# What to do with squirrels



## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

When you kill a squirrel, what do you do with it? I kill a lot of squirrels and i just leave them lay, but if there is another option what is it?


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Well you should be eating them but if you are not eating them why are you shooting them?


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## sierra03 (Jan 27, 2005)

Skin them, and make some gloves for your grandma.


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

Gohon said:


> Well you should be eating them but if you are not eating them why are you shooting them?


I am shooting them because its fun and you don't have to eat everything you shoot, thats why i am asking what do with them.


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## Remington 7400 (Dec 14, 2005)

It is irresponsable to shoot a ediable game animal knowing you are going to leave it laying. Either find someone to give the squirrels to, skin and eat them yourself, or quit shooting them!

:******:


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Well, actually you do. For all the obvious reason you should know at 16 years of age, I believe that is what you said you were, that you are breaking state law. In Minnesota, your state, all game animals that have a season placed on them are considered protected by state law. Squirrel season in Minnesota runs from September through February which you should also know. Check your game regulations which again you should know, since a requirement of a small game license is required at 16 and you will find a section titled "Wanton Waste". What you're doing is not only being irresponsible as already noted but breaking the law.


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## Squirrelguy (Jan 23, 2006)

Killing a squirrel (or any other edible animal for that matter) and just letting it go to waste is immoral. Get a good small knife, cut off the tail and head off your squirrel, then cut the hide down the back from the point you cut the head off down to where you cut the tail off, peel off the hide (takes some pulling, but don't give up), cut off the feet, cut down the belly of the squirrel from the top to the bottom, pull out the all the guts, wash it off, and fry it up! Yes, it takes a little work, and yes its "icky" to skin and gut about anything, but in return you get to eat some really good meat and you get the satisfaction of knowing that you provided the meat you are eating and enjoying the sport of hunting like so many people before you. Hunting is a great sport that connects us to our past and teaches all sorts of lessons about life and death and ethics.


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## Cleankill47 (Jan 19, 2006)

Aylor70, try some shatterblast targets. They're fun to shoot.

As for your hunting ethics, I don't see how you can shoot something like a squirrel and not eat it, since it has some of the best-tasting meat in the animal world when properly prepared. In your state you don't need a license if you are hunting on your own land, but you should still only take squirrels that you plan to eat. If you're not going to eat them, then find someone who will, or find something else to shoot. If your problem is like mine when I was younger (no one in the house knows what to do with a game animal), then just ask us here for specific tips, such as skinning, cooking techniques, recipes, etc. That's what the forum is here for.

It's a good feeling when you eat something you've taken yourself, you also know exactly how fresh it is. There's also none of that 'too full' feeling that you get from eating processed junk. You just have to try it yourself to fully understand.

Also, don't forget that one of the things you can get from a squirrel is a good-size piece of fur. There's plenty of at-home tanning kits out there, so go have some fun, but for the sake of all us hunters, make sure you know why you're going to shoot before you do.


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## Camo (Oct 28, 2005)

Parboil for 5 minutes fry and serve


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

Whoa, i think i stated that wrong. Okay, when i shoot them its just around my house. In my first post i said i just left them lay, wrongly stated by me. This might not sound better to anyone, but i feed them to my dog. This is the first year i have ever gotten into hunting and never really thought about it, and i was just wondering if people actually do skin squirrels or if they are worth anything. I do understand our laws and thats why i feed them to dogs/cats. I didn't mean to rub anyone the wrong way with this.


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## Trois_Beaux_Canards (Dec 14, 2005)

In my personal opinion, if you aren't eating it...don't shoot it. I don't care if you feed it to your dog/cat/cheetah. That's what they make kibbles and bits for. 
Some people will feed a lil' to their dog's as a reward, but if you are relying on these squirrels for food, you might want to think about giving up your dog to someone who can afford to feed it. 
Squirrel meat is certainly some of the best tasting meat. You should try it if you haven't.


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

whoa there, i am not relying on squirrel meat to feed him. I shoot a squirrel maybe once or twice a month, and its a little treat to him for being a good dog.


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

Cleankill47 said:


> If your problem is like mine when I was younger (no one in the house knows what to do with a game animal), then just ask us here for specific tips, such as skinning, cooking techniques, recipes, etc. That's what the forum is here for.


