My latest trick on the squirrels

[Joe Pelonio]

They sound pretty tame for wild horses. Maybe call the local cowboys and offer to sell them.

At least it saves you from mowing!

[Roger Fitzsimonds]

I had a problem with squirrels in my garden we had a poor crop of sweet corn last year. At least I though I did. when the leaves fell from the trees last year There were probably 2 dozen whole corn plants up inthe trees. The squirrels pulled them up and drugthem up in the trees to eat.

Roger

[Brent Dowell]

As far as lawn maintenance goes, between the cottontails, jack rabits, and horses, I haven't had to mow the lawn once. The rabbits do an ok job of fertilizing, but the horses, they really tend to over fertilize if I give them a chance!

Was out of town for a week and came back to a HUGE surprise in the front yard. Took quite a bit of work with a shovel and wheel barrow to clean it all up...

[Brent Dowell]

There were probably 2 dozen whole corn plants up inthe trees. The squirrels pulled them up and drugthem up in the trees to eat.
Roger

Wow, those are some big strong squirrels!

[Joe Pelonio]

Unfortunately when I checked this morning my one apple had fallen off.

I don't know if it was being in the bottle or what, it got to about the size of a penny so must have been pollinated. Oh well, at least the #!@$@#!
squirrel didn't get it.

[Matt Moore]

Well down here in Tampa, my back porch is in the nightly walk of at least 2 racoons. Most nights they topple our potted plants, root around the flowers and kill them or get into our vegtables.

I got a trap but have never used one before. A long story short... I trapped one of them 3 times but it got out each time. Turns out I had to add a bunch of wire to keep the door closed that is used to let them out. The setup as it came was no match for these smart and strong racoons.

Now it is getting personal.

Anyway, they were not smart enough to turn down the tuna fish in the trap for the 4th time as i actually caught on last night and he did not get out. I would just eliminate them but waiting till 2am and I live in a very populated area so traditional elimination methods are not an option. I took the coon about 4 miles away to the woods and let him go.

Trying to catch the 2nd one tonight.

[Doyle Alley]

Matt, you might want to check with Hillsborough Animal Control. Sarasota county has a program where you give them a deposit (I think it is $30.00) and they loan you a live trap. You catch the coon and take the whole package back to them. They take the coon (for "disposal") and if you want they give you a new trap. You keep doing the dropoff/replacement thing until all the coons are gone.

[Joe Pelonio]

I checked into that after hearing Doyle's post. Here, because they are non-native Eastern Ground Squirrels, we are allowed to capture them in live traps but are not allowed to release them into any other area!

And, of course, traps that kill them are illegal here. They passed the law to prevent trapping of bears and wrote it in such a manner that it's technically illegal even to catch moles with traps.

[Greg Crawford]

I feel your pain from the squirrels. I've actually had them start eating my house! They would get on my fence and reach up and eat away at the facia boards. They also ripped all the bark off the crotches in my oak trees, making the branches rot. I had to remove some of the larger branches overhanging the house. The county animal control guy said trapping would just make room for different squirrels to move in. Does anyone know if the dummy owls work to scare them away?

As for all you guys with rabbits, don't complain too much. The fire ants have reduced rabbits and quail almost to the point of extinction in the South. I'd gladly give up some food items to have a bouncing cottontail in the neighborhood.