Mice and Squirrel Problems

[lazy gardener]

My dog has discovered the thrill of mouse hunting. They make great squeaky toys till she breaks the squeaker. If only she could climb trees! As far as squirrels go: traps, followed by permanent body disposal, or target practice.

Crock pot squirrel is on my bucket list.

Further: consider fermenting your feed. It is not easily carried off. Increases protein and B vitamins in the feed, eliminates waste. I never leave feed out at night. There is a how and why article in my signature

 

[CntryBoy777]

In case you don't want to waste the squirrel meat, I have a great squirrel sauce piquante recipe. It's pretty good (grew up on the stuff).

Mostly, here in the South, it is usually fried or put into stew....we like it in the pressure cooker with BBQ sauce, but it is really good grilled, too....but ya sure gotta brine it first, or ya might as well be chewing a shoe....
I used a BB gun when we lived in the city....none the wiser....

 

[Molpet]

most mammals do not like red cayenne pepper.. they sell little packets at a high $ to put in wild bird seed to keep the squirrels away.. the human spice is usually cheaper...
1/4 teaspoon per chicken is a common dose in chickens to help prevent worms and increase circulation in the winter

 

[DIGGIN CHICKEN]

Electric fencing may be the answer then .... just don't forget the little wet sponges!

 

[coach723]

In addition to the treadle feeder, here are a couple more ideas for feeders:
http://ploughandstarsproject.com/lazy-chicken-farmer-101/ (feed catcher is about 1/2 way down)
https://sustainablelivingcenteroregon.com/2016/03/01/diy-chicken-feeders-with-no-waste/
I also keep my feeders inside the enclosed run, so no squirrels. I use traps for mice.
You can use electric traps that zap them when they go in, no muss, no fuss, just empty them in the morning. Mice can fit through 1/2 inch hardware cloth (I found a fat one hanging half way through once), so you have to go down to 1/4 inch if you want to try to keep them out.

 

[KentuckyRooster]

I don't have many squirrels...they're dumb fools if they come in the yard and one day they're going to fall prey to the cattle dog who runs them out like a demon.

If you have space I'd look at a barn cat for the mice. A proper barn cat will put a hurt on the lil buggers. You could also get a ratting terrier and then it will kill mice and squirrels with equal ferocity

 

[Contolini6]

Thanks for all the advice everyone!!! We would rather not get a cat, and we don't own any firearms, not even a BB gun, and none of us has ever fired one before so I don't know how long/how much practice it would take before we could actually hit a squirrel with one, haha.

 

[lazy gardener]

You will never know until you try. If you are in an area where you can safely shoot a gun, I recommend that you buy yourself a gun and learn how to use it. While there are folks who choose not to own a fire arm, IMO, every American should learn how to shoot, and own a gun. It is a constitutional right, until that right is taken away from us.

 

[Contolini6]

Seeing as we live in a suburban housing development with other people's yards and houses on three sides of us and have less than a quarter of an acre of land, I would definitely classify us as in an area where we cannot safely shoot a gun haha.

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I don't feed our chickens in their yard, aside from treats like greens which get gobbled up quickly. I keep the feeder inside the coop. The coop is small, and I still need to find a better setup in there, but I find it easier to manage. I'm also thinking about removing it at night and bringing it inside.

As for squirrels, they're larger animals, so it sounds like you don't have any roof over the run. We don't either, although it was my intention to design the run to accommodate a roof. It didn't come together as planned, so now we're looking into aviary netting so that we at least have something to stop some of the animals from entering the run.

Baiting and trapping won't help. You need to prevent access, so cover the run, but I would also consider relocating the food. And there are feeders that are supposedly rodent proof, or at least greatly reduce their ability to acquire food. I think one involves something the chickens step on to release food.

But the most important element would be aerial protection, and then also consider 1/4" hardware cloth around the run.