Squirrels and Pepper

As many birders know, birds are not sensitive to hot (spicy) tastes, such as pepper, but mammals, including squirrels, are. Therefore some people mix pepper in with their bird seed to make it unpallatable to squirrels.

I personally feel this is cruel. If the pepper just kept the squirrel from eating the seed, well and good. But a squirrel will try eating it, burn his mouth, rub his eyes, etc. My take on it is, I can sympathize with the squirrel enough to not want to harm him. He’s just a wild animal like any other, trying to survive. Survival means finding food. And since food is hard to come by in the winter, he must find plenty of it in the summer.

There are so many humane (and some of them very inexpensive) ways to keep squirrels out of bird feeders, such as by using a baffle, using soda bottles, as well as the more traditional means of purchasing a squirrel-proof bird feeder. Why harm a fellow creature who is just innocently trying to survive?

That’s the way I see it, at least.

There’s a great book for anyone who is interested in reading more about living in harmony with all living things. It’s called Kinship with all Life by J. Allen Boone.

Squirrel Diversion Feeders

Feeders that are exclusively for squirrels are known as diversion feeders. Many people find success when they have squirrel feeders in addition to their regular feeders.

The idea behind it is you put cheaper food in the squirrel feeder. Since it is easier to get to than in your regular feeder, the squirrels are more likely to eat from it. They’ll eat the cracked corn and peanuts from their own squirrel feeder before consuming the more expensive thistle and sunflower seed.

There are may types of squirrel feeders. There are squirrel munch boxes which are simply hoppers with flip-up lids. And then there are more entertaining corn cob squirrel feeders that provide a comical show.

Whichever kind of squirrel feeder you get, try to put it as far away from your regular feeders are possible, and make sure you keep it full.

How to Squirrel-Proof a Bird Feeder Using PVC

If you have squirrels that invade your bird feeders and want to keep the squirrels out of the feeders without spending a lot of money on a new squirrel-proof bird feeder, there are a few inexpensive remedies you can try to make the feeders you already have squirrel-proof.

If your feeder is on a pole, trying putting a PVC pipe around the pole. Squirrels don’t climb PVC pipe very well. Make sure your pipe is at least 5 inches in diameter, and the feeder is at least 5 feet off the ground to prevent the squirrel from bypassing the pipe altogether and jumping onto the feeder.

You can also try putting the pole through an aluminum stove pipe. A smart squirrel may figure out how to climb inside the stove pipe, so you might want to bury the bottom in gravel or snow (depending on the season).

Keep in mind that this method works for most squirrels, but some will still be able to scamper up, especially with a little momentum. I’ve had the best success with a squirrel baffle, which can be purchased inexpensively.

Make Your Feeder Squirrel-Proof by Raising it up

Did you know the average gray squirrel can jump 3 to 4 feet straight up and can leap horizontally a whopping 10 to 12 feet? This may seem like it makes it impossible to position your feeder out of the squirrel’s reach, but here’s one trick: put your bird feeder on an upper story of your house.

There are a couple of different ways to do this. One way is to go to your local birding store and purchase hooks that suction to your window. These are large hooks with two – three suction cups securing them, especially designed to hold the weight of a feeder.

I personally tend to not trust suction cups, so I got two hooks and suspended the bird feeder between the two hooks using wire. This way if one hook falls off, you have a backup supporting your feeder. Make sure you keep an eye on your suction cups. If you see one of the cups start to come unstuck, it’s time to take the hooks inside, soak them in hot water for a couple of minutes, dry them off, clean the window with non-greasy window cleaner, and put the hooks back on. A very small amount of vegetable oil rubbed around the suction cup will increase its suction power.

Another problem I found with these is the hook tends to rotate toward the window, which means your bird feeder often taps the glass. To get around this, I prevented the hooks from turning by getting smaller suction cups that have a single small metal hook (like the kind you would use to hang a light-catcher on a sliding glass door) and putting one of these on each side of my hook contraption. I ran a wire from each small hook to the bigger hook which held it in place.

An easier way to get a bird feeder up high is to purchase a feeder that fits right into your window.

Duncraft makes a very nice version. These feeders can be filled from inside your home without opening the window.

Whatever method you use, make sure the squirrel can’t climb onto your roof. Often trimming some tree branches can take care of this. Here’s a picture taken before we had the trees trimmed around our home. After the trimming, we didn’t have a single squirrel get onto our bird feeder.

Squirrel Zen

Have you ever noticed that we often make up scenarios about people, play them out in our heads, and assign those characteristics to others? We have mental conversations with others and imagine what they would have said if we had said… Unfortunately, this often gives us an excuse to be unkind and even cruel.

Here’s a perfect example. The Navy Seals, which are an elite force but are also taught to kill, are trained to think of the enemy as the “counter force.” Not people, but an impersonal thing. I’ve heard that once a Navy Seal begins to see the enemy as a person with parents, children, and wives, they can no longer kill.

The truth is, the person on the other side of the scope is a person with family, children, a life. The image of them as an impersonal “counter force” is no part of reality; it is a convenient excuse we’ve come up with to justify cruelty.

What has all this to do with squirrels? I see a similarity. How often do we think the squirrels are “out to get us” or “intentionally raiding our bird feeders just to annoy us.” This often justifies taking cruel measures such as spraying our fence posts with pepper to keep them out.

I like to put myself in the paws of the squirrels. They have no personal grudge against backyard birders. They are simply animals trying to survive. They must eat to live, and if you think about how long a winter is with no food readily available, it isn’t surprising that they hoard everything they can find and try to fatten up before then. I’m often surprised that wild animals survive winters at all.

