Squirrels: the bane of my existence
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
I live in Fresno CA and many of the citrus orchards have huge nets over their trees to keep the bees out so the clementine mandarins (read: cuties) don't get seeds. All that to say, "narrow" netting is certainly available and out there (albeit not at Lowe's probably)
Fresno CA Zone 9B
Pauca Sed Matura
Pauca Sed Matura
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
I ended up ordering the Havahart 1030 and have caught 3 squirrels with it this week. The damage control seems to be better already. Will post an update at the end of the month 
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
Something is eating my nectaplums. I know you guys have experienced squirrel damage, does it look something like this? Secondly, I know @pombazaar had success with trapping squirrels, what exactly are you doing with them after trapping them? I'm not animal rights, just curious if you are exterminating them or releasing them, and if so, how far away has worked for you?
- nectaplum_dmg.jpg (1.23 MiB) Viewed 6379 times
Fresno CA Zone 9B
Pauca Sed Matura
Pauca Sed Matura
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
Those definitely looks like squirrel damage to me. Instead of chewing at one and deciding not to eat it...they do it to everything until nothing is left lol. After I trap one I release them at a park a few miles away from my house. I usually put a towel around the cage cause they freak out! After catching 4 of them the damage has been practically eliminated.
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
I wanted to post a 1 year update to this.
Although the Havahart 1030 did help to reduce the squirrel population in my yard, I don't think it's the best trap for catching squirrels. The squirrels would go in and take the bait then walk right out of the trap about 50% of the time. The Havahart 1025 is even worse and is totally useless for catching squirrels. These are good quality and sturdy traps but just ineffective. I returned both of these.
Harbor Freight sell a medium live trap that costs only $25 (less than half of Havahart) and is extremely effective at catching squirrels. They also work great for larger animals. I bought one of these last Saturday and have caught 4 squirrels so far. It's an excellent trap.
Despite this, the rate at which squirrels are destroying my garden is faster than I can trap and release them. For the last 2 years they've destroyed at least half of my crop and have killed hundreds of dollars worth of trees. I don't shell out money every year and wait 7 months for my fruit to ripen to be left with one or two half ripe pomegranates while the rest go to feed feral animals. From now on, I will be shooting all squirrels I see in my garden with a .22 LR.
An alternative to this would be something like the Goodnature A24. Mount it to a tree and see how fast the squirrel population in your yard diminishes.
End of rant.
Although the Havahart 1030 did help to reduce the squirrel population in my yard, I don't think it's the best trap for catching squirrels. The squirrels would go in and take the bait then walk right out of the trap about 50% of the time. The Havahart 1025 is even worse and is totally useless for catching squirrels. These are good quality and sturdy traps but just ineffective. I returned both of these.
Harbor Freight sell a medium live trap that costs only $25 (less than half of Havahart) and is extremely effective at catching squirrels. They also work great for larger animals. I bought one of these last Saturday and have caught 4 squirrels so far. It's an excellent trap.
Despite this, the rate at which squirrels are destroying my garden is faster than I can trap and release them. For the last 2 years they've destroyed at least half of my crop and have killed hundreds of dollars worth of trees. I don't shell out money every year and wait 7 months for my fruit to ripen to be left with one or two half ripe pomegranates while the rest go to feed feral animals. From now on, I will be shooting all squirrels I see in my garden with a .22 LR.
An alternative to this would be something like the Goodnature A24. Mount it to a tree and see how fast the squirrel population in your yard diminishes.
End of rant.
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
I am sorry to hear that. What is the Harbor Freight trap model that you liked?
I read that if you release a squirrel within a 10mile radius, they come back.
I read that if you release a squirrel within a 10mile radius, they come back.
USDA z 10a, SoCal, near Los Angeles
Re: Squirrels: the bane of my existence
Yep, I was reading a study on this and that is correct. There was one squirrel that returned after being released 25 miles away. Interestingly, the same study stated that squirrels released at night, even when released only 1 mile away, almost never returned.
The trap model on the Harbor Freight site is 63008. For $25 I don't think you can find a better live trap.
The trap model on the Harbor Freight site is 63008. For $25 I don't think you can find a better live trap.