On Tue, 21 Oct 2008 15:04:23 -0700 (PDT), sueb
wrote:

:On Oct 20, 7:24*pm, Dan Musicant ) wrote:
: On Mon, 20 Oct 2008 19:05:13 -0700, Dan Musicant )
: wrote:
:
: :Shooting? I have no kind of gun right now. I guess a pellet gun might be
: :in order, at least when it's growing season next year, and/or the
: :slingshot. This is war!
: :
: an
:
: Also, I have to confess I have been thinking about poison, at least if
: it's a possum that's at the root of this. The other options seem very
: iffy. I'm unlikely to encounter the possum in the act. I have a bottle
: of ethylene glycol I've had for believe it or not since about 1963! A
: pint bottle. I could maybe figure out a way to poison the critter with
: it. Here's what I figu Take a medium size squash, rupture the skin so
: that the flesh is smelled by whatever animal is doing this, and inject
: ethylene glycol into the interior. The animal would likely ingest it (I
: hear they like the sweet taste), and that would be the end of it. If
: this year is any indication, a squash whose rind is broken is the most
: likely to fall to an attack.
:
: Dan
:
:Before trying something like this, why not go for a less chemical-
:filled solution:
:- borrow a little yappy dog to run around your yard for a few days.
:- put mousetraps around the pumpkins. They won't be big enough to trap
:a squirrel or opposum, but they will startle them.
:- put motion detection lights out
:- put up a scarecrow with tinsel streamers
:- borrow a great big dog to pee around your field
:- program a light to shine into the field several times in the middle
f the night.
:
:Susan B.

I really like the creative attitude here. I don't think I can borrow a
dog, but I like the idea of the mouse traps. Also, the tinsel
scarecrows. Those are cheap and easy and might be rather effective. I'm
a little concerned that a mouse trap will snag one of the beasts, but
maybe that isn't really a problem. Thanks!

Dan