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Posioning is out, relocation isn't an option, and shooting is against the law in town. Plus, they are just ground squirrls and don't do much harm at all. But the little buggers are taking a shine to everything in the flower beds, garden, and making a million holes in the yard.
I've got like 20 of them in the back yard - they just multiplied in numbers.
I've done the "garden hose down the hole - wait with pitch fork" thing, but that's not real "clean".
Anyone use one those high tech "pest" ridders? They make one that goes in the ground and suppose to drive moles and other furry ground things away.
I didn't mind when they were digging:
- in the tree wells.
- in the garden.
- all over the yard.
- near the foundation of the house.
They made a fatal mistake, when they started digging a hole right next to the phone access box ;-) That's where I draw the line!
Incidently, did you know that if you come across a rabbit that is still alive in the snare, it will sqeal like a baby. (Just thought you all would really like to know that.) ;)
“The AK47, when you absolutely, positively got to kill every squirrel in the yard.”
I can attribute some of the critter problem to my neighbor - she was feeding the "cute little" critters
We must have the same neighbor, Hawkgirl. I'm out there trapping, poisoning, shooting, and bashing, while she's out there feeding the dang things! I thought about putting a groundhog head on a spike next to the driveway as a kind of subtle message, but thought better of it.
Hehehe... I had a very cuddly cat who would kill anything that moved... birds, moles, mice, rats, whatever else... She didn't hiss at anyone. Total sweetie.
Then again, she'd ambush people by laying on her back, and trying to eat their hand when they went to scratch her tummy, sneaky thing. She'd also claw your legs to hell if you tried to stand up before she was done sitting on your lap... OK, so maybe she wasn't such a sweetie sometimes. We didn't have any digging critters in our yard though.
There are mice, but not in the house so I don't care... and if they got in the house, there's always the chance one of the ferrets might be on-the-ball enough to eat them.
Have you considered a ferret/terrier team, Brett? I hear that's what the medival rat catchers used, and it worked out for them. ;)
My mom says you can borrow their Jack Russell. She'll poke holes in the lid and send him... she's not terribly concerned that you return him... ever ;) She's spent years tossing away little varmint carcasses and figures it's time to pass the torch (and the dog) to someone.
[ianr.unl.edu...]
and probably not lethal. But you will be able to tell which were hit, they will probably leave, and you can make it a fun game for the whole family.
...[ground squirrels] also provide people enjoyable opportunities to view wildlife with family and friends. We should not attempt to eliminate these ground squirrels, but rather, should manage their populations at levels where they can be appreciated.
Suggestion: plan a "wildlife viewing" session in conjunction with your next barbecue. In case you still have too many ground squirrels to properly appreciate, you can always try Gopher Gassers. These are smoke bombs that look like small dynamite sticks. (Don't attempt to take these on your next airplane trip.) You light 'em, stick 'em the hole, & then cover the hole. Kind of expensive if you have lots of holes, but if the tunnels form a network you might be able to cover a multiple holes with one gasser. If you see smoke coming out of another hole, cover that up too. Be prepared to whack any coughing, wheezing, ground squirrels that may emerge. Be sure to hold your breath while lighting & futzing around with the smoke bomb. ;)
Brett, you could set a streaming feed through WW, and we could all enjoy your "wildlife". :)
Brett, you could set a streaming feed through WW
I think too much groundsquirrel content would dilute the theme of WMW, and it should be its own domain. Too bad - someone else snagged groundsquirrels.com earlier this year. OTOH, brettswildlife.com is still available. ;)
If you decide to wage war you should be prepared for retaliation [varmintmasters.net]. Don't forget The Birds.
RJO
It took the dogs about an hour before they realized everytime they howled the sound from hell would start. Now they just hear the door open and they shut up. They are approx 150 yards away too. It works for squirrels too, you just have to dial in a different freq.
Our ex Pres. Eisenhower used to play golf on the back lawn of the White House and squirrels used to take the golf balls and run. Listen up, this is true :) They caught one (must have been the Army cuz we Air Force guys would have sent in a strike) and recorded one during a brief and harmless period of torture. They then put it on reel to reel and played the torture sequence before his practice. And the rest was history as they say.
If you want to cause some major damage on these critters, I suggest the following. First, find out when they are asleep and that is when you make your move. If they are nocturnal,attack in the day, if not hit them at night and take no prisoners.
You will need to plug all holes except for one or two as all they are probably all connected like a subway system.
Once you know that most are underground and you have the wholes plugged, drop some smoke grenades ( colored are preferred as you will see all the wholes you missed and you can plug them) and suffocate the critters. If you can get some military issue smoke grenades or have a friend make some home made.
Another option is to pump some kind of poison ( aerosol type) into the wholes using some type of air-powered blower with all the wholes plugged.
Let me know what you think. As a last resort, a few pounds of C4 would do the trick.
Maybe also if you poured fast drying cement into the wholes.
Take no prisoners.
and maybe a nice F-117a with chocked inlets buried in it. LOL
Have you tried talking to the ground squirrels, Brett?
And hey, if you go for the terrier option, I'd suggest advising the neighbours to lock up the cats! Could get messy.......
:)
