Flamin' squirrels!

[HeyWayne]

Keep nicking my bulbs - flowering ones an' all.

I keep discovering little holes where growing bulbs used to be.

If it ain't cats pooping in my flower beds, or on the lawn, it's bladdy squirrels nicking bulbs.

Might have deterred the cats slightly by putting up bean netting over the bed they use. Fingers crossed.

Squirrels are a different kettle of fish. What's a squirrels natural predator?

[Nicos]

Natural predators....

Squirrels are on the menu for many animals; foxes, coyotes, wild cats, hawks, owls, snakes.

...and of courses humans with traps and guns!


Why not try a few pieces of hosepipe left on the lawn- which will look a bit like snakes...or a few toy ones from a car boot sale...and maybe a laminated piccie of an owl or bird of pray????

...or....maybe the local zoo will let you borrow a coyote or wildcat for a few days????

...or get a dog...they always seem to like to chasesquirrels from what I've seen!

[HeyWayne]

...oh, I forgot to mention the incontinent pigeons that sit up in the tree cr@pping on my shed, and barbecue (covered)

Off to get Whipsnade Zoo's number...

[Hilary B]

You aren't allowed to set fire to them! (see thread title)
It may be worth asking at The Hawk Conservancy (by e-mail, I'll try to get the link on here, but I often have trouble with links) if they know of anyone near you who hunts squirrels with a bird of prey. Being THE experts on birds of prey, if there is anyone who is any good, they will know about it.
You can buy models of eagle owl, and that might deter for a while, especially if you managed to get a real one visiting for a day or so.


efforts at link seem unsuccessful. Google will find it!

[Pumpkin Becki]

If the bulbs are in pots you could make domes out of chicken wire, secure them over the pot so that the squirrel can't get to the bulbs, and later the leaves and flowers can grow through in safety.

Personally, I love my squirrel. I think you should make him a special feeder of his own (the sort with a clear front and a lid he can lift up to get to the peanuts and sunflower seeds out of), ours took all of five minutes to work it out, and since then he hasn't visited the bird table, and the only digging he does is to 'plant' sunflower seeds for me.

[JILLY JACKSON]

Hi hw,Funny you should mention your squirrel problem,yesterday i saw one climb into my garden and i wondered whether it would cause any damage or not when all of a sudden,quick as a flash, my three bantams were chasing it back out of the garden! Did look comical.Its an idea.

[Alice]

Squirrels can be a bit of a nuisance with bulbs Wayne.
I had them in my last garden.
The best plan is when you plant the bulbs cover them over with chicken wire and put the soil on top of that. That seems to work.
They also seemed to like the flowers from yellow roses, just ripping the flowers off. Never found a solution for that.

[COMPOST CORNER]

Don't know how big your garden/plot is, but try an air rifle. With the latest flavour of crisps "Cajun spiced squirrel" there may be a market. Seriously though, squirrels are eaten regularly in the Souther USA, it was reportedly a favourite of Elvis. It is supposed to be a very lean meat similar to wild rabbit. Pigeon makes for good eating too. Wood pigeon that is, not the disease infested town flying rats.

[rana]

I have a squirrel that shelters in a robin nest box during the day - It's such an easy target, perhaps I'll take a pot-shot at it. Presumably it is best casserolled?