Squirel feeder

[David Wilson]

I've built several of these over the years and finally built one for ourselves. The squirel has to crall through one of the side holes to get to the seeds. Took 1 day to find. Believe it was called squirrel under glass.http://www.sawmillcreek.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=49995&stc=1&d=1163370230

[Scott Vigder]

Now if that were a chipmunk, and the door slammed shut, I'd order several dozen!

[patrick anderson]

that's cool.....our squirels need a challenge....cheeky buggers

[Phil Gwinn]

That is waaaay cool. I will keep the pic in mind for my new house. A small question though...... Do the squirrels ever have a problem getting out? :D

[David G Baker]

Scott,
I use a small live trap baited with black sun flower seeds. It usually takes me about ten minutes to trap one after is see it. I watch until it leaves the area, then set the baited trap. Over the past 3 years I have trapped over 60 of them. I take them for a ride and let them go in the forest.
DG Baker

[Gary Breckenridge]

:cool: I like your work. I'm too lazy to build something like that so I feed my squirrels with my Remington 870 squirrel feeder.:cool: .

[Phil Gwinn]

:cool: I like your work. I'm too lazy to build something like that so I feed my squirrels with my Remington 870 squirrel feeder.:cool: .

:eek:

Small Shot right, so they go into a black cauldron and make a fine stew?

[Frank Fusco]

Doesn't the glass shatter when you shoot them?
My squirrel (tree rat) controller is a .22

[John Renzetti]

Hi David, Looks good. I would like to trap a few of the more troublesome squirrels we have around here and relocate them. I wonder if the birds would try to get food out of the squirrel feeder since the squirrels are always trying to find ways to defeat our squirrel proof feeders.
take care,
John

[Frank Fusco]

Hi David, Looks good. I would like to trap a few of the more troublesome squirrels we have around here and relocate them. I wonder if the birds would try to get food out of the squirrel feeder since the squirrels are always trying to find ways to defeat our squirrel proof feeders.
take care,
John


Trapping and relocating "a few" will do nothing to ameliorate a nusiance problem. Their numbers are endless.

[Scott Vigder]

Doesn't the glass shatter when you shoot them?
My squirrel (tree rat) controller is a .22
I live in the city limits and for some reason they frown on discharging firearms; otherwise I'd camp out with my arsenal and target shoot/reduce the varmit population. You should see the destruction the chipmunks have caused to my retaining walls around my property.

[Barry Beech]

I live in the city limits and for some reason they frown on discharging firearms; otherwise I'd camp out with my arsenal and target shoot/reduce the varmit population. You should see the destruction the chipmunks have caused to my retaining walls around my property.

RWS 34 .177 pellet gun with a 2-7 X 40 scope works wonders. Just a little FFTTHH sound. ;) :D

Looks good David.

[Frank Fusco]

I live in the city limits and for some reason they frown on discharging firearms; otherwise I'd camp out with my arsenal and target shoot/reduce the varmit population. You should see the destruction the chipmunks have caused to my retaining walls around my property.

Yes, Scott, city living poses problems. That's a big reason I choose a semi-rural site to live in. But, I did live in city limits for 14 years. A good air rifle that shoots pellets can be useful. But only if no one is watching. They are accurate for what you describe and silent. Fifty dollars will get you an accurate rifle. I have used the Havahart style traps successfully for squirrels but, as I said, their numbers are endless.

[Joe Pelonio]

Here you are feeding them and I'm trying my best to keep them away from the bird feeder. If I had to feed the squirrels I'd need a second job to buy the food, there are so many running around our area.

Looks like that feeder would at least slow them down though, having to go through the hole. My latest bird feeder is spring-loaded and drops to cover the holes from the weight of a squirrel, and so far has worked well.

[Frank Fusco]

Here you are feeding them and I'm trying my best to keep them away from the bird feeder. If I had to feed the squirrels I'd need a second job to buy the food, there are so many running around our area.

Looks like that feeder would at least slow them down though, having to go through the hole. My latest bird feeder is spring-loaded and drops to cover the holes from the weight of a squirrel, and so far has worked well.

Can you give us more information on your squirrel-proof bird feeder? My wife has many bird feeders out. Squirrels destroy most of them quickly.
I can't shoot the squirrels while they are on the feeders (usually) because it would ruin the feeder and the background isn't always safe to shoot at.

[Joe Pelonio]

Here's the one I have. The wire cage has those designs on it that are just above the openings. The squirrel has to grap onto the metal and his weight pulls the metal over the holes. It's spring loaded with adjustable tension so you can allow or deny larger birds.

http://www.shop.com/op/~Perky_Pet_336_Squirrel_Be_Gone_Feeder-prod-34556981-45118995?sourceid=3

[Frank Guerin]

If you wish another challenge, try building a squirlless feeder. I am not a prejudicial person even if is about animals but the squirlles can be a challenge. Of course we being the most intelligent of all species on this great earth should have no problem defeating such lowly animal such as a squirlle. I saw a menagire of wires ropes, balances etc in a yard that a elderly gentleman had been building and improving on for many years to ( not really) stop squirlles but to test there intelligence. It looked like some kind of science fair thing. He stepped outside, rang a bell and the game was on.

