You make it sound so easy. I have 3 little chihuahua, and I have no idea how to put traps or poison knowing that I would not harm my dogs. I live in Orange County, CA and yes squirrels are protected by law. I think spraying garlic worked on the squirrels. Every time I spray garlic mixed with water I do not see them for few days, but the rats are ruthless. They ate all my tomatoes last night.

In case there are any tomatoes left to protect, BT is a very good way to protect against caterpillars...

Linda

Well, garlic spray doesn't work around here. But I have a relocation program. Every year in March, April, and May, I trap and relocate more than a dozen squirrels. It is some work, and you'd think this would be like bailing the ocean, and could never work. But it does. Squirrels are very territorial, and if you clear an acre or two of squirrels, you won't see any more until the next year.

Of course, if you tie up your chihuahuas near your garden, wouldn't your problems with squirrels and rats disappear?

I don't think anyone is saying it is easy but pest control is a standard part of gardening. No one gets off scott free, got a garden you got pests and varmints.

So the main problem sounds like something at night eating the tomatoes. Are these green tomatoes or ripening ones? Different varmints go after them at different stages. If ripening then you don't leave them on the vine. You pick them at color break and take them indoors.

If it is all happening at night then I agree with Dan that it isn't squirrels. Squirrels are day raiders. But everything else is just a guess until you go out at night and watch and see exactly what is doing it. While out there you take a flashlight along and look for slugs and snails working on your lettuce and spinach. They eat holes in the leaves but they do not take the whole plant - rabbits do, groundhogs do.

Is there unrestricted access to your garden? No fencing? Are rats common in the neighborhood? Raccoons seen? Rabbits? Skunks? All of them raid at night and IMO good fencing is the only thing that works permanently. All the other tricks are just temporary.

Dave

There are those motion detector sprinkler things (but if the chihuahuas are allowed in the garden they will get a bath!)

I don't know if it works for squirrels or rats, but I've been using those gopher chatterers (they beep or chatter every 30 seconds or so) for about 5 years and have had very few problems with mammals, and we have gophers, skunks, racoons, possum, rats. We also have several feral "barn cats" that the animal control fixed vaccinated and chipped for free for barn cats. Nancy

Get the motion detection sprinklers, work great for rabbits, deer and groundhogs for me. My dogs are pure bred labs and lab cross and they learn real fast-and they're supposed to like water? :-)

I'd have an exterminator put out poison boxes. Your dogs will be protected, but the rats can get to it and die.