Question about Stopping Squirrels

I have the wierdest situation (well weird to me anyway). The squirrels are tearing up the cushions on my patio furniture by scratching through the Sunbrella fabric to get at the stuffing inside the cushions and taking the stuffing. I can only guess it is to build their nests. I have no idea how to stop this. Does anyone have any advice for me - pleaaaassssseeeeee!

Would you whollop me if I said put them away when not in use? LOL :>}

LOL Why have cushions if you have to hide them. I do feel for you on this one. You can try Bitter Apple at pet stores. I have had this problem for 10 years and nothing has worked. They only get into the ones on my front porch. Not sure why, but they dont mess with the other porches or the ones by the pool. I gave up after grabbing a piece that was hanging off the roof and a squirrel came back playing tug-of-war and cussing me. We now have wicker furniture with no cushions on the porch. If you have a dog he may help. Dont count on it as I have five. Mine just dont seem to hang on that porch like they do the others. Good Luck

On the other hand, a cat or two will keep them on the road. That is if you can stand "cat barf" on the cushions... : ))

We have iron and plastic outside furniture, squirrels can be very drestructive.
We have a cat also, maybe if you provide nesting materials for them something like yarn or cotton, they might leave your cushions alone.
I have seen them take my jute ties to their nest, so they do like that type of thing, just set it out in a basket.
I hope that helps.
Josephine.

I will try the yarn trick and the Bitter Apple and hope that works. Might even go to the feed store and see if they have any recommendations. The furniture has been on the patio for probably 5 years, and they just started this. I was stunned when I first saw it. We sit on the furniture all of the time, then one afternoon I came out and low and behold, there was the destruction.

Have you tried to just put out a box of fiberfill where they can get at it easily? They sell large boxes or bags of it at Wal-Mart very cheaply. If you have it located at a convenient place for them, they may not go for the destruction your cushions because it is too much work.

I would also try to distract them with something that they prize much more than fiberfill: peanuts.

Good advice, Lily. I will visit WalMart tomorrow for the fiberfill and see about finding an economical source for peanuts.

Is it possible they are trying to hide their food in the cushions? Perhaps the ground is too wet for them to want to dig there... Just a thought.

They make good dumplings and that'll stop 'em for sure!

LOLOL!

No answers for you Posie, just my sympathy. My cushions were left alone for three years and then this last year with all of the late cold weather, they took over. It was time to get new ones anyway, but that should have been my choice. I am looking at getting the ones that have the thin screen type covering, maybe they won't destroy them.

I caught my fourth one this year, just this morning.

I use a Hav-a-hart trap. (The small sized one.)

Here in Florida I have learned a new bait. Over-ripe orange sections.

I stick them in the furthermost corner of the trap, and lock them in with chop-sticks stuck through the wire.

Our squirrels are very small -- and even though I set a light trigger in the trap -- they just eat away, and leave. But with the bait locked down they have to struggle to get at it. BAMMMMM.

I release them in a Nature Preserve, three islands away -- so they have to travel ten miles and cross three bridges, to return. I trust they renew old acquaintances when they gather there

I wouldn't be so persistent were it not for the fact that my figs are ripening -- and we play a game with them -- waiting until the figs are ripe enough to eat. They usually win.

Good luck

: )

They win here too, they start eating them before they ripen, those cute little thieves,

We have two pecan trees, so the squirrels love us. I'll remember to bring in any cushions if we ever get outdoor furniture!

Cute?

But they are still rodents. So I transport it to a nicer hunting ground, when I catch one.

: )

bushey tailed RATS. Carry fleas and other diseases that spread to pets.
They have destroyed my mosquito netting on the screen room and eaten almost all of my cushions. It is a pain to take the cushions inside everytime you leave the yard. They are so brazen even my dogs can't run them away.
Even Marianne Greene, the gardening editor for Dallas Morning News is at her wits end. They have dug all of her carefully planted bulbs and had a feast. Please somebody come up with a solution.

