Squirrels anyone?

[ukrkoz]

So yes, we got now 2 squirrels that turned smart and decided to eat on chicken food.
They do not lay eggs so I am not really into squirrel welfare assistance. Thing is, they immediately decided they own the food, and will jump chickens when they come to feeder. Roosters, normally attacking my wife the very moment she sets her foot outside, humbly stand and watch. If I spook squirrles away, chickens will go and eat. Otherwise, they simply stand and watch squirrels fiesting on their food.
Started with 1, now we have 2, likely will be more coming.
Yes, few BBs help, but I am not home all day long to re-enforce THAT. Wife is home, but she's a female, you know...
So, any ideas? Cats, dogs, etc out of question for same wife reason.
Chickens obviously free roam. We are fully fenced, but squirrels happen to know how to use trees and climb fences.

I am open to good ideas how to keep them at bay once and forever. We are backed by forest. Solution must be wife friendly. Cat would have taken care of this, but..... Not my decision.

 

[Huntered]

Live trap them and transplant them far away.

 

[RonP]

Lots of info on this site.

Most will say dispatch them humanely, they will be back and bring friends.

 

[BunnyTheSlayer]

Wife is home, but she's a female, you know...

No. I don't know. As a female hunter this perplexes me. Educate me?

 

[RonP]

Waiting for this one..........

 

[ukrkoz]

Lots of info on this site.

Most will say dispatch them humanely, they will be back and bring friends.

Yes. One already did.
I'll look into traps. We normally have about 5-6 of them playing around, minding their own business. They had their share of green tomatoes and figured they are no good, so they let them be form now on. Now they discovered chicken food.

As of female remark. She won't let me hurt them with BBs and does not want any harm to tem. I always thought part of femininity is kind heart and lack of any desire to hurt anything alive. She'd rather feed them too. At least, now I understand, why food disappears from feeder that fast.

 

[MeepBeep]

Live trap them and transplant them far away.

FYI that is pretty much a long inhumane torture and death sentence, best just to kill them swiftly and humanely from the get go... Google up the Universities Federation For Animal Welfare 2004 study on squirrel relocation, 97% of those relocated were dead or disappeared within the first 88 days... The blunt reality is squirrels really can't successfully be relocated...

I use plain old Victor brand rat snap traps, secured to something with a length of rope or chain, or screwed to the side or roof of a building where they populate...

 

[RonP]

I think you will also find that it is a learned trait shared.

Squirrels invaded my coop where I have my feeder (inside) years ago.

I dispatched 14, humanely, inside my coop.

There are still many, many squirrels around my property.

I'm just not a food source for them any longer as none are alive that know food is in the coop.

Trap is still set, inside my coop...

 

[BunnyTheSlayer]

Hunting isn't about wanting to hurt something. It's about land management and tasty, tasty venison and turkey and whatnots (among other reasons). Not trying to be combative or anything, but a woman can enjoy the hunt and still be feminine and kind hearted. I'll show myself out now.

Hope you can resolve your squirrel issue.

 

[enola]

If you feed them fermented feed they will look for another food source.

Or you can google treadle feeders. They have good reviews.