See, this is pretty much why I am asking. I am new to this, noone in the hosue knows of what to do with them, so I thought I would ask. But then i am attacked about my ethics. Thats what this forum is for, to ask.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Come on son, now all you are doing is dancing and it isn't a very good dance. First you shoot a lot of squirrels, now it's only one or two a month. Then you just left the lay where they fell, now you feed them to your dog. Then you say you don't have to eat what you shoot because it was fun, now you say you wanted to know what to do and your ethics are being attacked. Yes your ethics were called into question because someone your age should know better. A sportsman doesn't just kill for the sport of killing because it is fun. Hopefully you have learned a lesson here and are capable of just moving on to being a better sportsman. The dancing is transparent and doesn't help you at all.


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## Burly1 (Sep 20, 2003)

You could probably get enough for your squirrel gun to buy another game for your playstation. :eyeroll: Burl


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## Cleankill47 (Jan 19, 2006)

Gohon, that was a little harsh, but it got the message through nonetheless.

Aylor70, look back in my posts for a video link, and it should get you started with understanding how the skinning takes place. Then, your main concerns are simple: anything that isn't meat, take it out. (stomach, liver, lungs, bladder, intestines) Make sure you don't punch holes in any of these things, because they'll contaminate the meat. Make sure you cut or twist off the head, and cut the tail off at the base of the spine. How you cook it mainly depends on how old it is, and what you've got to cook with. Post if you need help, or if there's something you don't understand or aren't sure of.

It's good to see a young person taking up the sport; that's getting harder to see every year. Most adults aren't teaching kids about hunting, either because they think it's not sophisticated or because they never learned it themselves. Even though for most of us it's in our blood. So, instead of hunting, some kids wind up shooting things in the yard to satisfy that primal urge they can't place, wondering why they still feel a little empty, even when the shot flies true...


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

> Gohon, that was a little harsh, but it got the message through nonetheless


I know and I thought twice before saying it. I think Aylor70 simply found himself between a rock and a hard place with so many adults pinging on him for a mistake not that uncommon for a young person. Trying to excuse his way through the situation wasn't going to do anything except draw more criticism. Lesson noted, less learned and move on. Hell even us supposedly adults blunder every once in awhile. This board is proof of that..... :lol:

BTW, for those that want to learn a new way to skin a squirrel check this out. Tried it twice, haven't got the hang to it but will keep trying.
http://photos.imageevent.com/brobert/ho ... QUACKS.wmv

Another trick I was taught was to wet the squirrel down thoroughly and keep the squirrel under a slow running faucet. What makes that darn hair stick to them is the membrane under the skin dries almost instantly and the hair sticks to it and as you know making it almost impossible to remove. By holding under a running faucet of water the membrane will not dry out and the hair will flush away instead of sticking to the squirrels skin.


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## sierra03 (Jan 27, 2005)

Hey im just wondering what most of you do with your gophers you shoot in the summer? Do you blow them in half and drag them home by the intestines? I bet you anything 90% or more of you have shot a gopher or skunk and let it lie. dont lie mr ethicnicality man. I just remember the coyotes and fox have to eat too. I dont hunt squirrels, and I wont eat one either. They are kind of good to have around the farm.

Im still sticking to the gloves idea though.


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## Trois_Beaux_Canards (Dec 14, 2005)

Great link Gohon!

-Hope everything goes better for you aylor70. Tell us how you do, the season is still open for a lil' longer this year.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

If you are talking about prairie dogs I just leave them where they fall unless the rancher or farmer wants them buried or hauled off. However, I'm not aware of any state that classifies them as a game animal, though a few states have certain species protected from hunting. Believe they come under the heading of varmint or pest. Apples to oranges.........


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## sierra03 (Jan 27, 2005)

Well I know the striped gophers would make excellent socks if you ask me.


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

Gohon said:


> If you are talking about prairie dogs I just leave them where they fall unless the rancher or farmer wants them buried or hauled off. However, I'm not aware of any state that classifies them as a game animal, though a few states have certain species protected from hunting. Believe they come under the heading of varmint or pest. Apples to oranges.........


why aren't you eating them. And, you said in an earlier post, someone my age should know better. Someone my age that does a lot of hunting or has hunted a while should, as i see by everyone elses posts it is automatic post, but me, how do you just expect me to know this stuff. This is my first year hunting. ever. my first hunt ever was a pheasant hunt this season. So try to put yorself in my shoes and see where i am coming from before bashing my ethics.