At the end of summer last yr, we used bright orange tape to map out where my cattle hoop GH was going. BF called me @ work & said the orange tape was going up a tree. Part of it is still visible fr about 30' up in the tree.
Squirrels hate the smell of moth balls. If you throw a few in the corners or back end of your cushions, they should stay away fr your cushions.
But....depending on if they have set their minds to have YOUR cushion filler, this might not work either. I buy boxes of MBs @ my local $ store more to keep them away fr my bulbs. I just pitch a few in my beds & they stay out of my beds.

We solved our fiber loss to squirrels problems by building a screened in porch. That worked for a few years until one of those little rodents chewed through the wooden threshhold. I'm thinking the idea of dumplings is sounding pretty darn good right about now. We had just bought that set of cushions and were feeling confident they were safe. We were wrong.

lily13's idea sounds about the best and she's right, it's cheap enough. The squirrels would probably take the path of least resistence and accept what ever was left out for them.

Your squirrel thread has me intrigued. We have two dogs including one Squirrel Chaser Extraordinaire but until we have a fence they can't be out back patrolling for me. Besides, our problem is in the front -- I believe squirrels have taken up residence in my front WALL (old 1940s cottage, multiple overhanging trees, no attic insulation, pier-and-beam foundation, undoubtedly about 100 ways to get into that space from the outside).

I want them OUT but am a bleeding-heart animal type (i.e., on the "cute little thieves" side of the spectrum rather than the "bushy-tailed rats" side). I suggested to husband we put squirrel food of some sort out back -- keeps the dogs entertained and perhaps they stay out of our house. But he thinks putting stuff "out" for them simply means "the food is their Luby's and we're their home for good" and that will worsen our problem.

Can I build a squirrel habitat or something that will be so alluring they will VACATE my front wall?

Anyone had squirrels-in-the-walls problems? I called an exterminator last fall after much moral twisting and good-ole-boy just scratched his head and said, well, shoot, I can only help ya with roaches or rats, plus I didn't brang my ladder to get up in yer attic. ::sigh::

There are exterminators that will remove "varmits" from your attic, crawl space, walls, etc. They are advertized on TV here in Houston. One that I recall, off the top of my head, is ABC Pest Control. Squirrels in the attic are, I guess, better than bats in the bellfry, but still a problem. It's more than a nuisance, it can be dangerous. Squirrels, rats and other rodents will chew on elictrical wires. I had a friend whose new boat was stored in a huge new barn. Squirrels destroyed the boat beyond repair. He went out to get his boat in the summer and they had eaten all the elictrical wiring, destroyed the seats and even eaten through some of the fiberglass. In your home, the chewing of wires can start fires. In older homes, they go up like kindling. I know it's difficult for an animal person to deal with removal, but you need to figure out some way to get them out before you have a catastrophe. They are building nests this time of year, so that's why they are so invasive right now. Good luck. I've decided that if they were any bigger, they'd take over the world!

the only thing more difficult to deal with is a mosquito. Truly, they are in the rodent family and the only difference in a squirrel and a rat is the tail.

Ok, you've definitely got me scared now. Yes, this house has its original wiring... no running of coffemaker and toaster at the same time lest ye trip the breaker. I'll call a varmint handler and make a donation to the ASPCA or something. :-)

Wombat,
Whatever you do... don't poison them. Trust me, dead squirrels in your walls smell like... dead rotting squirrels :) Your best bet is to trap them and remove them. You will have to plug up any available entrances into your attic however, or they'll keep coming back. Rat traps work also. Please get them out of your house as quickly as you can. Rodent feces are dangerous to you and your family, you don't want to be living 10 feet under piles of the stuff. When you go into the attic wear a HEPA mask and a pair of gloves to protect you.
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As for squirrels outside, I use the old tried and true method... a Crossman air gun. Depending on where you live, the squirrels may not have very many natural predators around. That's why they're EVERYWHERE. Owls, hawks, wildcats, foxes, and opossums are natural predatory animals that the squirrels should fear BUT, when is the last time some of you saw a wildcat or fox walking around your neighborhood? How many hawks do you see swooping over your development? Sometimes if we don't live in a rural setting, there just aren't enough natural predators to keep the squirrels under control.

