Squirrels, as with other wild animals, should not be fed any food from humans. You may find it enjoyable to feed them. The squirrels run toward you for the bread crumbs, peanuts, crackers and whatever else you are feeding them; then they scoot away to only run back for more food. However, please know the reasons why signs are posted with info stating not to feed the squirrels.

Why should you not feed squirrels? The posted sign states one good reason:

Sure, the squirrel population will explode and pest control will need to take action to decrease the squirrel population. Also know, when squirrels are not fed they become aggressive and when not fed for a period of time they can starve to death.

We want animals to maintain a natural fear of humans. A truly wild animal will move away when a human arrives. So that is a clue about the health of an animal if it seems to be hanging around you … possibly looking for food from you … because that animal equates humans as a food source.

Flashback to a squirrel bite moment…

I was walking along the sidewalk and saw young ladies feeding 6 squirrels. Wow, this did remind me of my youngest sister having been bit by a squirrel at the bottom of a Colorado gorge decades ago. My sister was 7 years old at the time. She casually picked up a popcorn kernel from the ground and stuck her fingers through a fence. There a squirrel eagerly took it and bit her finger. We took my sister to an emergency room. Her finger was thoroughly cleaned and doctors decided not to start the painful series of rabies shots. Was this squirrel possibly rabid? My entire family worried for days about my sister’s health. It was this time I became aware of the importance of wild animals needing to know how to hunt or find their own food and not look for a human’s handout.

As I walked further down the sidewalk, a squirrel and I seemed to have a stare down. Honestly, I kept my eye on the squirrel and it on me. The squirrel remained so transfixed on me I had plenty of time to take the photo above! There was no way I was even going to open my own snack bar for lunch while this squirrel was near me. Finally I did see the sign about not feeding the squirrels. Obviously more than one sign is needed in the area! I ate my snack in my van and the squirrel finally went its own way.