Old Man Winter

arrived today in the form of a Nor'easter.



The savaging begins.

I've written before on this blog about the idea of building squirrel shelters.  Since then I found out about squirrel houses in Thompkins Square Park  and Washington Square Park: squirrel-houses-at-washington-square-park

Bernie Goetz,  who knows how tough winter is on squirrels, has been involved in both these projects. If they're not lucky, squirrels can freeze to death.

Speaking of being lucky, I saw Lucky sitting up in his tree watching the snow fall. He would not even come down for a nut. I believe Lucky lives alone in a nest high up in that tree (see picture below) because I've never seen another squirrel go near it. Lucky is very territorial. But alas it is a roofless nest and there's nobody else to snuggle with. I worry about Mr. Lucky.


Call me Lucky

The Story of Lucky

Here's a little background on this squirrel called Lucky:

He was looking pretty bad when we first found him:
http://thenewyorksquirrel.blogspot.com/2009/11/post-mortem.html

We decided to try to catch him so we set out a trap:
http://thenewyorksquirrel.blogspot.com/2009/11/trapping-squirrel.html

As you can see, he was too smart for us! But there was a happy ending
http://thenewyorksquirrel.blogspot.com/2009/11/happy-ending.html

And that's how he got the name Lucky:
http://thenewyorksquirrel.blogspot.com/2009/11/most-happy-fella.html



Housing for Squirrels

I'd like to send out an appeal to everyone, but especially to the pet owners of Stuyvesant Town and Peter Cooper Village, who love watching the squirrels with their dogs. After their walk the dogs go back inside their warm cozy homes, while the squirrels they were watching remain outside to brave the weather with nothing but their warm winter coats. Couldn't these good-hearted residents who lovingly care for their dogs, think about starting a project to take care of their beautiful squirrels? The squirrels belong to all of us.

There's a blizzard moving in now, and the youngest ones have no idea what they're in for. Some manage to squeeze into holes in the trees, but I hear a lot of squealing coming from the holes, so I guess there's not enough room in the inn for everyone.

There's one black baby squirrel on the other side of Lucky's park, whom I've recently befriended. He's as soft and fuzzy as a stuffed animal. Previously shy, he has learned to trust me and comes right up to me now with his large, beautiful eyes looking right at me. I wish I could bring him home and set him on my bed where he looks like he belongs! And there are two other black babies over in the western end of the park that are not even old enough to understand what's happening  when a nut is thrown at them! This is typical baby squirrel behavior. It scares them away-- maybe they're genetically programmed to dodge gun shots?

I hope they'll be able to weather this storm that is now moving quickly up the East Coast.