Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Record
Daily Record
National
Jon Hebditch

Highlands man's genius squirrel pictures are the best thing you'll see all day

A crafty Scot has transformed a garden into a playground for squirrels - building mini tables, tanks, planes and trains for his furry friends.

John Beats from Forres, Moray has been creating the furniture during the coronavirus pandemic.

Tanks for the nuts say the grateful animals (John Beats)

The 61-year-old has since moved to his daughter's house and set up the attention-grabbing feeding stations.

They have proved a smash hit with the bushy tailed creatures- as these stunning pictures show.

Chalks away! A squirrel enjoys John's plane (John Beats)

The grey and red squirrels have been snapped looking like their riding in a tank, piloting a plane and driving a train.

Another looks like a miniature picnic table.

John made his first creation in March and has been continuing to be creative since.

John told the Record: "(It) was just something to do after first one. I thought it turned out ok so carried on.

"(There have been) no more squirrels but more regular.

"We put out lots of different nuts and apples."

He told the Forres Gazette that each piece usually takes a weekend to craft.

He said: "I made them by chopping up and shaping pallet boards.

"I made the train to start with and I had to guess the size of the squirrel – they are a lot smaller than you would think and you have got to make it so you can see the squirrel when you put the food in."

John added: "The train gave me a guide for the tank, I made the turret and left the back open for the squirrel. My wife Andrea suggested the plane so that was the most recent one I made.

"The squirrels are quite nosey and were in each one within half an hour of me putting them up."

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.