25 acre yard alone. Probably more in the neighbors yards. I can't imagine any taste good eating my tenants scraps and half the plastic packaging.

Easy shot with a pellet rifle from a window to the dumpster. Rat traps would likely work. Live trap and CO or H2O. What am I doing about it? I try to keep a trash bag handy when I visit the property. I guess when the zombie apocalypse arrives I have a few meals ready.

I met a guy who would take his dog for a walk and shoot a squirrel for the dog to have. I didn't see any problem with that.

[scottycoyote]

i didnt read thru all the posts so maybe this was asked and answered, but have you ever tried squirrel? Its actually quite delightful when prepared right, and if you know the trick to skinning them (cut behind the tail method) they are so easy to clean and prep its funny. I have timed myself and i can literally go from untouched dead squirrel to squirrel quartered up and in a ziploc bag ready to freeze in about 3 minutes. I have read the cook books for a couple of well known wild game chefs and more than one had squirrel as their favorite meat to prepare.

I love squirrel hunting...great way to spend time in the woods alone or with friends, you dont have to worry about being shot by some over zealous hunter and you can go pretty much anytime of day, no treestand to worry with, no dragging an animal out of a ravine to process, i just love it. That said i agree with a lot of prior posters. Its one thing to kill a nuisance critter, one thats getting in your attic, etc but its wrong to shoot what i consider a game animal (gray or fox sguirrel) and just leave it. If you want to just kill things id suggest switching to something like coyote or prarie dog etc....or heck give squirrel a try, you might really enjoy it.

[old roper]

Where I live Co we have tree squirrel (Abert) and we have season/bag limit also need small game license. I don't know anyone that hunts them but I'm sure someone does. The Fox and Pine squirrel also has season/bag limit/small game license.

Below is from Co small game reg.

You must take edible parts of game meat home to eat or provide it for human
consumption. Do not leave wounded wildlife (or pos-sibly wounded wildlife) without attempting to track and kill it. Possession of wildlife is evidence
you hunted. Small-game and migratory bird hunters are not required to wear solid daylight, fluorescent orange clothes. However, CPW encourages you to wear fluorescent orange clothes for safety. You must stop at CPW check stations when told to do so.

Violations of Colorado wildlife laws carry point values. You can face suspension of license privileges for up to five years or more if you ac-
cumulate 20 or more points in five years.

[GarandTd]

Unless it's a pest and some form of pest control, killing any game animal, large or small, palatable or not, and leaving it to waste is WRONG.

Killing isn't a sport. It's a necessity. If you want to harvest wildlife for sport, take up fishing. At least in fishing, you can release your catch relatively unharmed back into the environment.

In my youth, when I was an active hunter, the few squirrels that I killed were not consumed by me or my family. They were field dressed, brought home and skinned, then boiled down and fed to the family cat. My youthful pickyness kept me from wanting to eat them, but it was still important to me as a responsible hunter to put the meat and fur to use.

[Pahoo]

Yard Squirrels;
I don't hunt them and when there is a problem, I trap them and take them to their new country home. I have killed them and;
I just shoot-shovel and shut-up. ..

Country Squirrels;
I do hunt them, during the season, definitely cook and eat and as someone already replied, They are delicious, especially the Midwest Grays. .....


Be Safe !!!

[EIB0879]

I grew up eating tree rats. Squirrel dumplings and chicken-fried squirrel mostly. Wish i had somewhere close to hunt them because I would have no problem eating them again.

[NateKirk]

I think it's a bit wasteful to leave them as they lie, but then again, nothing goes to waste in the wild. Just for sport, I would feel better about hunting chipmunks and leaving them then something as big as a squirrel.

[Jack O'Conner]

Your friend is wasteful and reckless. My wife fixes pot pie made with squirrel meat and its a wonderful meal.

Jack

[ZeroJunk]

Squirrels can be a pest and if they are it is fine to rid yourself of the problem and dispose of them however.

If you are hunting them because you like to hunt then you need to eat them. That is what hunting is.

[Boogershooter]

There are simply too many people that love to eat them to just leave them laying. Most would even be willing to clean them if you brought them a mess. I give 3/4 of what I kill away. Not because we don't eat them but because the ones I give them too can't physically go hunt them on their own. I have 4 kids and 2 very fine squirrel dogs. I would be proud to host a hunt for anyone looking to get into squirrel hunting, especially if they bring a kid. I would even cook our harvest in a few different ways to ensure they find a suitable way of consuming them. When you have a renewable resource of meat and you willingly waste it you should be tarred and feathered. A simple fine isn't good enough in my book. I process deer meat before I give it to elders just to ensure it doesn't sit in a freezer and ruin. The op realizes it is wrong and I hope he can show his friend the posts on this forum.

[979Texas]

Well spoken Boogershooter. You raise a good point that even if the hunter does not wish to consume his quarry, then there are always plenty of other people out there that would be very grateful for the meat. And most of them wouldn't mind cleaning and processing the game themselves.

