SQUIRRELS, AND HOW TO KEEP THEM. BY JAMES OTIS.

 It seems almost cruel to catch and cage such a bright, winsome¹ little fellow as a squirrel. In his natural state he seems to be thoroughly² happy. His home is a snug³ little hole in the fork of a tree, and all the nut-bearing giants of the forest pay tribute to him. Bright, happy, "cunning" little fellow, if you must keep him as a pet, lavish⁴ upon him such kindness and attention as shall reconcile him to the prison bars, and make him forget his forest home.

The name squirrel comes from the Greek word sciurus, which is made up of two words, signifying shade and tail, indicative of the little creature's habit of shading its entire body when at rest with its tail.

Of the species known to our woods, the most common is the striped squirrel, an industrious⁵ little body, fond of his home and family, and seldom given to roving, but one which the confinement⁶ of a cage kills in a very short time.

Then there is a little animal known by the boys as a chipmunk⁷, which some naturalists⁸ declare is a member of the squirrel family, while others give it the name of dormouse. It makes a good pet, but must be kept in a warm place, and besides the usual food for squirrels it requires milk.

The black squirrel is the largest of its species, and while it will live in a cage, is rarely a tractable⁹ animal, requiring a vast amount of patience to induce it even to take its food when any one is looking at it.

Then there is the flying-squirrel, which resembles the striped species. It does not really fly, but has the power of flattening¹⁰ its legs and feet in such a way that they do not look unlike wings. In leaping, the legs and feet sustain it in the air until it almost seems as if it was flying.

It is the gray squirrel that is the most contented¹¹ in captivity¹², and the most easily tamed; therefore, if one really thinks it necessary to his happiness to make a prisoner of such a liberty-loving little creature, he should procure¹³ one of the gray species.

If the reader is a would-be squirrel owner, and proposes to catch one in the woods, he will be obliged to take just the kind of one that is foolish enough to enter his trap; but if he proposes to buy one, he should select it carefully, for much depends upon the condition of the prisoner in taming or keeping him.

See that the fur is sleek¹⁴ and glossy¹⁵, for dry, ruffled-looking fur is a sure sign the animal is sick, or pining so for the woods that he will not live very long in a cage. Observe well if the feet are clean, for if they are dirty, he has lost all pride in his appearance, which is another sign of homesickness or some equally serious ailment¹⁶. The eyes should be bright, and the teeth perfectly¹⁷ white. Yellow teeth are a sign of age, and it is as difficult to tame a very old squirrel as it is to keep him alive in captivity.

Beware of squirrels brought around by men who say they have caught and tamed them. If they look stupid and inactive, the chances are that they have been drugged to make them seem tame, and if they live, they will surely be wild and intractable.

Having made the selection of just such a one as you want for a pet, give him all the comfort possible in the way of a cage. It is better to have a large rough one than a small neat looking one; and if it is not possible to buy a large cage, make one yourself, and the squirrel will be pleased at the absence of style because of the increased facilities for moving about.

A board thirty-six inches long and sixteen wide is quite as small a base for the house and run-around as should be given. Twenty-two inches of this length should be devoted¹⁸ to the dwelling¹⁹ portion, which should be built something after the style of a one-story cottage, with a second floor just at the slope of the roof, so that the attic²⁰ may serve as sleeping-room and a place to which the squirrel can retire when he is anxious to be hidden from view.

The lower front of the house may be of wire, so that a portion of his domestic life may be seen. The second floor should have in it an opening about three inches square, which is connected with the first floor by a small strip of board or thin stuff of any kind, placed at an angle, so that he can get "upstairs" without difficulty.

The floors should be of some hard wood, so that they may not absorb water, and the whole place should be cleaned thoroughly once in every three or four weeks. In order to do this readily, it is well to have one side of the house fastened with hinges, so it may be swung open, and then the little fellow can be shut into the wheel during house-cleaning. The lower compartment²¹ should have a wire door, through which food can be given.

The wheel in which he takes his treadmill²² exercise any tin or wire worker can make, and the hole which connects it with the house should be large enough to prevent any possibility of his getting squeezed if he attempts to go into his house while the wheel is turning rapidly.

Give the little prisoner plenty of nuts of any kind, although those containing the least oil are the best—acorns, wheat, stale bread, a little boiled potato, and once in a very great while a bit of cooked meat. Keep a small dish of water in the cage, and see to it carefully that it is changed each day.

In all dealings with the squirrel it is necessary to be gentle and patient with him, if it is desired to make of him a real pet. Do not force him out of his nest when he goes into it, nor keep him in the wheel when he desires to go into his house.

Each time that he is fed, whistle or make some peculiar²³ sound, and he will soon learn to come when he is called. This is the first step toward teaching him to come into his owner's hands. After he has learned to come at call, hold some particular dainty in the fingers, and do not let him have it until he takes it himself.

