[Hopes]

I was throwing away garbage in an outdoor can, and something scurried up a tree. I looked up and there was this little fuzzy animal with a broad fluffy tail, but not long like a squirrel. It's a little thing. I thought it was a chinchilla, but I just googled chinchilla and it's not that either.

Any ideas?

[arctichomesteader]

Woodchuck?

[Verseau]

My guess is probably a flying squirrel (there are two species in Vermont: northern and southern. Southern is a bit smaller I believe).

Flying squirrel tails are flatter and broader and don't usually curl upwards like on a regular squirrel.

[square peg]

What color was it? Was its torso tubular in shape?

[Hopes]

Yes! It was a flying squirrel! It looked more like the one in this first picture, but it was way cuter though. Don't they hibernate?

[OhBeeHave]

My house was.infested with them this fall. Cute but very intrusive and messy. Ive heard some folks keep them as pets.

[bobd04]

Ahh...the flying squirrel. Cute by pesky.

Regular squirrels can't jump very high or leap very far so if you don't have vegetation higher than your roof line or tree branches within a couple of feet of your roof you're unlikely to have a squirrel infestation in your attic. But the flying squirrel can glide from quite a distance down onto your roof and look for a way in to create a nice warm den.

Flying squirrels don't hibernate and they are nocturnal.

Northern flying squirrel videos, photos and facts - Glaucomys sabrinus - ARKive

[greatblueheron]

I realize they can seem pesky to some but.....
had a bird feeder outside next to the window...with nuts and seeds. My cats discovered a little guy "flew in" nightly to enjoy the nuts, perching on the feeder.

Most every night of winter, we enjoyed watching him...

[bobd04]

Originally Posted by greatblueheron

I realize they can seem pesky to some but.....
had a bird feeder outside next to the window...with nuts and seeds. My cats discovered a little guy "flew in" nightly to enjoy the nuts, perching on the feeder.

Most every night of winter, we enjoyed watching him...

I enjoy watching the wild life around here too, and in the area of New Jersey I live in there is a lot more than you might expect. Our cat and dog watch squirrels, rabbits, deer, all manner of birds (of course), ground hogs and the occasional fox from our windows.

But I don't like it when they try to take up residence in my attic.

[sugarmaple]

Very cool and very very cute! I did not realize that we had flying squirrels here, not that I thought of it, either way. I trust I too would not enjoy them in my attic either, or anywhere else in my house. But, cute they are.