My squirrelly neighbor

I know I probably shouldn't be writing about this, but I was surprised at how the incident made me feel, and, well, writing is what I do, especially when I get stirred up about something.

A couple of years ago I was trying to be friendly to a neighbor I didn't really know.  He was building something behind the fence in his yard.  I inquired about it and he told me it was a dog run.  I thought that was kind of a weird answer, since it was a big, fenced in area.

I later find out that he lied to me because he had been creating a marijuana garden.

Then, just the other day, we noticed he had a pellet gun and he was shooting up in his tree, while his dog was going crazy running around.  The man followed a squirrel from tree to tree, trying to shoot it. The dog, you see, had treed the squirrel earlier and one can only conclude that our neighbor was trying to shoot the squirrel out of the tree so his dog could have it.  (This is the same dog that tore apart a poor squirrel who had fallen off the limb of a tree this past winter.)

Anyway, watching that grown man shoot at an innocent squirrel just so his dog could have it just made me sick.  It was only hours before that a squirrel in my backyard made me smile as he diligently searched for--and found--a place to hide his nut.  I love watching our little brown squirrels.

One day, many years ago, my mom and I watched a squirrel move its nest from a neighbor's tree to a willow tree up the road.  Back and forth it went, carrying its babies in its mouth.  Unfortunately, unbeknownst to the squirrel, its new home was slated to be cut down soon after he moved in!

I know that people hunt squirrels and that they, in fact, enjoy the challenge, and the food.  Whatever.  But please don't do it in the back yard, just for fun.  I think it shows a serious lack of judgment.  What if my grand-kids had been playing in the back yard?  

Imagine my surprise to learn that with a valid Michigan hunting license, it is perfectly legal to hunt squirrels in Michigan, in your back yard, if they are doing damage, or about to do damage on private property, which, of course, was clearly not the case.

This was a situation where someone was just being mean.  Honestly, I have to wonder about the mindset of someone who does something like this.

I would like to suggest that a little restraint would be a good thing.  With all that we have going on in this world, let's show a little kindness, even to God's little creatures. 

Okay, I'm done for now.  Thanks for listening.  Feel free to share your thoughts on this.

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com