GROUND SQUIRRELS???? warning to all BYC'ers

ShortCircuitRanch2332

Songster
8 Years
Mar 12, 2011
328
2
111
Oak Hills
I had all my chicks outside yesterday playing in the grass and getting some good ol sunshine while I was doing some work in the yard well I have a very large deck that wraps around the front of my house I was in the front and they were in the side yard well bout that time I see all 5 of my ducks running and yelling heading strait for me so I grab my gun (always at my side) and head around the corner to see a ground squirrel go under the deck where they all are and I hear this shrill crying under the deck I proceed RIPPING the boards off the deck were the Squirrel went under well I tear up about 5 boards and see the varmint run but where he was standing there's VERY grim discovery not a Chick or a Duckling or a Poult but a baby rabbit with its skull crushed a hole bitten in its side a foot chewed off no ears and its face half eaten (sorry for the graphic details) completely disgusted with my find I set out on killing that vermin so pry bar in hand I continue my search pulling up boards and about 3 later I find 3 more babies.............ALIVE so gather them and bring them in there all live and well eating and drinking when they're bigger ill be releasing them (done this many times due to crows or hawks or yotes taking the mother) but all in all I learned after a GOOGLE search that a ground squirrel WILL eat a small chick duckling Poult bird eggs mice rats shrews voles lizards snakes and whatever it can get if it is hungry scary thing is the same squirrel was up here a few time in the grass WITH my chicks and never did I think they were like that and I thank God that I found it out before I lost a baby even tho i learned it at the expense of a baby rabbit
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just though Id let all of BYC know of this to further your defense's
 
Thanks for the timely reminder. Spring has sprung and everyone is hungry for a chicken dinner. Glad you didn't lose any birds.

Good luck.
 
Ok ground squirrels are making my life miserable! They steal all the food, I can't catch them no matter what I do and they just keep breeding! The dogs killed a few but it doesnt make a dent. Once, a squirrel got inside my car under the hood and the dogs scratched the paint on my car with their claws trying to get at the squirrel. I can't really blame the dogs, I encourage them to chase the squirrels but it doesnt stop them from doing whatever the heck they want!

Now that I know they eat chicks I am double determined to do away with them all!!!
 
So glad you posted this.. I would never had imagined they would do that! One more thing to be mindful of when I finally get some chickens!
 
Uh oh - I've got ground squirrels and wild rabbits living under my chicken coop. So far, the squirrels have left my chicks alone, but have been eating the adult birds' feed. This morning a chicken was running through the yard with a small four-legged mammal that she had killed. It looked like a baby gopher or squirrel, or an adult mouse as she ran by with it. Score one for the birds!
 
Wow, how awful for the bunny!

I'm not a big fan of squirrels, I don' think they're cute and I do think they're a threat to babies. Most of the people I know think otherwise, but they think the same way about raccoons, too.
 
I have this one squirrel that is constantly going into the chicken run when the girls are out in the yard. I always encourage our dogs to get it but they have not been successful. The squirrel has even tried going into their nesting area. Not sure what to do about it. He just makes me angry. Hopefully one of these days our dogs will be successful.
 

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