When once he has learned to have perfect confidence in his master, he will not scruple²⁴ to take food from his hands, and in a very short time will be bold enough to explore his pockets, going into them bodily, for something to eat that is a trifle better than his regular fare.

1 winsome   

n.迷人的，漂亮的

参考例句：

• She gave him her best winsome smile.她给了他一个最为迷人的微笑。
• She was a winsome creature.她十分可爱。

2 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

3 snug   

adj.温暖舒适的，合身的，安全的；v.使整洁干净，舒适地依靠，紧贴；n.（英）酒吧里的私房

参考例句：

• He showed us into a snug little sitting room.他领我们走进了一间温暖而舒适的小客厅。
• She had a small but snug home.她有个小小的但很舒适的家。

4 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

5 industrious   

adj.勤劳的，刻苦的，奋发的

参考例句：

• If the tiller is industrious,the farmland is productive.人勤地不懒。
• She was an industrious and willing worker.她是个勤劳肯干的员工。

6 confinement   

n.幽禁，拘留，监禁；分娩；限制，局限

参考例句：

• He spent eleven years in solitary confinement.他度过了11年的单独监禁。
• The date for my wife's confinement was approaching closer and closer.妻子分娩的日子越来越近了。

7 chipmunk   

n.花栗鼠

参考例句：

• This little chipmunk is hungry.这只小花栗鼠肚子饿了。
• Once I brought her a chipmunk with a wound on its stomach.一次，我带了只腹部受伤的花栗鼠去找她。

8 naturalists   

n.博物学家( naturalist的名词复数 )；（文学艺术的）自然主义者

参考例句：

• Naturalists differ much in determining what characters are of generic value. 自然学者对于不同性状决定生物的属的含义上，各有各的见解。 来自辞典例句
• This fact has led naturalists to believe that the Isthmus was formerly open. 使许多自然学者相信这个地蛱在以前原是开通的。 来自辞典例句

9 tractable   

adj.易驾驭的；温顺的

参考例句：

• He was always tractable and quiet.他总是温顺、恬静。
• Gold and silver are tractable metals.金和银是容易加工的金属。

10 flattening   

n. 修平 动词flatten的现在分词

参考例句：

• Flattening of the right atrial border is also seen in constrictive pericarditis. 右心房缘变平亦见于缩窄性心包炎。
• He busied his fingers with flattening the leaves of the book. 他手指忙着抚平书页。

11 contented   

adj.满意的，安心的，知足的

参考例句：

• He won't be contented until he's upset everyone in the office.不把办公室里的每个人弄得心烦意乱他就不会满足。
• The people are making a good living and are contented,each in his station.人民安居乐业。

12 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

13 procure   

vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条

参考例句：

• Can you procure some specimens for me?你能替我弄到一些标本吗？
• I'll try my best to procure you that original French novel.我将尽全力给你搞到那本原版法国小说。

14 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

15 glossy   

adj.平滑的；有光泽的

参考例句：

• I like these glossy spots.我喜欢这些闪闪发光的花点。
• She had glossy black hair.她长着乌黑发亮的头发。

16 ailment   

n.疾病，小病

参考例句：

• I don't have even the slightest ailment.我什么毛病也没有。
• He got timely treatment for his ailment.他的病得到了及时治疗。

17 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

18 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

19 dwelling   

n.住宅，住所，寓所

参考例句：

• Those two men are dwelling with us.那两个人跟我们住在一起。
• He occupies a three-story dwelling place on the Park Street.他在派克街上有一幢3层楼的寓所。

20 attic   

n.顶楼，屋顶室

参考例句：

• Leakiness in the roof caused a damp attic.屋漏使顶楼潮湿。
• What's to be done with all this stuff in the attic?顶楼上的材料怎么处理？

21 compartment   

n.卧车包房，隔间；分隔的空间

参考例句：

• We were glad to have the whole compartment to ourselves.真高兴，整个客车隔间由我们独享。
• The batteries are safely enclosed in a watertight compartment.电池被安全地置于一个防水的隔间里。

22 treadmill   

n.踏车；单调的工作

参考例句：

• The treadmill has a heart rate monitor.跑步机上有个脉搏监视器。
• Drugs remove man from the treadmill of routine.药物可以使人摆脱日常单调的工作带来的疲劳。

23 peculiar   

adj.古怪的，异常的；特殊的，特有的

参考例句：

• He walks in a peculiar fashion.他走路的样子很奇特。
• He looked at me with a very peculiar expression.他用一种很奇怪的表情看着我。

24 scruple   

n./v.顾忌，迟疑

参考例句：

• It'seemed to her now that she could marry him without the remnant of a scruple.她觉得现在她可以跟他成婚而不需要有任何顾忌。
• He makes no scruple to tell a lie.他说起谎来无所顾忌。