So the next time you’re tempted to be cruel or unkind to another living thing, just stop for a minute to ask yourself if you’re putting unreal characteristics on that critter to justify your actions. Try instead to put yourself into the paws, flippers, claws, or gills of your fellow being and see if you’re inclined to act the same way.

I highly recommend a very cool book for anyone who wants to see this kind of thinking in action. It’s called Kinship with all Life by J. Allen Boone.

Squirrel Buster II Plus Review

Another great squilrrel-proof bird feeder is the Squirrel Buster II Plus.

As with many other squilrrel-proof bird feeders, the squirrel buster II plus uses a mechanical action to keep the squirrels out: it has a metal skirt that drops down when the squirrel puts his weight on the it, shutting out access to the seeds.

The metal material of the skirt means that it is chew-proof.

The Squirrel Buster II Plus is similar to its predecessor, the classic Squilrrel Buster.
The classic Squirrel Buster had a grid around the feeder tube which dropped under the squirrel’s weight. The metal skirt of the Squirrel Buster II Plus is much more effective because the squirrel can’t even reach his paw through.

Both models of the Squirrel Buster have the patented water-proof ventilation cap which allows moisture to escape so seeds stay dry.

The Squirrel Buster II Plus has adjustable perch lengths and a cardinal ring perch which allow you to choose the birds you want to serve.

And, there’s one new feature of the Squirrel Buster II Plus that can’t be beat: it is dishwasher-safe!

Here’s where you can find it online:

Duncraft

Squirrel-Proofing Overview

With so many different types of squirrel-proof bird feeders and baffles, it’s hard to know just where to start in the effort to squirrel-proof your feeders. Here are a couple of basics to get you going.
If you’re starting from scratch and can set up your backyard feeders any way you want, I recommend having a platform bird feeder on a pole, and using a cylindar or lampshade squirrel baffle to keep the squirrel from climbing up.

We’ve tried platform bird feeders with both kinds of baffles and they work beautifully. Since squirrels can jump laterally as well as up, just make sure your pole is at least 10 feet away from the nearest tree, deck railing, hammock stand, etc.

I like this method over getting a squilrrel-proof bird feeder because a) pole baffles tend to be inexpensive and b) this method will work in all kinds of weather. (Many squirrel-proof bird feeders use a mechanical action which may malfunction in freezing rain or heavy snow. They may also use batteries which don’t do well in cold weather.)

If, on the other hand, you already have a hanging feeder that you are trying to squirrel-proof, you must first know exactly how the squirrel is getting on. Either he is jumping onto it from below, jumping from the side, jumping onto the top, or climbing down the wire supporting it.

For squirrels jumping from below: Try to raise the bird feeder up so that it is at least 4-5 feet off the ground. One trick is to suspend it between two trees, but make sure you use the soda bottle method to keep the squirrel from doing a tightrope act along the wire. If raising the bird feeder up is impossible, get a squirrel-proof bird feeder instead.

For squirrels jumping onto the top or climbing down the wire supporting in: Use a dome baffle to block the bird feeder. If this doesn’t work, get a squirrel-proof bird feeder as a last resort.

For squirrels jumping from the side: Try to move the bird feeder so that it is at least 10 feet away from the nearest jumping point. If this is impossible, I recommend getting a squirrel-proof bird feeder.

Weather Guard Squirrel-Proof Bird Feeder Review

One of my favorite types of squirrel-proof bird feeders is the cage feeder. It usually has a tube feeder surrounded by a metal cage that the squirrel can’t chew through, reach through, or outwit.

I like this type of feeder because it has no moving parts, no batteries, nothing to fail. It will work the same in the winter during an ice storm as it will in the summer on the nicest of days.

This particular feeder is called the Weather Guard Bird Feeder (also known as the Bird Sanctuary) and it has a couple of nice features.

First of all, the Weather Guard Bird Feeder has a weather guard overhang. This protects the feeder tube from rain. Tube bird feeders are especially prone to having the seeds at the bottom get soggy, so this is a great feature for this type of bird feeder.

The second nice feature of the Weather Guard Bird Feeder is that there is no dish to catch the seeds at the bottom. Although a seed-catching dish may seem like a good thing, I found by experience that the squirrel will just hang upsidedown on the feeder and eat the seeds from the dish.

Also, the spilled seeds on the ground will be eaten by ground feeders such as morning doves.

Here’s where you can get it online: Duncraft

Halloween Contest

In the spirit of Halloween fun, I throw out this challenge (though I don’t really expect anyone to get it).

The first person to send the correct answer to this question will win a free munch box squirrel feeder. You won’t even have to pay for shipping.

Here’s the question.

What team plays here:

Squirrel Pumpkin

If you think you know the answer, send your name and address to: Email Address jpg

If you’re right; I’ll send you your squirrel feeder.

Happy Halloween!

Eight Station Squirrel-Proof Bird Feeder

Another bird feeder that is squirrel proof, thanks to a built-in squirrel baffle, is the Eight Station Squirrel-Proof Bird Feeder. It is made by the Bird Shed. The bird feeder portion itself is worthy of acquiring; it has two sections which can be filled independently with different types of bird seed, giving it a generous 1.2 gallon capacity.

Each seed chamber has four feeding ports so that no one has to wait to be served. The feeding ports are also very versatile; they have small perches for smaller birds, but also attachable self-draining platforms.

These platforms will allow cardinals and larger birds to feast as well.

What makes this bird feeder squirrel-proof, however, is found below the feeding ports. It comes with a cylindrical squirrel baffle built right in. The feeder and the baffle mount on a pole. As long as you install it at least 12 feet away from the nearest tree trunk or limb, this feeder should be totally squilrrel-proof.

Note: it appears The Bird Shed no longer carries this item, but you might be able to find it online.

Squirrel-Proofing Tips