You may have seen a giant squirrel around town Thursday.

To many Yukoners' surprise, the large rodent has nothing to do with this weekend's Sourdough Rendezvous celebrations.

It's an effort to raise awareness about federal budget cuts.

Yukon MP Ryan Leef was caught on camera yesterday hugging the furry mascot after a funding announcement at Yukon College. Whether he was aware of the irony is anyone's guess.

The squirrel is part of the Public Service Alliance of Canada's (PSAC's) nation-wide "third-choice campaign” which urges Canadians to think about the "absurdity” of choosing between public services and the economy.

The squirrel made an appearance at the end of a press conference Thursday to launch PSAC's latest campaign video.

The rodent played with a member of the media's hair, threw a pile of paper on the ground and was quickly escorted out the door by fake security guards.

"The giant squirrel is an absurd picture,” said John Gordon, PSAC's president, who flew to Whitehorse yesterday for the launch.

"Think about it this way: like (Prime Minister) Stephen Harper, this squirrel is just a rat with good PR.”

The latest video is an attempt to highlight the importance of the federal jobs with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.

Gordon said despite disappearing fish stocks, Harper is cutting jobs that monitor, manage and protect the industry and the environment.

Last August, Environment Canada cut 700 jobs in an effort to balance its budget. Earlier that summer, 50 contract scientists were cut, many of whom worked on climate change research, he continued.

As to why PSAC decided to launch this particular video in Whitehorse, Gordon said communities across the country are being affected by cuts in environmental services, including communities in the Yukon.

"I'm here today because I'm worried,” Gordon said.

"I'm worried about the direction Stephen Harper has set for us. He believes we have only one option to build a positive future: to eliminate the deficit by slashing public services and laying off workers.”

Gordon said that no one likes deficits, but asking Canadians to cut essential public services in order to bring the deficit to zero "doesn't make any sense at all”.

Lorraine Rousseau, chair of PSAC's Whitehorse Regional Women's Committee, and Julie Docherty, Regional Executive Vice-President of PSAC North, also spoke at Thursday's event.

Docherty said PSAC's main concern is the lack of transparency around where the cuts will happen in this spring's budget.

"We know nothing,” she said.

Gordon agreed: "Everything is behind closed doors. They won't talk to parliamentarians and they won't talk to Canadians. We want to start the debate.”

PSAC has already launched three other videos in its campaign, all involving the pesky giant squirrel stopping public servants from doing their jobs.