Do you see him?

That appears to be a baby chipmunk. I saw him next to the house this morning, and managed to redirect Sparky’s attention. Apparently Sparky isn’t optimized for chipmunks. That’s too bad.

Yesterday evening, I heard light scrabbling behind a cabinet.  It was intermittent, so it wasn’t possible to pinpoint exactly where.  I could not find anything.

This afternoon, out of the corner of my eye, for a quarter of a second, I saw what seemed to be a chipmunk in my house by the screen door.  It ran, but they are bigger, and not so clever as a mouse.  I saw it again for a half-second. 

I alerted Sparky, and hoped that he could finally contribute something more than companionship and his witty observations.  I was clear and decisive.  I even said “RABBIT!” a few times to focus his mind.  He got the message.  Sparky sprinted for Mr. Moose, and figured we were playing a new version of “Search and Rescue”.

Sparky is no help at all.  He seems to be chipmunk-blind.

I know how to catch a mouse, but have no idea what to do about a chipmunk.  On the positive side, there is little chance that a chipmunk could become a permanent resident.

This adult chipmunk is probably associated with the baby outside.  There are no cracks or holes allowing a chipmunk to get in the house.  My guess is that the chipmunk lives under the deck.  It was probably on the deck when Sparky was running back to the house, and bolted in through a not fully closed screen door.  Just guessing.

My assumption is that the chipmunk doesn’t want to be in the house, and was going for the door when it was first spotted.  The internet says that chipmunks eat all kinds of things, but prefer nuts and berries. 

Sparky is locked in the bedroom.  The front and back doors are open, with a raspberry at each threshold.  It’s almost sunset.  I resist the urge to whip up some cream to eat with a small bowl of raspberries so I can sit quietly away from the doors.

I heard a hawk screeching outside somewhere, and don’t know if that will dissuade the chipmunk from making a dash for it.  Would playing hawk sounds from Youtube motivate the chipmunk to leave or to hunker down?

The internet says that chipmunks are not nocturnal, so if I sit quietly on the couch, the chipmunk should be emboldened to act as it gets darker.  I won’t be able to see the chipmunk leave, so I just wait.  If I wait too long, the skunks and ground hogs will come to have raspberries and cream with me.

Thankfully, Sparky is waiting patiently in the bedroom.  He may have sensed that I wasn’t impressed with his hunting acumen, so now is not the time to be willful.

If the chipmunk takes the raspberry on the way out, I will assume that he left.