I hope your thingy stops the squirrels. Right now I am using the 99 cent slinky! I have seen them by-pass the slinky but there is enough food on the ground "why bother!" ( I grew sunflowers and put the seeds out for the birds who don't seem to care for my home grown but the squirrels like them)
One day when I have too much money (hehe) I'm going to get the bird feeding "system" from Wild Birds Unlimited. It has a very nice baffle that no squirrel can get around. WBU also has a NICE ($$) seed mix!!

Where do you find slinkies these days? I'd like to give that a try as well. That sounds like a great idea.

Try wal-mart or the dollar store.

I have 3 feeders hanging from shepherd's hooks and I used petroleum jelly to grease the poles. At first the squirrels would try to climb the pole or take a big leap and grab the pole. That was most comical to see them sliding down the pole. It didn't take but a few greasy bellies to learn there was enough food knocked out on the ground. That was over a year ago and I never have any problems with the squirrels and the feeders. I did make sure they were placed where there was nothing strong enough for a squirrel to climb on and jump to the feeder. There's plenty of smaller plants around and lots of cover for the birds so they co-exist very happily -- and well fed. I did have to prune a longer branch off my spinach tree which the squirrel would climb and jump to the feeder, but that was all.

I never had any luck with baffels.

Ginny

Ginny that sounds like a great idea. I have been thinking about one of those shepherd's hooks, but figured the squirrels would climb it. You have the solution!

I have a "squirrel proof" bird feeder hanging from a tree. It is the kind where the openings to get the seed close if there is too much weight on the perches. It took our squirrel about 3 weeks of study and testing but he/she figured a work-around. The squirrel hangs upside down and does stomach crunches to lift the perches back up and access the seeds. It is alot of work so the seed doesn't disappear as fast as before, but it's not a total solution.

Posting this as a follow-up...

I have to say, I am impressed by my new feeder! So far - no squirrel break-ins. It's been quite entertaining to watch them try again and again only to fall onto the ground.

The cardinals and the house finches seem to be enjoying having a feeder of their 'own'.

Ginny, how often do you apply the petroleum jelly to your feeder poles? I have baffles on mine and they have worked for over a year, but ONE steenkin' squirrel has finally figured out some way to get on my big tray. I'm thinking maybe a combination of the baffle and the petroleum jelly might do the trick. I could even put some on the edge of the baffle.

I, too, have seen the squirrels do the upside down trick with the squirrel proof feeders. They can hang from the roof sometimes and reach the food without the perch ever closing. Depends on how smart and/or determined the squirrel is.

I don't mind them getting what hits the ground. I just hate for them to get EVERYTHING, which they do if they can reach the feeder.

Oh, and my slinkies were finally breached. Once one of them figured out how to climb up by reaching between the rings, the rest of them had it in a week. But it did take several months for the first one to accomplish it.

Marcia

The proof is in the picture :-)

Marcia, I only grease them about 2x a year - really good and thick. It doesn't show from a distance - just up real close. I have the tallest shepherd hooks I could find so they can't jump from the ground to the feeder. It's surprising how fast they learned not to try and climb the pole, but the doves and blue jays throw them plenty of goodies on the ground, so the squirrels are pretty well fed too. It's like the old saying "if you can't fight 'em, join 'em". I also feed my neighbor's cat so he won't always be stalking the birds. He still stalks, but not as much. lol.

Ginny

My neighbor just got a citation and fine for feeding outdoor cats . The letter stated "many cats " . She was feeding one pitiful stray who has since disappeared .
We live in the county - not the city . She found out one of her neighbors called it in . Now why would someone do that ? She was helping me by feeding the cat so it would stay away from my bird feeders ! Geeesh !

Some people have too much time on their hands and not enough sense to look for something constructive to do, if you ask me, gatormom. What a nuisance!

Thanks for the info, Ginny. I have to wonder, do grass clippings, leaves and other junk stick all over the pole? Just curious. I plan to grease mine TODAY and see how it works with my demented squirrels.

Marcia (still learning new stuff on this forum. Every. Single. Day.)

I have to say...quite impressed with my $16 feeder. No squirrel break ins yet! They have certainly tried...they chewed the plastic button off that keeps the lid on. Makes it harder to open to refill...but, not a big problem, since I don't have to fill it daily since they can't get in.

In fact, they have moved to my 'expensive' $36 squirrel-proof feeder...you know, the metal kind that shut from the weight of the squirrel? Yeah, they just hang upside down from the feeder roof and eat all the seed that way....

I'm glad your new feeder is working.

My DH has a new hobby...traping and "taking care of" squirrels.

Have any of you tried spraying silicone on the poles to make them slilpery?