# Squirrel meat



## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

Okay I know there have been threads about this before and I even chimed in and said I wouldn't want my dogs to eat squirrel (Even though my Min Pins occasionally catch them on their own) because I'd be afraid someone may have poisoned them and wouldn't want my dogs to possibly be harmed by that. Obviously if a squirrel is running around acting and looking fine it probably is fine and I doubt that I've ever even seen one that's been poisoned so I don't really know why I have such a problem with it. Hubby thinks we should because he shoots them all the time and just throws them out into the woods. We have an over abundance of them on our property because we have 14 pecan trees. 
Should I look at this differently and just use the meat for my dogs? For some reason this just seems gross to me. He probably shoots one or 2 a day so it would be free meat.... Opinions?


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## RachelsaurusRexU (Sep 4, 2010)

Would he clean them for you and, if so, would it make you feel better if they were cleaned and frozen?


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## twoisplenty (Nov 12, 2008)

If he would clean them, I would feed them after a good long freezing of course


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

He would clean them but is there a reason they'd NEED to be frozen for a while? I mean, do they carry some disease that can be harmful if they're eaten raw?


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## DaneMama (Jun 27, 2008)

They can carry parasites, which would be taken care of by freezing. As long as they're cleaned and frozen I would feed them.


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## Payton Leeroy (Jan 8, 2012)

Does he shoot rabbits for the dogs? Honestly, I don't see a whole lot of difference between feeding squirrels and rabbits. Your dogs would probably love it.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

We do have rabbits on our property too but we both really like rabbits and he doesn't shoot them. (Doesn't really have a problem shooting anything else...) So when we say parasites, are we talking internal, like worms, or external, like fleas and ticks? And if the meat does need to be frozen, how long should it be. I don't know why this seems so strange to me. He's literally outside shooting one while I'm typing. :shocked:


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## Thunder409 (Jan 10, 2012)

I see it as being free meat. I really don't think anything is wrong with it, and if you have an overabundance of squirrel...why not? 

I would do the same thing but
1. I don't have a gun
2. I live in the Chicago suburbs...where everyone calls the cops for anything.


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## naturalfeddogs (Jan 6, 2011)

We fed squirrel a couple of years ago, and ours didn't like it.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

naturalfeddogs said:


> We fed squirrel a couple of years ago, and ours didn't like it.


Well I know my Min Pins like it since they've provided it for themselves a few times. I went out to find Bailey in the act of killing one one day and when she saw me coming she thought I was going to take it away from her so she started eating it as fast as she could. She held it between her front paws and ripped it's head off. Not pretty....
I guess we'll give it a shot! (Pun intended of course) :heh:


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## naturalfeddogs (Jan 6, 2011)

I think its an aquired taste!:hungry:


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## liquid (Dec 28, 2011)

Donna Little said:


> Well I know my Min Pins like it since they've provided it for themselves a few times. I went out to find Bailey in the act of killing one one day and when she saw me coming she thought I was going to take it away from her so she started eating it as fast as she could. She held it between her front paws and ripped it's head off. Not pretty....
> I guess we'll give it a shot! (Pun intended of course) :heh:


Oh gosh, that imagery! The grossness of the squirrel and the cuteness of a Min Pin chomping away at its head made me LOL! :lol:


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## erinwagner (Aug 30, 2010)

Awesome....we shoot a few each weekend at the cabin....I'm going to tell hubby that as long as he cleans them and we freeze them the boys will have some extra meat....love this board.


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## Rodeo (Sep 11, 2011)

Hmmm I've been thinking about asking bf for a couple of squirrels. He's been shooting them all week and was going to fix some for us but he's been sick. I'm sure the pups would love some.


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## shellbell (Sep 24, 2011)

I would love to have some free squirrel meat, you should consider yourself lucky!


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## Rodeo (Sep 11, 2011)

He gave me four squirrels!! :biggrin1::biggrin1::biggrin1:


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## RachelsaurusRexU (Sep 4, 2010)

Any squirrel I've ever dealt with has been LOADED with fleas, but if he skins them for you, you won't have to worry about that.


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## Rodeo (Sep 11, 2011)

RachelsaurusRexU said:


> Any squirrel I've ever dealt with has been LOADED with fleas, but if he skins them for you, you won't have to worry about that.


Mine are already cleaned


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## Dude and Bucks Mamma (May 14, 2011)

I would feed them as well.


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## Tobi (Mar 18, 2011)

I'd feed em, i hit one leaving our house one time... clearly dead i had only run over its head, so i picked it up cleaned it and i fed it to Tobi... he loved it, I'm not to worried about parasites and the sort, most of them live in the gut which I removed, everything else he ate, heart, lungs, liver etc.


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## Donna Little (May 31, 2011)

RachelsaurusRexU said:


> Any squirrel I've ever dealt with has been LOADED with fleas, but if he skins them for you, you won't have to worry about that.


He'll definitely be skinning them so all the little fleas can stay outside where they belong. Several years ago I kept hearing something under my garden tub and I thought it was a snake because it sounded like slithering. We opened the vent up and sitting right in front of us was an entire opossum family. :shocked: After giving it a little thought we just put the vent cover back on and left mama alone to raise her family assuming they'd go away after they were weaned. A few weeks later the babies started venturing out and going in my backyard. Bailey caught and killed one first. I saw her with it dying in her mouth and within seconds 1000's of fleas started running up Bailey's face off of this baby opossum. I took it away, made her stay outside, and gave her a Capstar. A few nights later I let everyone to potty before bed and when I came back in Lily, one of my Chihuahuas was sitting in the corner of the bedroom with a dead baby. She was so proud of herself. I knew this was not gonna be good... When I got to where she was I could see the fleas crawling off of the baby and onto her. I had a TINY bit of Frontline spray so I chose to spray the carpet (we don't have carpet anymore) to kill the ones in the room but I had used my last Capstar on Bailey. I bathed her, then sat and picked what seemed like a million fleas off of her. So much fun.
It's like a crazy little dog circus around here alllllll the time..... :bounce:


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