A friend does carpentry and roofing and gets called out many times to repair these holes in homes. Time and again, he sees the squirrels simply move over and make a new hole into "their' abode. Yes, they will need to be erradicated or relocated at the same time.

I did not know that squirrels could be such a huge problem. Thank you all for enlightening me.

I think I have found the solution. Went to Ace Hardware yesterday. They have "fox urine" in either a liquid or a powder. Bought the powder and sprinkled it around the trees and elsewhere I see them climbing. Have not seen a single squirrel today. Hallelujah! They have destroyed my cushions, the netting on my screen room, dug up my flower bed, and eaten the bird seed that gets thrown on the ground. Will let you know how long this works.
We had a big rain last night and I was afraid it would wash off....apparently not.

LouC

Lou....
I would like to keep them off of my deck where I feed birds. Does the fox urine stink so bad I wouldn't want to use it there?

I had also been told it would be stinkie. Is not bad at all. I did not stick my nose in it...just sprinkled around the trees and on the ground.

Thanks, may give it a try.

I can testify that feeding them is not the answer. They become even more destructive if the bird feeder gets empty. I hadn't noticed it and this morning when I went to fill it. The plastic garbage container had a hole eaten in the lid. They hadn't gotten in but the damage was done. And where were those @#*^)* cats...

Last year, one took a bite out of a hummer feeder base which drained the feeder. I went to fill it (didn't notice) and the hummer food ran out the bottom. Went to glass hummingbird feeders and now will get a metal garbage can to store the birdseed.

hi,
yes i too, had had em eat the whole rubbermaid container which was full of 20 pounds of bird seed... and they ate the plastic as well. i have tried to fight em from eating all mybird seed,... i swear the ones at my house have wings and can fly! so after years of fighting em, i finally joined em, and give em an ear of corn to munch on.. seems to help a bit. they are cute to watch.. they know just how are to come down the tree before my 2, 80 pound dogs, are ready for a treat too.... they drive my dogs nuts.... but all my patio furniture is rod iron.. does the fox urine stuff work to scare off srtay cats. my flower beds seem to be the litter box for them. ...
hapy day to all

Hi Nystx ~ For a lot of flower beds this might be too expensive. I think it would work great in pots. http://www.gardeners.com/Safe-Cat-Deterrent/default/31-954.prd But perhaps you might come up with a creative similar design that will work for the stray cats.
I'm thinking metal furniture next time too. A stray dog I took in convinced me of that as he gnawed his way around the place.

hi podster,
too funny about the dog..... i had to learn not to get cushions etc for my patio funiture.... not cause of a stray dog, but cause of my own! they would play tug a war with em..... looked like good old buffalo snow storm ... :-)

Ohhh I have come home to some of that. Dog cushions, porch swing cushion. Rocking chair pillows. What I'm considering recovering the porch swing cushion (I made it) with is a vinyl tablecloth. The cat barf will clean off easily.

Something has to be wrong with that picture. I am working ~ making catfood money while the cats lounge in the porch swing all day and watch a squirrel gnaw the lid off the trash can where the bird seed is stored. LOL

I hear ya Podster! my Cats are locked up in the house, one could care less about what going on out there, the other almost bust her head open tryin to jump thru the glass window and she is the one with no claws.
Posie watch your Hostas! They love to dig them up.

Sylvia, I will definitely keep an eye on the hostas.

Podster, why not try oilclothing versus vinyl. There are many sources for oilcloth on the Web; you can purchase by the yard.

Good thought Thanks. Just thought of the tableclothes as they are cheap and common.