Is it seriously plausible that a berking urban squirrel did this?

At some point between 4:30 and 5:30 last night, someone or something stole about an inch of my dog's ear.

The missing piece of ear was never found. The crime scene was never found (no significant pool of blood). This apparently happened while I was home, but working in the garage. In searching for the crime scene I went to attic "turret" office where my dog often hangs out, and watches people from the windows. The woodwork around the window is totally shredded, and the window treatments on the floor.

Could a squirrel do this?!? Should I prepare for more squirrel-on-dog voilence? Within my own house? WTF?!? The dog isn't talking. I suspect she is plotting vigilante justice. (Or maybe that is what this was, from the squirrel's perspective.)

Note I am blaming squirrels without any evidence other than that which is presented here. This is a rather urban setting, so mountain lions, badgers, and velociraptors are not on the primary list of suspects. Maybe a raccoon or river rat? No typical evidence of a rodent taking up residence in the house, though.

The window damage very much looks like a panicked squirrel trying to escape through glass that it doesn't understand.

As for the dogs ear, it's plausable, but not terribly likely. I'd suggest you keep looking up there. I suspect you may find it, near a nail that is sticking out or such.

Make sure the rabies shots are up to date too!

Raccoon.

If you tatoo it and put it on a miata, it will make the miata faster.

The dogs ear could have got trapped in the window when the vermin escaped.

If the dog's not current on rabies, go directly to vet. Do not pass GO, do not collect $200.

No blood is WEIRD. Dog ears bleed like motherberkeleyers.

An animal small enough to get into your house chewing your dogs ear off is also weird, which is why you need to get the rabies updated.

RossD wrote: Raccoon. If you tatoo it and put it on a miata, it will make the miata faster. The dogs ear could have got trapped in the window when the vermin escaped.

Thats what I was thinking. Coons are MEAN.

Yeah more likely a raccoon...it could be the world's angriest rabid squirrel, but it seems unlikely to have taken such a big bite or had the bite force to take the dogs ear off. Matches up for a raccoon though.

I think she's on year 4 of a 3-year rabies vaccination . But there hasn't been a case of rabies in a domesticated animal in my county in years (I have a co-worker involved in animal rescues who's up on these things). There is SOME risk there, but the same co-worker recommended I NOT take her to the vet because all the vet would do is tape her ear to her head and hand me a bill for $100. Or, worse, report her to the humane society for expired vaccinations and put her in jail for 10 days.

My money is on Mr Blonde http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGqB6JIUzBo

Poor doggie!

In reply to sporqster:

Really?! You need a better vet, dude. I'd treat this like getting a borderline-legal car through inspection; find somebody you can trust not to shaft you and compensate them appropriately. My parents are both vets, so I'm set.

I'd agree that all they're probably going to do for the ear is tape it. Not much you can do for ears.

You really should get rabies updated though, regardless of statistics. Your dog could be the first case in years, and then nobody's happy, and you'll still have a bill from the county/state when they decide they need to run tests to make sure that's what it was.

have you considered the possibilty your dog went ape E36 M3 and tried to paw his way through the wall, injuring his ear somehow in the process?

I could read you a long list of all the perfectly normal pets that one day went apeE36 M3 and destroyed something. Most returned to normal boring behavior for the rest of their lives.

We had a dog that did that once. Family pet. Indoor dog. Left alone every day while family was at work/school for many years. One day we left to go into town on a weekend, came back to find the couch shredded down the bare wood. Dog looked proud. We weren't sure what to do, but after that she never did anything like that again. No clue what got into her.

In reply to andrave:

Probably the part where you left for the the weekend. They call it cabin fever in people.

"All couch and no people make Jack a dull boy."

Black squirrels are pure evil...

In reply to andrave:

No the scratches were behind a propped up storm window, so unless she moved the storm window out of the way, scratched the E36M3 out of the window then put it back up, it had to be a smaller creature doing the window damage.

Also her claws would have made a much more distinctive, vertical mark, I think. The window damage is decidedly not the dog's direct doing.

squirrels can do an amazing amount of damage. they can chew through steel mesh, chew through wood, wire, insulation, etc. We have had problems with them at my house, but the damage has never been as... centralized as that? I've never seen them be so focused on one area. Usually a squirrel will try something and if it doesn't happen in 30 seconds, he is gone to go try somewhere else.

I can't see the pics cause photobucket is blocked at work.

andrave wrote: I can't see the pics cause photobucket is blocked at work.

Facebook? http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4656954875266.168162.1635197308&type=1

The chew marks look like a squirrel, but the nick on Fido's ear is suspiciously square. A bite would have left teeth nibbles; maybe he got his ear pinched between the edge of the storm window and the floor (or something else) while chasing the squirrel around the window.

Buy Fido a beer, pat him on the head and tell him he did a good job and then go find where that frikkin' tree rat is getting into the house.

Dan

also maybe shove some big ass rat traps where the dog can't get into them. they don't usualy kill the squirrel but they usually scare them away if nothing else. if you actually want to catch it use the live capture ones in the small size. or a .410.

Damn squirrels.

My suggestion, make sure you file a complaint and they should be able to get a warrant to detain the squirrel for you. They should be able to lift claw indentations using plaster. Trying to get your dog to talk is important because an accurate description of the offending squirrel will be needed. They'll probably send a sketch artist with the detective when the evidence is reviewed. Don't touch anything until the police tell you they are finished. If you see the squirrel, don't try to detain it on your own, its too dangerous, but be sure to have a weapon at the ready in case he attempts to break in again as it is your right to perfect your property. Good luck and I hope the squirrel is brought to justice.

Honey Badger?

M2Pilot wrote: Honey Badger?

Possibly. He don't give a E36 M3.

I vote coon. They're mean bastards.

N Sperlo wrote: Damn squirrels. My suggestion, make sure you file a complaint and they should be able to get a warrant to detain the squirrel for you. They should be able to lift claw indentations using plaster. Trying to get your dog to talk is important because an accurate description of the offending squirrel will be needed. They'll probably send a sketch artist with the detective when the evidence is reviewed. Don't touch anything until the police tell you they are finished. If you see the squirrel, don't try to detain it on your own, its too dangerous, but be sure to have a weapon at the ready in case he attempts to break in again as it is your right to perfect your property. Good luck and I hope the squirrel is brought to justice.

get stuffed animals of a dog and a squirrel. ask him to show you where the squirrel touched him. Ask him if it was a good touch or a bad touch.