I've been fighting this ongoing battle with squirrels on my deck and in the tree above the deck. We feed the birds and we get several species of woodpeckers such as this big guy:
But, the squirrels keep finding a way to get this hanging suet feeder. I've tried numerous configurations, but they keep getting to it, knocking it down, etc.
Earlier, I kept them away with a bb gun, pinging them in the butt with bb's so they'd learn to stay away from the feeder. Then my 14 yr. old son decided to help me and nailed one right between the eyes, down he came, dead. Mrs. Dread was not happy, she put the kibash on that program.
Out of exasperation, I decided "if you can't lick 'em join 'em", sage advice I reasoned. Went to the feed store and bought a 50# sack of shucked corn, nailed a feed box to the deck, and filled it up for the squirrels. (Told Mrs. Dread as soon as they start eating it steady, I'll mix in some rat poison and... :lol: She fails to appreciate my sense of humor sometimes)
Now they're nice and fat with corn, and now they use the bird feeder for dessert, I think :roll:
Yesterday I used an old guitar string to suspend it about 2 feet down from the limb, figuring they'd never be able to climb down that. Well, they couldn't, but it only took about 30 seconds to figure that out, so he simply grabbed the string with his little paws and reeled it in. :twisted:
Here's my latest invention, I slid a 2-liter soda bottle over the guitar string. I think I might have outsmarted the little buggers at last. Stay tuned:
But, the squirrels keep finding a way to get this hanging suet feeder. I've tried numerous configurations, but they keep getting to it, knocking it down, etc.
Earlier, I kept them away with a bb gun, pinging them in the butt with bb's so they'd learn to stay away from the feeder. Then my 14 yr. old son decided to help me and nailed one right between the eyes, down he came, dead. Mrs. Dread was not happy, she put the kibash on that program.
Out of exasperation, I decided "if you can't lick 'em join 'em", sage advice I reasoned. Went to the feed store and bought a 50# sack of shucked corn, nailed a feed box to the deck, and filled it up for the squirrels. (Told Mrs. Dread as soon as they start eating it steady, I'll mix in some rat poison and... :lol: She fails to appreciate my sense of humor sometimes)
Now they're nice and fat with corn, and now they use the bird feeder for dessert, I think :roll:
Yesterday I used an old guitar string to suspend it about 2 feet down from the limb, figuring they'd never be able to climb down that. Well, they couldn't, but it only took about 30 seconds to figure that out, so he simply grabbed the string with his little paws and reeled it in. :twisted:
Here's my latest invention, I slid a 2-liter soda bottle over the guitar string. I think I might have outsmarted the little buggers at last. Stay tuned: