Well, how very thoughtful of them to at least leave you a few bags. Not. Mamuang, get out the gun. Or traps or poison bait. You work too hard and paid too much for those trees to feed a bunch of rats with bushy tails. Time to teach your daughter what a squirrel really is - just another rodent that is a pest and is ruining your lovely fruit crop.

Patty S.

Go Patty! Blast those suckers!

I chased a squirrel out of an apple tree today with a shovel. I almost had him... I even took a swing as he started climbing the telephone pole...

Meg, if you saw the property behind my fence, you'd get your gun out, too :-) I live adjacent to an abandoned orange orchard that is so full of ground squirrel holes, you can't walk back there without breaking an ankle. My weapon of choice actually is poison bait. I don't have enough bullets. Seriously though, trying to keep my rodent population down low enough so I can get at least 1/2 my fruit is a daunting task where I live. Between rabbits, roof rats and ground squirrels, I can barely stay ahead of them. That, and snails. We have plenty of predators, too, but not enough of them to keep the rodents out of my trees. It's very frustrating to put in all the time, effort, and money, only to end up feeding a bunch of rodents. California is a great place to grow stuff, but everyone else thinks so, too, so we're constantly battling the rodent issue, here.

Gosh, Frank, you must be wicked fast! I run every morning, but I don't think I could run fast enough to catch a squirrel!

Patty S.

I tried the Just One Bite but my squirrels won't bite. I put them in plastic bags to discourage birds from eating them. I used plastic gloves to avoid too much human scent. The bait just sits there while fruit disappears.

I've found that they sometimes jump over 4' to avoid baffles and 5' may be the requirement for grey squirrels that are very hungry.

Bring back falconry.

Since you're not in Florida consider another biological approach.
1. Buy python
2. Put in tree

Another option is to invest in a wolf...or if you aren't comfortable handling a wolf, invest in a coyote...

I'm pretty fast when there is a bushy tailed rat trying to steal my nearly ripe apples.

Squirrels are probably my most annoying pest.

Thank you for all your advice and sympathy. I live in a "densely populated" area in a suburb. There are too many neighbors close by.

Personally, I like the idea of using a python but don't think the town will allow it (in addition to having my neighbor calling the police). I used fox/coyote's urine last year. I think the squirrels were laughing at it while running pass it to the trees.

Also, I am neither fast nor accurate (in case I decide to use a BB gun).

Get some Kania traps. Search here for some instructions I posted on how to best bait them. Re-bait them every evening in peak pressure periods. Kiss your squirrel problem goodbye.

My three kids are also very unhappy and occasionally get upset about the dead squirrel hanging in that tree, but we pretty much reached a truce that I don't talk about it and they don't bring it up.

Scott

I've had nonlethal traps set for the squirrels for the last couple of weeks, since they've been ravaging the corn in my garden. I have them baited with fruit, peanutbutter and corn, and they don't bite.

When not into the corn, they're hitting the pears. If they were just into the Kieffers, I wouldn't mind, but no, they're taking the bagged Honeysweets.

Looking into pellet gun that has enough air power. The varmints are so arrogant that even I can get close enough to hit them.

We are surrounded by native woods, and the woods are(or were) full of rats. Last year I was disabled and the rats got every single fruit from twenty trees. This year I am baiting and have used 120 lbs so far. My trees are full of fruit getting ripe. Two buzzards have taken up roosts in my woods to feast on the regular kill. Al

ltilton... Look at the Beeman X2/Grizzly/RS2 or whatever they are called at the moment. they are 117$ at Walmart. They are awesome for an inexpensive rifle.
Use the .22 barrel and they don't stand a chance.

ltilton, get a Kania trap and mount it on a wood (grippy) pole 5' off the ground. Bait it with pecans and put a few pecan fragments right at the trap entrance as well as a few on the ground below. Have the pole stuck in the ground right by where the squirrels are causing trouble. They will at some point get bored with the corn and check out your nuts .. WHAM.

Squirrels are more likely to put just their heads in a box than to step their full bodies into a live trap. That is why the Kania traps work better. Note they are still not perfect, I have lost quite a bit of fruit this year because I was not paying close enough attention.

Scott

If you live in the suburbs, as I do, and prefer not to use lethal traps (which are illegal in many areas), your only option, I have found, is to net the tree. If there are not nearby trees from which the squirrels can jump from into your tree, it is not necessary to net the whole tree. I have found that netting the bottom part up to about 7' high seems to work ok. Netting is a pain though, in large part because of the low quality netting available and the unhelpful sizes it is sold in. In Australia, where parrots will strip any unnetted fruit tree, it is much easier to get high quality netting in large sizes that will cover a tree easily. Here I have to cobble together the black netting with clothes pins, but it works reasonably well.

The squirrels easily ripped open my netted plum tree and stripped the fruit.

My crafty plan with the traps was to lure them into a sense of security with a trap that wouldn't spring. They went into that one readily enough, but not the ones set to spring shut on them.

I'm afraid that a lethal trap deployed in the open like the Kania might catch the attention of authorities. Such are illegal here.

Scott,

A mental picture of a squirrel killed by Kania trap seems quite gruesome esp. if my daughter saw it before I did!!

I may go with baiting (and pray that they go and die somewhere else). I'll continue to contemplate ways to get rid of them. Again, thanks for all the advice.

Scott has posted photos of the Kania traps in action.

I own a .22 Benjamin Trail NP XL 1100.
Shoots non-lead pellets 1100 FPS and medium grain lead pellets around 950 FPS. Rifle has a nice baffle on it, you can barely hear it fire. Its hefty though, about 10 lbs, and a break barrel. Sales run around $240

I have yet to shoot a squirrel with it, but im sure it lethal. It shoots thru plywood.

I agree, get a Kania. I looked into the tube traps but the spring did not seem strong enough. The Kania has a powerful spring that has instant success.

I really hated the idea of the lethal part, but I found that it's not any different than a mouse trap. When they are caught there is nothing gruesome about it; it's quick and clean.

One you start seeing fewer and fewer squirrels around you will know it was worth it.

I live in an urban neighborhood and I put my trap about 5 feet up a 4x4 cedar post. Once they are caught they blend in with the color of the fence and it's not really too noticeable. I did ask each of my adjoining neighbors how they would feel about it and all of the wished me the best of luck. One of them even trapped and shot them once he knew how I felt about it.

Spread some peanut butter on the top and underneath on the post to lure them in, then make sure there is some inside as well. I found several Youtube videos showing how to set it. It's really easy.

I've had good luck for many years with live traps. I've used about 5 different traps (including Havahart) and the best one by far is Tomahawk (the single door trap made for rabbits).

I used to bait around the trap and even screwed a whole pecan on the trip plate, but now I don't put near that much time into it.

I simply throw some acorns (I have a large bag in the freezer of acorns I picked up off the ground a couple years ago) and set the trap. I catch a lot of squirrels that way.

Of course you still have to destroy them once you catch them in a live trap which is a disadvantage of live traps.

As Patti mentioned, squirrels really are like rats with bushy tails. Several years ago I remember reading in the paper about someone catching squirrels in a live trap and (somehow) shaving their tails, then releasing them to fool his neighbors into thinking there were lots of rats running around (The guy had way too much time on his hands.)

Jbclem,

Thanks for reminding me about how poisoned/dead squirrels could cause hazzard to other animals who would eat them. I have about 20 trees, not all in the same area. Individual electric fence does not seem practical.

It appears killing them is the most effective option. Gun with real bullet is out. Our neighbors are so close and none of us have any fences. I know my aim will be bad. Don't want to hit my neighbors' houses or worse,my neighbors!! Have to study the kania trap again.

If you bait your traps at night and check them first thing in the morning then your kids will not see any squirrel nearly all the time - they tend to show up early and check out whatever is new then.

The one thing I have not done right with my Kania traps is I mounted them to fixed trees and I think they are really better on posts you can hammer into the ground near wherever the squirrels are causing trouble. Once I get some time I am going to re-mount two of them as portable traps.

I have a pile of havahart traps that I could not get to reliably work. Part of the problem is dogs etc would kick them over to get the crackers and I never built a platform for them out of dogs reach. This is the reason the Kania need to be on a pole, you don't want Fido from next door with a crushed paw whining in your backyard.

Scott

I'm concerned with the neighbors' kids seeing the lethal traps and calling the police.

One neighbor was target shooting with a legal pellet gun and the police showed up - someone called them.

But I just got back from finding one Havaheart sprung and a ripe Galia melon gnawed on.

Poison also kills owls.

Has anyone thought about getting a cat or a mini schnauzer dog? My dog thinks that chasing squirrels is more fun than an amusement park.

The squirrels don't like her.
John S
PDX OR

I second skyjs. Do not put out poison, because you could inadvertently poison animals that will eat the squirrels, including cats and dogs. Instead, consider adopting an alley cat or two. They love squirrels(and rabbits).

Also, if you want to "shoot" them, nothing as big as a 22 is needed. You could use a BB gun, or a really good sling shot on a squirrel.

Wandered down to check on the progess of the half-dozen Stanley plums that escaped the freeze and the curculios. Up in the branches was the squirrel, chomping away on a ripe plum. I shook the branches, hoping to shake it down into the waiting jaws of the cat, who wasn't as enthusiastic about this prospect as he ought to be. It finally escaped, yammering furiously.

If I'd been packing, I could have nailed it dead.

Instead, I picked the two remaining plums.

You got to try a barn owl bird house. If it gets occupied, the problem will take care of itself.

We do have a lot of redtail hawks in the neighborhood. They prey on squirrels. I don't suppose they like houses.

But I'm pretty sure the local bird preserve would have info on owl houses.

Olpea that is the one of the funniest squirrel stories I've ever heard! What a riot! Mrs. G I'm buy a Kania for this fall.

my neighborhood is filled with giant oak trees and thus squirrels, even if I tried killing them more would move in from the surrounding area! So far I'm having good luck with alluminum ribbons that blow in the wind, netting (thats a pain) and this year I'm going to give mothballs as a deterant a try.... strange but I've heard it can work so why not

Squirrels did take all 9 William's Pride, bags and all. In fact, they left a few plastic bags behind for me!!!

Did you use clear plastic bags? If so the tree rats can still see the fruit. Last year I used small paper bags on the six pears on my tree and to my surprise the squirrels ignored them. Otherwise all 6 pears would have been gone in a snap. The only fruit that seems immune to squirrels are persimmons here. They completely strip all the plums, apples, pears, peaches, & cherries with some help from the birds. I need to look into kania traps, no kids here, ha.

eta - just googled up kania trap images, seems quick like a guillotine.