A Desperate Open Letter to Idaho Families Holding an Easter Egg Hunt

This is one of those images that we’ll never be able to get out of our head. It’s been nearly two years since we had this horrific sighting on the Boise Greenbelt and to this day, we wonder what the final outcome was. 

 Back in 2022, we took a break from the workday to take a stroll down to the MK Nature Center. Getting outside in the sun and watching the sturgeon swim around is the perfect cure for any workday that’s been plagued by meetings that should’ve been e-mails, deadlines and pointless pettiness from co-workers.

READ MORE: Boise and the Treasure Valley's Ultimate Easter Eff Hunt Guide 2024

About halfway there, we noticed a squirrel scurrying up a tree and something wasn’t quite right about the little guy. At first, we thought he was dragging an entire clementine or orange up the tree in his mouth. Our eyesight is terrible and we were sort of far away. As we got closer to the tree, we realized that what we stumbled upon wasn’t adorable or funny. It was traffic. That wasn’t an orange in the squirrel’s mouth. 

It had managed to get its entire head stuck inside a plastic Easter egg that was either left behind from an egg hunt or being used as a decoration on a nearby porch. When he got low enough, we were able to see a crack in the side of the eff. He must have been curious and looked inside a little too far. This squirrel couldn’t see anything. He just ran up and down the tree, circling the trunk in a panic. 

Get our free mobile app

Unfortunately, he was HIGH in the tree and we couldn’t help him. We sent Fish & Game an email hoping that maybe they’d find him and help since we were basically in their backyard, but to this day we don’t know if this squirrel survived. 

READ MORE: Popular Easter Candy Sold in Idaho May Be Linked to Cancer

As animal lovers, we felt helpless so we’re making this request on behalf of squirrels and other wildlife as we approach Easter weekend. If you’re surprising your kids with an Easter egg hunt, can you count the eggs BEFORE you hide them and make sure they’re all accounted for after the fun? That way this won’t happen to any more squirrels. That’s it. That’s the request. We’re not trying to be an Easter “Karen.” Just trying to help the squirrels. 

We STILL wonder if he made it.