"brooklyn1" wrote in message
...
"Phisherman" wrote:
John McGaw wrote:
SteveB wrote:

I have made mouse traps out of five gallon buckets, and a tin can on a
wire
stretched over the open end. Wipe peanut butter on the can, and when
the
mouse steps out on it, it spins and dumps the mouse in the water.

I have been fighting squirrels all spring. Tomorrow a king size
version
goes up, and we'll see how the squirrels do. Going to get two more for
other positions on my property.



Simple cheap solution: procure one barn cat.


We have a stray neighborhood cat with one eye. He got into a fight
with a squirrel.

Costs a lot more to feed a cat than a squirrel.

The domestic cat will almost always lose a fight with a squirrel... mine
stay indoors, keeps the vet bills down, however they've never lost a fight
with a mouse... don't even have to fight, after two days hiding under the
fridge surrounded by six salivating cats the mouse just gives up by
commiting suicide.

Squirrels being very territorial will protect the area around their food
supply from other squirrels so there will never be too many in one area...
their only real competion are the crows... if you find damaged fruit it's
much more likely initiated by birds than squirrels, birds will knock fruit
to the ground, eat the best parts, and then the squirrels find the pits.
My veggie garden isn't far from where the squirrels hang but I've yet to
see even one squirrel in there, it's mostly birds that peck the veggies.
The easiest way to keep squirrels from ones food crops is to feed them
something else that they like better and put it out away from your crop.
There are a half dozen squirrels that live in the windbreak of 70 foot
Norway spruce trees near my fruit trees. I put out peanuts, sunflower
seeds, cheap stale crackers, bread scraps, and whatever bits they will eat
that most folks toss in the trash anyway, they love old dried/molded
cheese... I simply toss it out my side window at the same time each
morning, within two minutes they arrive for their breakfast and to
entertain my house cats. They never bother my fruit trees, why would they
chose measly fruit pits over peanuts, sunflower seeds, and cookies...
doesn't cost me $10 a year to feed the squirrels, certainly less than
you'll pay for traps, and I have no aggrivation from squirrels
whatsoever... even if you dispatch a few new ones will come to take their
place, you'll never get them all. You can't beat squirrels at their own
game so it's best to join them... I sorta feel pity for anyone with an IQ
less than that of a squirrel.

I MUST get these glasses checked the next time I get to the big city. I'm
sure I know the difference between a crow and a squirrel. Lemmesee, the
crow is the black one that flies, right? But I'm positive it was the brown
ones, the ones with the big furry tails, that's a squirrel, right, up in the
tree eating fruit.

Although, IIRC, crows are smart, and for them to don a rented squirrel
outfit would not be outside the realm of possibility.

Now I'm confused. But I guess I'll just keep a barrel of water in the
garden for those squirrels ...... crows ........... new squirrels
............. old squirrels ......... crows in rented squirrel suits
........... whatever. I need a nap.

Steve ;-)