Burly1 said:


> You could probably get enough for your squirrel gun to buy another game for your playstation. Burl


I don't have a playstation, can't afford one and mommy and daddy don't buy everything for me, come up with a different insult. Saved up all my money for a 10/22 and im not selling it. think your pretty cool bashin a 16 year old don't you, well your not, really. your not impressing anyone.


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

Gohon said:


> BTW, for those that want to learn a new way to skin a squirrel check this out. Tried it twice, haven't got the hang to it but will keep trying.
> http://photos.imageevent.com/brobert/ho ... QUACKS.wmv


thanks, now i know how to do it, see guys its not that hard to HELP instead of critisize me and just leave me out to dry there. Thansk for the link man, and i will forgive you for bashin me before, even though it was very harsh. Pretty sure this could easily be my last post on the forum. Headin over to predatormasters. i have asked this same question there and didnt get bashed once, just got useful information.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

> why aren't you eating them. And, you said in an earlier post, someone my age should know better


Pay attention now.... it's lesson time. Prairie dogs are NOT game animals. They are pest..... like a rat.... a gopher......no one eats them.......most states have no season......no limit......now you know better.



> how do you just expect me to know this stuff


No one expects you to just know better....... but at you age surely you have read books, surly you have talked to other sportsmen or adults.........surely you have ask questions of others. If no, then maybe you should put your gun away until you do these things. I know it has to be tough for you if you have no mentor around the house to guide you and help you out but shooting a gun and killing animals is a serious adventure to say the least. The fun is not in killing just to be killing but the hunt itself, the marksmanship, the camaraderie with friends and just plain being able to get outdoors. The killing is the least enjoyable part, at least for me. Prairie dog shooting is done for marksmanship and the eradication of crop destroying pests that can cause a horse or cow to easily break a leg. Don't confuse that with the hunting of a game animal such as a tree squirrel. You have no one at home to ask, then ask here but ask first and save yourself some grief. Pop up into the Fox and Coyote forum&#8230;&#8230;there are several young fellas there about your age that might just become good shooting buddies with you.



> So try to put yorself in my shoes


Everyone here has already been in your shoes in one way or another. Your ethics were questioned because it was wrong and advice was given. Some harsh but all accurate. If you don't have the capability of understanding that and learning from the advice you have received here then you have no business with a gun. I'll say it one more time for you....lesson noted, lesson learned, now move on with your newly learned information which will make you a better sportsman, and stop making excuses which do nothing but keep you in a bad light. No one is pinging on you now but trying to help you out. Accept it or ignore it, your choice.......


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

So why is a squirrel a game animal but not a gopher? doesn't make sense to me.


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## Cleankill47 (Jan 19, 2006)

You put that a little better than I thought you would, gohon, but I think I'll clear it up a little more for aylor70...

Aylor70, first off, prarie dogs are not only not game animals, they aren't edible under normal circumstances. They have a heavy, musky odor that doesn't go away with skinning or cooking most of the time. Plus, they're destructive. Ranchers rely on the grass in the fields to feed their cattle/horses, etc. for as long as possible so that the ranchers don't have to buy hay or feed. Prarie dogs burrow. Period. A large colony can destroy a few acres or more of grazing area, and the ranchers usually appreciate anyone coming in to take some out. They don't go to waste most of the time, especially where people shoot them a lot. Predators, like coyotes and hawks, learn where the prarie dogs are being hunted, and eat them when the hunters are gone.

By the way, your first post at predatormasters probably didn't start the same as over here. Post one like that anywhere, and if you put something like "I am shooting them because its fun and you don't have to eat everything you shoot, thats why i am asking what do with them." in 
_any_ hunting thread, you're gonna catch crap.

Hope to hear more from you, because this forum isn't for competition, it's for learning from people that you couldn't talk to normally. Everyone has bad moments on here, but don't let them discourage you from posting.


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Cleankill is right aylor70, don't be tempted to leave here just because some old fart like myself or someone else isn't as smooth with the written language as he is. Stick around and you'll learn which of those are serious, which are knowledgeable, which are jokers, and which will simply bs you all the time. Most importantly you will pick up a wealth of information and possible some good friends..


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

so hey, i looked at that video on how to skin one, but then what do u do with the skin after that? stretch it or what? and then will i need a stretcher


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## killadoe (Dec 12, 2005)

You can do whatever you want to do with it. You dont have to stretch it. I let my dogs eat it. Put that squirrel in a gumbo....


