http://web.wt.net/~psherr/squirrel_hazing.htm

You see it every spring...squirrels racing in front of cars, squirrels taunting cats, squirrels chasing dogs, and squirrels stuffing their faces until their cheeks are on the verge of exploding. Pretty normal squirrel behavior, right?

Two years ago, after yet another near miss with yet another squirrel while riding in a car, it occurred to us that there might be a reason why so many squirrels choose to run in front of cars at the very last second. At first, we thought it might be a behavioral response to a fast-moving object passing in front of them; then it occurred to us that it might be a desperate cry for attention; finally, we resigned ourselves to the belief that the squirrels were suicidal and trying to end their miserable lives. That's when we started this project.

What began as an attempt to counsel squirrels so we could find out exactly what was so miserable about their lives that they would want to end it underneath a moving vehicle, turned into one of the most startling revelations in the history of human-squirrel relations.

SQUIRREL HAZING

*haze (hâz) verb, transitive hazed, hazing, hazes 1. To persecute or harass with meaningless, difficult, or humiliating tasks. 2. To initiate, as into a college fraternity, by exacting humiliating performances from or playing rough practical jokes upon.

[Perhaps from obsolete haze, to frighten, from obsolete French haser, to annoy, from Old French.] - haz´er noun

It was once thought that humans were the only animals to engage in ritualized hazing. As it turns out, squirrels have been engaging in the practice since the birth of their species. From cheek stuffing to car racing...anything goes for these wantonly self-destructive creatures.