How to keep rock squirrels out of coops?

[ChicksnMore]

We have rock squirrels here that burrow up into the coops. They love everything the chickens eat and an occasional egg.

I have one coop that borders our neighbors land and I've been keeping the rock squirrels out with hardware cloth buried about a couple feet down under the entire floor of the coop and run.

The squirrels are living on our neighbors property and a predator apron is useless for them...they don't dig in from the sides. They dig up from underground tunnels.

I'm redoing that coop to hold ducks and while I'm at it, I wanted to see if anyone here has a better idea for keeping rock squirrels out. I'm looking for ideas that let water through and keep anything from coming into the coop from underground.

I trap and remove all the rock squirrels I can. Put mothballs in any holes on our property etc so we don't have any living on our property...but I can't do anything about the neighbors. Rock squirrels are cute, these neighbors enjoy them and I enjoy my neighbors...so removing them from the neighbors property isn't an option.

Anyone have any ideas or experience dealing with something like this?

Editing to add that I'm looking for a solution thats permanent and as inexpensive as possible

 

[3KillerBs]

a predator apron is useless for them...they don't dig in from the sides. They dig up from underground tunnels.

Would a vertical underground barrier work? How deep are the tunnels?

 

[perkolator]

Similarly I have moles and gophers and field mice/rats that will use their tunnels - so in my secure coop/run I excavated about 4-6” below grade and put down HC on the ground, then put the dirt back + ~8” of wood chips over that.
Was a lot of work but almost 2yrs later there’s no evidence of anything coming up through the floor, but in the adjacent run and basically everywhere else in the area you’ll find holes, tunnels and mounds.
Good luck

 

[ChicksnMore]

Would a vertical underground barrier work? How deep are the tunnels?

Not sure how deep they are. Might be able to Google typical depth. Think they go pretty deep though.

Similarly I have moles and gophers and field mice/rats that will use their tunnels - so in my secure coop/run I excavated about 4-6” below grade and put down HC on the ground, then put the dirt back + ~8” of wood chips over that.
Was a lot of work but almost 2yrs later there’s no evidence of anything coming up through the floor, but in the adjacent run and basically everywhere else in the area you’ll find holes, tunnels and mounds.
Good luck

That sounds like what I did. It's been in place for about ten years and worked great...but we had a hole come up under the water bowl where the hc gave out. Probably the water there over the years rusted it. Trying to decide if I want to replace just that section or do something more...and wondering if the rest of the hc is giving out. I'm groaning at the thought of replacing it all. Hoping to never have to dig hc back up to replace it...lol.

 

[ChicksnMore]

Should add that I tried bricks first years ago...so the hc is actually about 5 years old? Maybe 7? Anyways...brick didn't work...the squirrels would collapse a brick underground and come up anyways.

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

If you are a good shot then this: https://www.amazon.com/Daisy-Adult-...+gun&qid=1660241422&sprefix=BB,aps,91&sr=8-10
If not then this: https://www.amazon.com/Bushmaster-B...+gun&qid=1660241422&sprefix=BB,aps,91&sr=8-14

 

[perkolator]

A Daisy BB gun, lol. If your goal is to take out rodents like that, I'd suggest a break-barrel pellet air rifle that's got some oomph behind it.
Shortly after we bought our house I got a $100 break-barrel .22 Hatsan because I was seeing rats coming out of the old coop after dark and using the tunnels, hence the reason I went with the HC under the ground on the new coop

 

[Bigtom Turkey]

I was kidding, if he really want to shoot them then I would use a .22.

 

[ChicksnMore]

If you are a good shot then this: https://www.amazon.com/Daisy-Adult-Red-Ryder-Gun/dp/B07QG9Y8FH/ref=sr_1_10?crid=13THXPEKG12YA&keywords=bb+gun&qid=1660241422&sprefix=BB,aps,91&sr=8-10
If not then this: https://www.amazon.com/Bushmaster-BMPWX-CO2-Powered-Action-Capability/dp/B07R5WLY7K/ref=sr_1_14?crid=13THXPEKG12YA&keywords=bb+gun&qid=1660241422&sprefix=BB,aps,91&sr=8-14

A Daisy BB gun, lol. If your goal is to take out rodents like that, I'd suggest a break-barrel pellet air rifle that's got some oomph behind it.
Shortly after we bought our house I got a $100 break-barrel .22 Hatsan because I was seeing rats coming out of the old coop after dark and using the tunnels, hence the reason I went with the HC under the ground on the new coop

Guns won't do anything my traps and mothballs don't already do. Won't shoot into the neighbors land and won't try traps or guns in the coop...I'm more likely to shoot myself in the foot then hit what I aim at, though lord knows I've tried to aim better

 

[Thanson]

Similarly I have moles and gophers and field mice/rats that will use their tunnels - so in my secure coop/run I excavated about 4-6” below grade and put down HC on the ground, then put the dirt back + ~8” of wood chips over that.
Was a lot of work but almost 2yrs later there’s no evidence of anything coming up through the floor, but in the adjacent run and basically everywhere else in the area you’ll find holes, tunnels and mounds.
Good luck

What is HC? Thanks!