Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2000 12:26:42 -0600 From: "Joe Harden" <jharden@carnivorous-kingdom.com> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg804$foo@default> Subject: Squirrels -- The most evil of all vermin!
After reading post after post of Anti-Squirrel mails, I have to
throw in my 3 cents. (Interest rates went up...)
Nobody, and I mean NOBODY should underestimate these rodents, they
are smarter than you may think. Our backyard was heavily infested
with them, and it was no doubt why not -- we have several pecan
trees. We had a 8 year old Beagle that only made sure they didn't
get their foot on the ground, but they still did damage from the
trees. Actually, they would get 3-4 feet from the ground, and tease
my poor dog.
Anyway, we bought several of those wire mesh box-like human squirrel
traps. We would catch them, haul them 5-10 miles down the road and
let them loose. This kept them under control, and I wouldn't freak
out with my dad getting a shotgun. I caught maybe 2-3 a week.
However, one time we caught one that was more light colored than any
one I had ever seen, almost blonde haired! I remember it being
caught one morning, and I didn't want my dad to get rid of this one,
so I moved the metal levers on the outside, and lifted the door so
it could run away.
You would not believe it -- from that day on, we never caught
another squirrel! We would find the traps set off, turned over, and
sometimes the bait we left fell out or was gone. Well, I spent all
weekend watching the yard. Turned out, any one of those varmits
(Not the one I let loose) would come down, look at the traps, fiddle
with the lever and set it off. Then they would actually shake the
cage trying to get the food to fall off to the side. I swear, I
firmly believe that the one I let loose somehow showed the rest what
to do. I know it sounds crazy, but I have no other explanation why
those traps no longer catch them.
Anyway, to help some people out, Here is some real advice.
Don't Use poisen! A friend of mine lost his dog from using poisen
to get rid of rats around his house. The rat ate the poisen, and
the dog chewed up the rat. And there are a few post saying that
other wildlife will eat the carcass -- this is true.
At the last Texas Nurseryman and Landscape Association meeting,
someone sold a simple device to get rid of deer and squirrels. It's
a motion detector that is hooked directly to a Water Sprinkler.
Whenever it detects movement, it sprays water all around the area.
This looks silly, but keeps the little freaks away.
SharperImage.com had an electronic device that actually puts out a
signal that bugs rodents (and maybe dogs).
This works for birds, but I don't know about Squirrels -- hang
aluminum pie pans around your plants. This for some reason just
freaks birds out, and they won't come near them.
If you have a backyard collection, just make a frame from PVC, and
buy the landscape nets that are used to keep deer/birds/etc from
being able to get a mouthfull of the leaves. Wrap them around the
PVC. But don't get the Cheap-stuff, Squirrels will chew through it
(maybe spray pepper-spray on the mesh for a few weeks).
Anyway, that's my 3-cents. Hope it helps you people.
Joe Harden http://www.carnivorous-kingdom.com
[HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor]
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b30 : Tue Jan 02 2001 - 17:35:06 PST