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## Cleankill47 (Jan 19, 2006)

You can stretch it if you want, but you'd have to string it up on a frame instead of the same type of strecher used for coyotes, etc. It's easier to go buy some tanning-kit-in-a-bottle stuff at Bass Pro or Wal-Mart, whoever has that stuff up there. The furs are nice if you can get them done right.

A stretcher would only work if you skinned them the hard way, which is called 'case' skinning. I haven't done it, so you'd want to hear about that from one of the full-time trappers on here.


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## killadoe (Dec 12, 2005)

What would you do with a stretched squirrel hide?


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## aylor70 (Jan 2, 2006)

ya i mean do u just leave them out to dry or do you gotta flesh them or anything? and what do u do with the skins, can you sell them at all?


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## Cleankill47 (Jan 19, 2006)

Yes, you flesh them, but if you do a really good job skinning them it won't be much trouble. It's better to just throw them away if you're not going to use them, because the brain-tanning process (what I use) is long and complicated, and it's really better suited to deer hide, but hides from almost any animal were used by the native Americans in the making of leggings, shirts, skirts, breechcloths, pants, jackets, moccasins, hats, cordage (rope), and even boxes. The mountain men of the Appalachian Mountains know squirrel hide as the best shoelaces you'll ever get. Many of them believe groundhog hide gives the very best tone when used as a banjo head. It all depends on how much time you're willing to put into the project, and what you want to make. I suggest that you get a book on tanning and leathercraft, then decide what you want to make before you take another squirrel. But like I said before, it doesn't make you a terrible person to bury the hide instead of making something out of it, there are even uses for the entrails that most people just plain don't need or want anymore. (For example: the native Americans would use the intestines, turned inside-out, cleaned, and smoked over a fire, to store food, such as jerky or pemmican)

If that kind of thing interests you, then the first book I suggest you get is called 'Tom Brown's Field Guide to Wilderness Survival'. It tells you how to build various types of huts, how to make fire without matches, survival trapping (snares and deadfall traps), primitive hunting tools, how to make a simple bow and arrow, etc. There is special emphasis on tracking, stalking, and camouflage. All of these things are gone over in more detail in another book of his: 'Tom Brown's Field Guide to Living with the Earth'
I believe strongly in the lessons presented in his books, because using them, I have been able to sneak up on, and actually touch a full-grown doe in Cades Cove State Park in Tennessee. (Granted, it was in a park where deer are probably used to seeing people, but I think she would have jumped a bit less if she knew I was there, you know? But even if she did know I was there, it was still incredible.)

As for selling the hides, you won't get much for them unless they're in perfect condition, and even then, you can expect about $1.25 apiece, if that. For money, I think something like Bobcat would be better, but for making things, squirrel hide is as good as anything to start with.

Good luck, Aylor70. Let us all know how your next hunt goes!


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## Gohon (Feb 14, 2005)

Mepps still buys squirrel tails for their lures. They don't pay much but if you hunt squirrels a lot it could pay for some of your ammo. Plus you can also trade the tails for Mepps lures if you fish.

http://www.mepps.com/mepps/information/squirrels/

One thing I don't think I would do though is feed them to my dog. As tough as Squirrel hides are, it sounds like a good way to clog up their relief chute and besides hair doesn't digest very well anyway.


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## price403 (Jan 3, 2006)

Try buying a taxidermy kit for one of the squirrels you kill. It would be a good way to use the squirrel's skin. The kits are available from Cabela's or Bass Pro Shops. You can also sell the tails on eBay to people who tie their own flies for fly fishing. By the way, squirrels are good to make gravy with. I eat squirrel gravy and biscuits quite a bit here in WV.


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## Remington 7400 (Dec 14, 2005)

*Gohon wrote:*



> Quote:
> why aren't you eating them. And, you said in an earlier post, someone my age should know better
> 
> Pay attention now.... it's lesson time. Prairie dogs are NOT game animals. They are pest..... like a rat.... a gopher......no one eats them.......most states have no season......no limit......now you know better.
> ...


And to think that at first we didn't get along! We are seeing eye to eye now. Preach it buddy Preach it!


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## FoxSquirrel (Mar 7, 2006)

You could at least save the tail and make it into a hat like raccoon tails.(Davie Crocket)


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## Brower (Mar 10, 2006)

ive found that if you know a fly fisherman...that you can sell the tail/ sometimes hind to them for a couple bucks

but yea you shoot it...you eat it :sniper:


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## chinese_.177 (Jul 17, 2006)

Is it wrong to shoot grackles and other birds and just feed them to the cats, should i be eating them too,


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