Squirrel Problem

SlowRiver

SlowRiver

Well-known member
The squirrels are digging 3 to 8 inch holes in all of my potted figs and next to virtually all of my inground plants. I am considering buying a trap and coyote urine. It seems the ultrasonic repellents are a waste of time. Does anyone have any tips or recommendations?
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I would put down some wire deterrent like hardware cloth. The next best thing is attracting something which the squirrels are afraid of like Hawks or cats. With traps it's just a quick fix until new ones move in from other areas. If you are allowed to, shoot them.
 
I have a pump daisy bb gun, its like 350 fps, so it doesnt kill them but rather stings them, if i even hit them(yes, ive had someone shoot me in the butt with it to make sure it didnt penetrate.) Most times just getting near them, makes them scurry off. If by the off chance it does kill one, id eat it.

I remember my grandmother doing the same with her garden, and a tip i got from either her or the interwebs: when you shoot them, make sure they dont see you. If they DONT see you, they associate the area with pain, and will start to avoid it. If they DO see you, theyll associate your presence with pain, and will come around when your not there.

You can also use chicken wire to put down around the soil, but theyll still try.
 
whitey said:
I have a pump daisy bb gun, its like 350 fps, so it doesnt kill them but rather stings them, if i even hit them(yes, ive had someone shoot me in the butt with it to make sure it didnt penetrate.) Most times just getting near them, makes them scurry off. If by the off chance it does kill one, id eat it.

I remember my grandmother doing the same with her garden, and a tip i got from either her or the interwebs: when you shoot them, make sure they dont see you. If they DONT see you, they associate the area with pain, and will start to avoid it. If they DO see you, theyll associate your presence with pain, and will come around when your not there.

You can also use chicken wire to put down around the soil, but theyll still try.
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You can make a good stew with them.
 
SlowRiver said:
The squirrels are digging 3 to 8 inch holes in all of my potted figs and next to virtually all of my inground plants. I am considering buying a trap and coyote urine. It seems the ultrasonic repellents are a waste of time. Does anyone have any tips or recommendations?
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I've bad news for you....there is nothing you can do about squirrels...

1) Coyote urine...works for a little while until the smell wears off or when it rains
2) Ultrasonics are a waste of time....the guy at Home Depot even discouraged me from buying it
3) Hanging flashing aluminum pans....nope...more for birds but I don't have a bird problem
3) Conibear traps.....nope...their reflexes are quick or they escape I dunno?....but they've tripped them several times..with no capture
4) The most success I've had is using the Squirrelinator and Havahart traps. Caught several but guess what?... they get wise....now i see them walk by and not even come close to those traps. Even if you kill a bunch, they are tons more coming to replace them. You can't keep up...we haven't even talked about raccoons yet....

So I'm down to the last two options that I know will work;

1) Get an outdoor dog or cat, one of my neighbors swears by it....but it's not my preference because now you've new maintenance issues and costs....so...

2) Build or buy an enclosure or greenhouse.....it is the only way...so I'm building one this fall........plus there are many other advantages with greenhouses....heard squirrels will chew thru plastic sheets....so it's got to be hard plastic or glass.
 
DELFIG said:
I've bad news for you....there is nothing you can do about squirrels...

1) Coyote urine...works for a little while until the smell wears off or when it rains
2) Ultrasonics are a waste of time....the guy at Home Depot even discouraged me from buying it
3) Hanging flashing aluminum pans....nope...more for birds but I don't have a bird problem
3) Conibear traps.....nope...their reflexes are quick or they escape I dunno?....but they've tripped them several times..with no capture
4) The most success I've had is using the Squirrelinator and Havahart traps. Caught several but guess what?... they get wise....now i see them walk by and not even come close to those traps. Even if you kill a bunch, they are tons more coming to replace them. You can't keep up...we haven't even talked about raccoons yet....

So I'm down to the last two options that I know will work;

1) Get an outdoor dog or cat, one of my neighbors swears by it....but it's not my preference because now you've new maintenance issues and costs....so...

2) Build or buy an enclosure or greenhouse.....it is the only way...so I'm building one this fall........plus there are many other advantages with greenhouses....heard squirrels will chew thru plastic sheets....so it's got to be hard plastic or glass.
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Great post! Thank you!
 
Kompakfigs said:
You can always become a falconer.
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That would certainly be interesting. I am honestly surprised to have a squirrel problem. You probably don’t remember when you stopped by a couple months ago… There is a wide open field next door and there is a family of hawks that are constantly on a powerline overseeing the property. We also have an established neighborhood with roaming cats that I see every night the backyard. The squirrels are new to this year. Hopefully they won’t last long. There can’t be that many knock on wood.
 
SlowRiver said:
That would certainly be interesting. I am honestly surprised to have a squirrel problem. You probably don’t remember when you stopped by a couple months ago… There is a wide open field next door and there is a family of hawks that are constantly on a powerline overseeing the property. We also have an established neighborhood with roaming cats that I see every night the backyard. The squirrels are new to this year. Hopefully they won’t last long. There can’t be that many knock on wood.
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Been battling squirrels for 10 years now lol nothing works for me unfortunately. They dig massive holes in everything but my biggest issue is they eat all my figs and tomato’s 😂
 
BNaula1 said:
Been battling squirrels for 10 years now lol nothing works for me unfortunately. They dig massive holes in everything but my biggest issue is they eat all my figs and tomato’s 😂
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Sorry to hear that. Might have to enlist a small militia of BB gun wielding fig enthusiast to take care of our problems lol. I’m pretty sure I have one from Cub Scouts 35 years ago lol
 
TorontoJoe said:
They’re a pain in the culo. I gave up on trapping squirrels because there are just so many of them. Putting a dent in the population would be virtually impossible. Since most of the damage they do is from digging I opted to put hardware cloth on where they dig

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I was just about to post my solution - chicken wire - but you beat me to it. Works like a charm!
 
Figgin' A said:
I was just about to post my solution - chicken wire - but you beat me to it. Works like a charm!
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Chicken wire works just as well. I used to use it myself but it would get distorted if I tried to reuse it a in a following season. I got a bunch of hardware cloth for free and it’s infinitely reusable….

Down side of the hardware cloth is you definitely need to wear puncture resistant gloves and denim pants when working with it and cutting with tin snips etc. I’ve cut myself good a few times.
 
TorontoJoe said:
They’re a pain in the culo. I gave up on trapping squirrels because there are just so many of them. Putting a dent in the population would be virtually impossible. Since most of the damage they do is from digging I opted to put hardware cloth on where they dig

View attachment 23248
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Looks like a nice simple setup. I like that this doesn’t distort. May very well try this
 
Squirrels got nearly all of my Desert King figs last year. Well over a hundred figs. They only went after that one variety. This year I've been using a peppermint spray that is sold as a squirrel and rat deterrent. (We tried the coyote urine product, but it freaked out our cat. And it stunk). So far, my figs remain intact, and they are beginning to ripen already. We've seen one squirrel so far, but he stays at the other end of our yard.
 
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