[zukiphile]

I doubt that a squirrel is any more related to a rat, than you are to a monkey. You can call them a tree rat if you like, but rats they are not. In my world, squirrels are good guys, rats are bad guys.

People keep rats as pets. I find that as appalling as eating rodents. Take the hair off a squirrel's tail and stick it in a sewer, and you will have a dead ringer for a norway rat.

I experience squirrels, chipmunks, mice, mosquitoes, deer, crows, rats and groundhogs almost exclusively as pests. I find the sentiment that I need to eat any of those if I kill one peculiar.

[Slamfire]

Replace the wiring harness on your vehicle a couple of times and you will wish wanton destruction on the squirrels in your neighborhood. They are cute and all, but they are even more destructive.


Go Joe!

[JWT]

As my dad told me many years ago...." If you shoot it or catch it you clean it and eat it....or don't shoot or catch it." The main reason I never went duck hunting. Didn't like the taste of them

Squirrel was another thing. I've shot literally hundreds of them when I was a kid and we ate everyone of them. They were delicious! It is definitely wrong to shoot them and leave them. They're small game, not target practice.

[zukiphile]

Squirrel was another thing. I've shot literally hundreds of them when I was a kid and we ate everyone of them. They were delicious! It is definitely wrong to shoot them and leave them. They're small game, not target practice.

Are there any rodents I can kill without being obligated to eat them?

[ZeroJunk]

You could kill every ground hog in the world and it would be OK with me. Sort of kidding, but they are ruining my soybeans not to mention my garden.

[Brian Pfleuger]

I have killed thousands of ground hogs (we call them woodchucks up here) and my uncle who hunts with me has killed more than I. They have never been used for anything more than fertilizer.... back down their hole they go. They're just as edible as squirrels and the meat is probably great, since they live on the farmers best alfalfa.

As I said in the other hunting ethics thread, our ethics are arbitrary. If humans have imagined some use for it then we must kill it according to some set of rules. If we haven't, you may kill it indiscriminately.

[buck460XVR]

If your friend is hunting squirrels and leaving them lay he is being unethical, because he is only hunting them for the thrill of killing them.......sick. If he was eliminating them because they were pests or nuisance animals, then leaving them lay, while not the best thing to do, would not be as bad. In states where squirrels are considered game animals and have seasons and bag limits, leaving them where they fall is not only unethical, but many times illegal. While most hunters enjoy the hunt, the kill is not the climax, only the end. Folks that hunt just to kill are killing for other reasons that the hunt itself. Kinda like spanking your child. Are you doing it for discipline or just because you like to inflict pain on others?

[mitchlizard7896]

Out west we just shoot ground squirrels for fun. In nevada a hunting license is not even required to shoot them. I have tried to eat them but they taste worse then they smell. We use to go threw 1000 rounds of 22 lr a day shooting ground squirrels and never put a dent in the population. Same deal with Jack rabbits and pack rats.

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[johnwilliamson062]

The main reason I never went duck hunting. Didn't like the taste of them

Tried "Duck Blood Soup" or Peking Duck?

As I said in the other hunting ethics thread, our ethics are arbitrary. If humans have imagined some use for it then we must kill it according to some set of rules. If we haven't, you may kill it indiscriminately.

I've simply got better things to do. The ethics for me is if you are wasting a resource someone else has the right and desire to use. Squirrels do not fit in that category. I don't know the growth rate of squirrel populations, but it can't be far behind rabbits.

I've witnessed far too much abuse of people, to include shooting and leaving them to bleed out in the street then to rot like garbage, to worry about a ground squirrel.

[Mobuck]

I don't really care for squirrel as a food item. I don't hunt them except when taking Grandkids out so it's not much of an issue. We bring the carcasses home and feed them to the multitude of cats we have so not really wasted. Considering that we're very likely the only squirrel shooters within a 2(maybe closer to 5) mile radius, I'm not concerned about overuse/waste of the resource.
In other areas, the legal issue of leaving game in the woods un-recovered MAY be a factor.

[GarandTd]

Serial killers often times start with small animals to satisfy they're urge to kill........just saying......

I look forward to taking my son squirrel hunting. It's how I started hunting. Learn some valuable hunting skills in a no pressure, rather casual, and mild weathered environment. Once he gets his hands bloody on some small game he can decide if he wants to pursue larger, more challenging game. Squirrels are a necessary stepping stone IMO for a young hunter. And an excellent start for teaching good hunting ethics.

Now that I'm a little more open minded, I look forward to giving them a taste.

[Brian Pfleuger]

Originally Posted by GarandTd

Serial killers often times start with small animals to satisfy they're urge to kill........just saying.....

That's a direct insult to several members in this thread and you should retract it and apologize. It's also complete BS.

There has been speculation, whether ever proved by study or not I don't know, that disturbed individuals TORTURE animals before becoming killers. Hunting them for SPORT as opposed to *only* hunting them for FOOD is a completely different question, and you know it.