Animal rescue XII: Squirrel hunters stopped (GRAPHIC PHOTOS)

Three days after falling victim to hunters from The Peace Project, this squirrel faces a difficult path to recovery. Photo Bart Verdijk.

We can understand someone's desire to hunt, but always when, where and how require adherence to the law, customs and general good sense, as well as a respect for your neighbors. We recently had an encounter with friends of The Peace Project who had a completely different idea of hunting from ours. These folks entered our property and shot a squirrel with a slingshot, after enjoying a visit with their squatter friends. We gave chase and they did not get away. Miraculously, the squirrel was still alive, after a hard impact from a projectile and a long fall.

This friend of The Peace Project threatened Jeffrey McCrary with violence, after losing his prized squirrel hunting trophy. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.

The visitors had been moving large rocks (without authorization) on the property the squatters are occupying, apparently later having a few drinks and then taking aim at the variegated squirrels which are abundant on our land. We gave chase but they ran and evidently, once out of sight, thought they were safe to walk off their drunken stupor. They were wrong. We caught up with them a few hundred meters away, and they were carrying the poor, wounded squirrel, wrapped into a tee shirt. What they had planned for the wounded animal, we can only guess, but they surrendered it in the midst of threats of violence. Fortunately, many people were witnessing, so they did not act on their threats.

Furious but defeated. This person hunted a squirrel after a visit to The Peace Project in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Hunting is illegal in protected areas in Nicaragua. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg. 

We began nursing the poor squirrel immediately, which basically meant giving him peace, quiet and warmth, so he could rest. He was breathing, but scared, badly wounded, in shock and with a great loss of blood. He slept most of the first day, but began moving the following day and even ate a small amount of food.

The squirrel hunted by visitors of The Peace Project is now badly wounded and semiconscious, but miraculously, alive. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.

This poor squirrel is a wild animal, not a pet, and deserves to live and die wild, not in a cage. We forget that protected areas are dedicated to them, not to us. We are giving him every opportunity to return to the wild.

This poor wild animal is now defenseless and struggling to live. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.

We did not think he would survive these wounds, but we decided to give him a chance at life. Photo Bart Verdijk.

These visitors of The Peace Project threatened members of Estacion Biologica, as is frequent and customary. But they lost their squirrel. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.

Violence follows generations when it is taught. These children accompanied the violent people involved in this illegal hunting incident. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.

If you know this young man with lots of tattoos or the others pictured herein, please inform us at Estacion Biologica. Photo by Lesley Eisenberg.