Squirrels eating chicken eggs

[Smangerer]

I killed a squirrel today by mistake. I set an electric trap for a rat I have seen in the run the last two nights. I put the trap on the roof of the run where the rat was getting in. I turned the trap on at about 7:30 then went out to dinner thinking it was dark enough but when I came home there was a large squirrel in the trap. I have to admit that I feel bad but have a little relief after reading this and knowing that they can be a problem. I placed the trap inside the run tonight with a log over it so the birds cant investigate.

 

[appps]

I killed a squirrel today by mistake. I set an electric trap for a rat I have seen in the run the last two nights. I put the trap on the roof of the run where the rat was getting in. I turned the trap on at about 7:30 then went out to dinner thinking it was dark enough but when I came home there was a large squirrel in the trap. I have to admit that I feel bad but have a little relief after reading this and knowing that they can be a problem. I placed the trap inside the run tonight with a log over it so the birds cant investigate.

I had never heard of an electric rat trap. Much better idea than the sticky ones we have been in desperation reduced to. Will have to look into these. Sorry guys. As a foreigner I think they are the cutest little things and can't for a second imagine shooting or eating them lol. Guess it would be different if it were my eggs though

 

[Smangerer]

I can't recall the brand but its powered by 4 c batteries and claims to kill up to 50 rats on one set of batts. The floor is metal as well as the back. There are holes on the back which you put a dab of penut butter through the bottom hole. Once they hit the back wall they are done. I had it for under the house and caught about 5 rats but stopped because I didn't check it often enough so I would discover the kill by the smell. I wish I didn't get the squirrel but I guess it's good to know it works on larger rodents. I will keep it within the run at night for now until the rat is gone or the squirrels prove problematic.

And on another note... I have never eaten squirrel and discarded this one over the fence for the vultures but just out of curiosity, is an electricuted squirrel edible?

 

[appps]

Hubby used poisons last time and my son has been in our study for two weeks cause whatever ate it died in a wall in of his bedroom. Smell just won't go and we can't find it. At least this way we can follow the smell to the trap lol

 

[tniron]

I like squirrels but they can be a problem. My dad used to try everything to keep them out of his bird feeder. Even had one chew wires on his new truck once. He eventually trapped them and sent them to a new home.

 

[MzPlacedHippie]

My daughter's dog (who I thought was useless) promptly chases the little boogers off when they venture too close.

Ike

 

[tniron]

My daughter's dog (who I thought was useless) promptly chases the little boogers off when they venture too close.

Ike

My Jack Russell is terror on squirrels, rats , mice and moles but she has left the birds alone.

 

[ChickenNerd11]

There are at least 2 squirrels in my neighborhood. One day, I came out to check on eggs and there was an egg on the ground broken. We thought someone had dropped it. But when i read this post it gives me a new suspect...
Sadly we cannot have our dogs outside to chase them off and the chickens leave the squirrels alone. They never eat paint or plastic but they did eat the leaves of my bird of paradise plant, the maple leaves, and the acorns I soaked in chive water to get rid of them. It did not work. One of our dogs is a yellow lab named Sam. He is the friendliest dog in the world but he will kill squirrels, chickens, rats, etc.., and then he will bring the unmarked body to us as a gift. The other dog is a Australian Shepard mix named Charlie, and he appears to be PETRIFIED of the chickens... He will kill squirrels, but he isn't very fast anymore. Our old dog Hudson would kill squirrels when they were running along the fence by slamming his body against the fence at the right moment. The squirrel falls and good by squirrel. It is only now that they are coming back. Does anyone have a good live trap for squirrels? Thanks!

 

[dorothymcd]

OMG I have a squirrel that keeps stealing all of the food from my chickens coop but now I had a bigger problem. I purchased hatching eggs and gave to my broody hen. She didnt hatch one egg but that's not even the strange part. I gave her 12 eggs and only found 4. I know my hens didnt eat the eggs so where did they eggs go? The squirrels stole them? Do they really do that because that is really upsetting me i lost $100 on those eggs and have no idea where most of them went!

 

[HeyLittleHen]

For me keeping chickens is about sustainable living. Killing any predator in your yard is NOT.


Remember they have been there before you. We human enroach on wildlife - try to live in peace with your wildlife.


EXCLUSION is the key word - almost any "pest animal" can be excluded.

In your case, you might want to add fencing (hardware cloth with 1/2inch to 1inch) that is too small for the squirrels to get through.

Also feeding the squirrels might do the trick to distract them. Squirrels are not big on eggs anyway - I work in wildlife rehab and although we offer eggs to squirrels, they hardly never eat it when giving other choices.


Exclusion also works for raccoon, foxes, etc - trying to live in harmony with the world around you also might make you feel better about yourself and your chickens /img/smilies/smile.png


I would love to see the pics of the squirrels rolling the eggs though, thats hillarious !! /img/smilies/smile.png

Well said. Too many seem to have a bloodlust for every animal that causes them an issue. I have proofed my coop against everything I can imagine and feed the wildlife too. Never had any issues. The local fox passes through each evening and doesn't even glance in the direction of the coop. Squirrels happily feed on sunflower seeds and nuts through the day and do not go near the coop even with the door open for most of the day.