I have found after many questionable but humourous moments that squirles feeder is only a bird feeder underneath a canopy that the squirrles can't get to.

I step out on my deck, I ring an old bell, the squirrles, redbirds, doves and whatever else there is knows it feeding time.

They eat better than me.
No I don't do spellcheck.

[Joe Pelonio]

If you wish another challenge, try building a squirlless feeder.
I've spent a lot of time thinking about it. Then I found this and thought why build a better mousetrap, it's cheap enough to give a try. I looked into electrifying a metal post, weight activated air horns, and all kinds of things. Funny thing is that in college I did train rats in some psychology labs, even was footnoted in a published paper, but with these feeder robbers I just wanted to stop them by making them miserable.

[Frank Fusco]

Joe, like so many things, the concept is simple. I might try building something like it. In the meantime, I'll keep feeding mine lead.
BTW, on another forum I belong to, mention of killing squirrels would get me warned and possibly banned. For the record, I don't kill them for the joy of killing. Squirrels in a rural area are often so numerous as to be vermin that damage houses, steal food from desirable animals and generally make a mess. Around me, the biggest threat from squirrels (and it IS a threat) is cutting off of our electric supply. They gnaw wires and short out transformers. By keeping the local population thin this only happens a couple times a year. If I stop shooting them, within a couple months it can happen weekly or more often. A scoped .22 is a necessary household tool.

[Andy Hoyt]

Best squirrel proof feeder I ever had was your basic storebought variety that claimed this ability. Set it up on a rope midway between corner of the house and a tree - about 30 feet overall. Put two old fashioned LPs on the rope about 1 foot or so away from the feeder on either side. Worked great - and I got rid of my wife's polka collection at the same time.

[Peter Stahl]

Best squirrel proof feeder I ever had was your basic storebought variety that claimed this ability. Set it up on a rope midway between corner of the house and a tree - about 30 feet overall. Put two old fashioned LPs on the rope about 1 foot or so away from the feeder on either side. Worked great - and I got rid of my wife's polka collection at the same time.

Bunch of soda bottles on the line work well too. Saw a show on the flying rat on PBS. They'll jump a long way to get to that feeder.

[Joe Pelonio]

Hoe, like so many things, the concept is simple. I might try building something like it. In the meantime, I'll keep feeding mine lead.

Here there's no firing within the city limits. We had a construction worker spot a 5 point buck near the project he was working on, right on the main road, and ran back to his truck for his 30-06 and nailed it. He had tags so the game department had no trouble with it. The city fined him but had to let him keep it.

We actually suffer more damage to the house from woodpeckers than squirrels, and I have been known to scare them off with a soft bb gun.

[Robert Mickley]

Actually relocating a squirrel just gives it a longer death. They are very territoral. When you relocate them they don't know where the feeding grounds are and the squirrels in that territory will harrass them.

If you going to trap them, just kill em and get it over with. We have a few. Our main nuisences are Raccoons, Groundhogs and possums.
But my two male black labs keep them pretty much under control.
You should see them tag team one.

[Frank Fusco]

Here there's no firing within the city limits. We had a construction worker spot a 5 point buck near the project he was working on, right on the main road, and ran back to his truck for his 30-06 and nailed it. He had tags so the game department had no trouble with it. The city fined him but had to let him keep it.

We actually suffer more damage to the house from woodpeckers than squirrels, and I have been known to scare them off with a soft bb gun.

Yes, them pecker woods can do a lot of damge and make you crazy in the process. Be careful when/if you shoot them, don't let neighbors see. Quite a few peckers are protected. I believe the piliated (big guys with red crest) are protected and they are the worst on houses.

[Rob Russell]

One "squirrel-proofing" technique that worked well for a while was to hang a feeder from a wire stretched between 2 trees. Now, the wire alone wasn't enough. We put a bunch of big wooden beads on the wire on either side of the feeder.

The squirrels tried to run along the beads but it was like watching a log rolling contest.

One of them finally figured out that - if he grabbed onto the beads and hung on for dear life as he swung down - he'd stabilize hanging underneath the beads. He then went along the beads hanging underneath until he got to the feeder.

Sure was fun to watch.

[Fred Voorhees]

Best squirrel proof feeder I ever had was your basic storebought variety that claimed this ability. Set it up on a rope midway between corner of the house and a tree - about 30 feet overall. Put two old fashioned LPs on the rope about 1 foot or so away from the feeder on either side. Worked great - and I got rid of my wife's polka collection at the same time.

Andy, you never stop making me chuckle!