• Spacehooks@reddthat.com
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    7 hours ago

    Bruh it’s a squirrel in North America. Wtf they have to go and kill it. Not like like it was like the gator in the bottom of the article. It posed no more danger for rabies than any other mammal.

  • Montagge@lemmy.zip
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    2 days ago

    Can’t have a squirrel because it might spread disease, but you can send your unvaccinated child to school.

    • sir_pronoun@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      Somebody else commented they euthanized peanut. Like, I’m ALL for vaccinations, but maybe take the metaphor not that far

  • eldavi@lemmy.ml
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    2 days ago

    The officers left with Peanut, who amassed hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, TikTok and other platforms …

    i know i’m getting old when i see things like this and my gut reaction is a conspiracy theory; in this case i think that tiktok and peanut’s rising popular was the culprit since our oligarchs have banned tiktok and manufactured public consent for doing so.

    and as a life long pet guardian; i feel so sorry for this guy. i hope that he can recover.

    • Catoblepas
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      2 days ago

      in this case i think that tiktok and peanut’s rising popular was the culprit

      … yeah, that’s how wildlife officials became aware of the situation. They aren’t remotely monitoring every squirrel.

      And don’t feel too bad for him, he isn’t putting the squirrel’s welfare first at all:

      Longo brought Peanut home and cared for him for eight months before trying to release the squirrel into the great outdoors. “A day and a half later I found him sitting on my porch missing half of his tail with his bone sticking out,” Longo said.

      A fucking bone sticking out and he didn’t even try to get the squirrel veterinary care, because it would have meant the squirrel was taken away. No vet is going to let someone without a rehabilitation license walk out with a wild animal they’re not competent to care for. And having a Really Cool Pet was just more important than, again, a BONE being exposed to the air.

      • SinAdjetivos@beehaw.org
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        2 days ago

        I think you misread, he tried to do the “right thing” and release the squirrel back into the wild which resulted in the squirrel getting injured and coming back to him for help.

        He didn’t seek veterinary assistance because often euthanization is the outcome. Personally were I a squirrel I would prefer substandard medical care over execution…

        • Catoblepas
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          2 days ago

          I didn’t misread anything; keeping a juvenile squirrel you’re not qualified to care for and just plopping it outside after a few months is naturally going to fail.

          After getting injured in a situation it was completely unequipped to handle, it returned to the only steady source of food and protection it recognized. This person then proceeded to get it zero medical care. Why should anyone who thinks it’s acceptable to leave an animal with a fucking bone sticking out of its body be trusted with the welfare of that animal?

          Wildlife officials don’t resort to euthanasia every time a squirrel comes in. They want to be able to release it back into the wild, that’s the ideal resolution. Keeping that squirrel yourself because you want a quirky pet for internet attention basically guarantees they’ll get put down after they’ve lost their fear of people and have no survival skills.

          Tl;dr: if you want a squirrel that badly, get the education and certification you need to actually understand how to take care of them. Otherwise you’re just going to fuck them up.

          • SinAdjetivos@beehaw.org
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            1 day ago

            keeping a juvenile squirrel you’re not qualified to care for and just plopping it outside after a few months is naturally going to fail.

            Yes, but the squirrel was kept because the owner killed their mother with a car on accident. This is not a case of “wanting a pet squirrel so badly” but trying to rectify a tragic accident.

            This person then proceeded to get it zero medical care.

            Professional medical care == medical care. Treating that sort of injury requires some training, but it’s a far cry from the extensive and critical medical procedure you’re trying to sell it as.

            They want to be able to release it back into the wild, that’s the ideal resolution.

            A juvenile squirrel without a mother to learn from doesn’t have a way to learn those survival skills without human intervention which will result in “lost their fear of people”.

            get the education and certification you need to actually understand how to take care of them.

            What education and certifications would those be?

            • Catoblepas
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              1 day ago

              Yes, but the squirrel was kept because the owner killed their mother with a car on accident. This is not a case of “wanting a pet squirrel so badly” but trying to rectify a tragic accident.

              Trying to rectify a tragic accident is getting the squirrel to a rehabber. He wanted a pet squirrel.

              Professional medical care == medical care. Treating that sort of injury requires some training, but it’s a far cry from the extensive and critical medical procedure you’re trying to sell it as.

              A tail is part of an animal’s spine, not an accessory. Go find a vet that thinks any exposed bone, much less an exposed tail bone, is something you can bandage at home and forget about.

              A juvenile squirrel without a mother to learn from doesn’t have a way to learn those survival skills without human intervention which will result in “lost their fear of people”.

              Rehabbers use techniques to keep animals from becoming habituated to humans and maintain their wild instincts, mainly keeping them away from humans as much as possible and not treating them as pets like this guy did.

              What education and certifications would those be?

              Varies by state, but they’re certified on the state level and it usually requires at least a few years of college.

              Animals aren’t toys for people to keep and play with if they really, really want to.

  • burgersc12@mander.xyz
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    2 days ago

    Why is there a law saying you can’t keep wildlife? How the fuck do you think we got dogs in the first place?! I’m domesticating a bear at home and there’s nothing you can do to stop me!

    • Auli@lemmy.ca
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      5 hours ago

      Because they don’t want people catching wildlife for pets.

      • atlas@sh.itjust.works
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        8 hours ago

        he was trying to get a licence for the squirrel as an educational pet, due to its’ unique personality, and because he was so public with it.

    • solomon42069@lemmy.world
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      2 days ago

      If you’re really keen to try this, maybe try a less destructive approach like playing Pokemon? They even evolve within your lifetime so you can enjoy the fruits of your labour!

      • Swedneck@discuss.tchncs.de
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        1 day ago

        just keep pet fruit flies, you can even play god with their genome and witness the horrors of your creation, and that’s science!