Thread: Squirrels

The have-a-heart trap worked well for me, along with sealing up points of entrance.

Peanut butter makes good bait.

I had a squirrel problem and solved it just like that. Drove the captured squirrels about 5 miles away to a wooded area. We only had a single entry point to work on. The squirrels found a small opening and chewed it wide enough for them to slip into.

The traps are cheap. We bought one and still have it for future use. Ours is squirrel sized but I wish we had gotten one big enough for raccoons since we did have a raccoon in our attic during construction of our new house. Thankfully he decided to move out before we moved in.

Unless you have a pretty big and mean cat don't count on it to rid your house of squirrels!

Originally Posted by TexasBob

The have-a-heart trap worked well for me, along with sealing up points of entrance.

Peanut butter makes good bait.

I had a squirrel problem and solved it just like that. Drove the captured squirrels about 5 miles away to a wooded area. We only had a single entry point to work on. The squirrels found a small opening and chewed it wide enough for them to slip into.

The traps are cheap. We bought one and still have it for future use. Ours is squirrel sized but I wish we had gotten one big enough for raccoons since we did have a raccoon in our attic during construction of our new house. Thankfully he decided to move out before we moved in.

Unless you have a pretty big and mean cat don't count on it to rid your house of squirrels!

I agree, our cat is big, but also has the knack of catching animals. He has brought home many birds, squirrels and small rabbits and left them on our doorstep.

Originally Posted by TexasBob

Unless you have a pretty big and mean cat don't count on it to rid your house of squirrels!

One of my cousins had a squirrel in the loft problem. He borrowed next door's big mean tom cat. He put the cat in the loft and shut the trap door. He said there was some impressive noise from the resulting punch up. The squirrel left the way it had been getting in at full speed and never came back.
Incidentally, in parts of the UK we have another pest which gets into the loft and eats the wiring. It's called an edible dormouse, apparently they were introduced to Britain by the Romans. They are mainly found in Hertfordshire.

Originally Posted by Navaja

First you need to find out how do they get in and out of the attic, and close the entry/exit holes.
Then get one of these traps and start catch and release, until you get rid of them.

+1 on this type of trap and the catch and release.

You will also know exactly what critter is making all the noise.

Originally Posted by Miner123

I agree, our cat is big, but also has the knack of catching animals. He has brought home many birds, squirrels and small rabbits and left them on our doorstep.

Yup. When I was kid we had a cat that like that. Suzie liked to present us with her kills as gifts. I think she felt the need to contribute to our food supply. We had many cats over the years but only Suzie ever brought home a squirrel.

And I guess I need to take back that "big and mean" comment because now that I think back on it she was just a cat of ordinary size and certainly didn't act mean. She was just *really* good at her job!

Oh yes, Suzie had over 100 kittens in her lifetime. We put ads in the paper for "free kittens" and over the years managed to get rid of all but one. That one we kept. He *was* big. Grew to 22 pounds and none of that was fat. But he never contributed to our larder.

Suzie was a busy cat.

we don't have that problem around here much, as there are a lot of squirrel hunters and they are pretty good eating...fried squirrel and some gravy made out of the drippings and home made biscuits.....

Originally Posted by Navaja

First you need to find out how do they get in and out of the attic, and close the entry/exit holes.
Then get one of these traps and start catch and release, until you get rid of them.

I couldn't agree more. They are just looking for shelter-even a hole the size of a baseball is more than big enough to allow rodents in. PS. Use STEEL mesh-don't try sealing the holes with spray foam,they'll just dig it out and move back in.

True story from about 5 years ago: My brother-in-law was reading the paper on the sofa when the lights suddenly flikkered. About 2 minutes later their cat came and jumped on his lap acting very distraught. So my B.I.L walks to the front door to see what's going on. There is a dead squirrel on the porch and it is smoking. Conclusion: The cat chased the squirrel up the electric utility pole. The squirrel being rushed makes a mistake and touches something bad creating a high voltage short. Squirrel lands on the ground smoldering. Cat grabs squirrel and runs for the house. Leaves squirrel on porch because it is just to dang hot to hold on to. Cat is confused and alarmed by all this so it runs to my B.I.L and jumps in his lap for security.

Originally Posted by niftyshaving

+1 on this type of trap and the catch and release.

You will also know exactly what critter is making all the noise.

I prefer to exterminate the invading pests. That way I have the peace of mind that it won't be coming back in again, and also, you save on gas money. Of course, I do sometimes worry about revenge attacks from the squirrel's living family members. And then there's always the chance of the dead squirrel's ghost tormenting you for years with gnawing and clawing in your attic that isn't actually there. The Telltale Squirrel!

Originally Posted by Blade Wielder

I prefer to exterminate the invading pests. That way I have the peace of mind that it won't be coming back in again, and also, you save on gas money. Of course, I do sometimes worry about revenge attacks from the squirrel's living family members. And then there's always the chance of the dead squirrel's ghost tormenting you for years with gnawing and clawing in your attic that isn't actually there. The Telltale Squirrel!

Last time I had a squirrel problem -- they were eating from the porch garden --
I went to the biggest most authentic Asian Indian market and bought five
pounds of red hot chili powder. Sprinkled it on all the approaches.

In the morning I awoke to the most intense scolding I ever had.
The little guy was up in the tree rubbing his nose, yapping like
his tail was on fire.



In the end he seemed to like it so he got a
one way trip across the freeway ten miles
away.