Something is Missing?
By Morley Hunt
@Morleyhunt (21741)
Canada
March 31, 2016 8:37am CST
Yesterday, I stepped out of the back door, just in time to see a small animal dart across the driveway into our back yard.
I was puzzled, I wasn't sure what kind of animal I had just seen. Was it a young rabbit? Was it a chipmunk? Was it a squirrel?
Now my curiosity had been aroused. I stepped around my van and into the backyard.
There, sitting on a pile of stacked firewood, sat a small brown squirrel. It still seemed odd looking.
As it darted away as I approached, I could not help noticing it was missing its tail.
Have you spotted any unusual animals?
24 people like this
26 responses
@silvermist (19701)
• India
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt No,I have never seen a squirrel that does not have a tail.
2 people like this
@silvermist (19701)
• India
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt was it an onetime visit?Or did you see it again?
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
@silvermist I haven't been in the backyard today. The rain made that difficult.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
Apparently the neighbour has seen a pair of albino squirrels. I haven't seen them yet.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
There do seem to be an abundance of unusual humans...what with bizarre hair colours, clothing styles, not to mention tattoos and behaviours.......
2 people like this
@marlina (154103)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt We sure see a lot of those "unusual humans" on TV
1 person likes this
@Marcyaz (35316)
• United States
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt
We are seeing llamas for one and lots of others I don't even know the names of.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
What kinds of unusual animals are you seeing?
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
@Marcyaz and here I never considered llamas unusual. Our neighbour had an assortment of interesting critters....llamas, emus, deer, a zebra, a silver fox .......
1 person likes this
@LovingMyBabies (85923)
• Valdosta, Georgia
31 Mar 16
Aw, that poor squirrel. =( I haven't seen any unusual animals lately.
2 people like this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
It didn't seem to hamper him, but I'll bet the other squirrels tease him about it.
1 person likes this
@LadyDuck (502208)
• Italy
1 Apr 16
@Morleyhunt I wonder if it was a genetic defect, I suppose that this can happens in animals too.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
1 Apr 16
@LadyDuck that is certainly a possibility.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
He/she looked healthy and uninjured, just minus a tail.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
It took me a moment to figure out why this squirrel looked so odd. As it ran away the missing tail made it look almost like a young bunny rabbit.
2 people like this
@gudheart (12659)
•
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt Ohh okay. As long as it was not hurt :D
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
It appears to be a young squirrel. I'm not sure if it ever had a tail.
1 person likes this
@crazyhorseladycx (39503)
• United States
1 Apr 16
aw, poor lil squirrel! wonder what happened to the poor dear? i've yet to spot any oddities 'round here, but've not been able to get out much.
1 person likes this
@crazyhorseladycx (39503)
• United States
1 Apr 16
@Morleyhunt shame ya can't send some wet schtuff this direction, eh? e'en the cacti're startin' to protest the current conditions 'round here.
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
1 Apr 16
It has been very wet the last few days so I have not been outside for more than a dash to the van and then back into the house.
1 person likes this
@antonbunot (11146)
• Calgary, Alberta
8 Apr 16
Unusual animals?! No, I have not seen one yet. I have seen a lot of unusual humans though.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
8 Apr 16
There are all kinds of them. That is the only reason I would go to the Falls. To people watch.
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
5 Apr 16
I have not seen it since that day, but the weather has been horrid, so I haven't been outside much.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (381837)
• Rockingham, Australia
5 Apr 16
@Morleyhunt It's surprising how animals can cope with their infirmities sometimes. Hope he is still okay. I guess they wrap their tail around themselves to help keep them warm so he might be missing that.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
We aren't sure if it was born tailless or had a run in with another animal or a piece of machinery.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
We aren't sure if this squirrel was born tailless , or if it lost it's tail through misadventure.
1 person likes this
@AnneEJ (4917)
• Dollard-Des-Ormeaux, Quebec
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt I saw one a few years ago that had all the fur stripped off it, so it was just like a rat's tail. It must have got caught in something.
1 person likes this
@KuznVinny (768)
• United States
2 Apr 16
I've also seen albino deer. And at people's homes, I've seen real camels (no, not llamas, alpacas, or anything else). Also at one house, the family raised wolves. They were lose all around me. Although the adults eyed me a little suspiciously, they were not unfriendly.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
2 Apr 16
Our neighbour had a zebra. The comments he got were priceless.
1 person likes this
@Ruby3881 (1963)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
I don't think I've ever seen a tailless squirrel, though I've seen a number of cats and dogs hobbling around on three legs.
I miss the squirrels. We don't really see them here. Lots of birds - crows especially. But I haven't seen a single squirrel in three years...
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
I'd be happy to send some your way. We seem to have several dozen using our house as a lookout.
1 person likes this
@Ruby3881 (1963)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
@Morleyhunt My parents' place was like that, when I was growing up. Tons of squirrels, raccoons, and the occasional chipmunk or skunk. The squirrels used to chase our cats up the trees!
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
I have no idea how this squirrel came to have no tail. It just looked odd, so I had to check it out.
1 person likes this
@carebear29 (32002)
• Wausau, Wisconsin
31 Mar 16
Actually yes. A couple days ago a red squirrel ran passed my foot while we were outside. Kinda scary
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
There are so many squirrels in our yard, I'm surprised I haven't stepped on one.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
It sat up the way a squirrel does, but when it moved....there was clearly something missing. It didn't look like a rat either. I think of a rat as being almost like a large field mouse.
1 person likes this
@JamesHxstatic (29410)
• Eugene, Oregon
31 Mar 16
I have not seen one, but am told by reliable people that you can occasionally see albino birds.
1 person likes this
@Macarrosel (7498)
• Philippines
31 Mar 16
Oh, I really want to see a squirrel in person for I never seen one yet. I never spotted an unusual animal lately either. What I have seen this morning is a dirty pig roaming around our subdivision.
1 person likes this
@Morleyhunt (21741)
• Canada
31 Mar 16
I'd send you some squirrels if I could. We have so many they are a nuisance. They get into the attic and chew everything in sight. They also make a mess of the lawn where they bury and dig up their nuts.
