Backyard Gray Squirrels

[MC37493]

Have heard that grey squirrels taste great just never gave much though to eating a backyard squirrel,

I have been thinking about it and it seems all they eat is nuts i have never seen one eating garbage or anything like that, i have tons in my yard and wouldnt mind some extra protein for the freezer

What are your guys thoughts on eating backyard squirrels?

[BOWHUNTER45]

Same as any squirrel ...they eat nothing bad  Especially the ones in my yard ...I go threw a lot of Walnuts that my wife uses for cooking in the winter ...they are fat ....I have killed so many squirrels in my childhood days that I could not kill my pet squirrels ...unless one of those black faze ones show up , then I may need to take him out 

[Kola16]

You won't truly know till you try it. Go for it...

[dkecoleman]

I grew up hunting squirrels in Kentucky. They taste great, especially with gravy and a biscuit. However, grandma said it was bad luck to shoot one in the yard. You've been warned.

[Jonathan_S]

I grew up hunting squirrels in Kentucky. They taste great, especially with gravy and a biscuit. However, grandma said it was bad luck to shoot one in the yard. You've been warned.

Yeah well my wife's grandma said that picking huckleberries ruins the bushes and that's about as dumb as it gets.  I'd poke a clean hole in those squirrels with an airgun and stew 'em up.

[hillbilli]

grays are good.. you can fry the young ones, older squirrels will be tough and will need to be cooked longer. They absorb pepper and spice more than most meats. for baking or grilling try a soy sauce and mustard mix. another option if you like spicy is to boil them in medium or hot salsa until tender- then either just eat them, or fry them once they are cooked through and starting to get tender.. by the way did they change the rules on squirrels in WA? I thought you couldnt hun t them at all?

[littlemac]

Here is the scoop on squirrels from WDFW:

http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/gray_squirrel/

[Natures Way]

 

[Alpinist]

Here's another page from the WDFW with more scoop on squirrels, including the legal status of the various species: http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/tree_squirrels.html

[Varmint_hunter]

Here's another page from the WDFW with more scoop on squirrels, including the legal status of the various species: http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/tree_squirrels.html

"The Western gray squirrel is classified as a threatened species and cannot be hunted, trapped, or killed (WAC 232-12-007). The red squirrel, Douglas squirrel, and Northern flying squirrel are protected species and can be trapped or killed only in emergency situations when they are damaging crops or domestic animals (RCW 77.36.030). A special permit is required in such situations"

 

[Fl0und3rz]

If you are on the wet side and/or near a suburban area, you are likely seeking eastern grey squirrels or fox squirrels.  Game on. There are other threads here that dealt with this, exhaustively.

[Alpinist]

Varmint_hunter failed to quote the important next paragraph from the page:

"The Eastern gray squirrel and Eastern fox squirrel are unclassified and may be trapped or killed year-round as long as you have a hunting license. In such cases, no special trapping permit is necessary for the use of live traps. However, a special trapping permit is required for the use of all traps other than live traps (RCW 77.15.192, 77.15.194; WAC 232-12-142)."

[AspenBud]

One thing to hold in mind is that they can carry plague, something that I believe is endemic to this part of the country.

[Gobble Doc]

Our backyard squirrels are gone.  I don't know where they all went?  We used to have them running all over but now never see any. 

[runamuk]

One thing to hold in mind is that they can carry plague, something that I believe is endemic to this part of the country.

typically its rats and there is info on the cdc these areas are where its endemic

    Northern New Mexico, northern Arizona, and southern Colorado
    California, southern Oregon, and far western Nevada

http://www.cdc.gov/plague/maps/