Bird feeders and pesky squirrels

[Swinglowandslow]

I'm going to put up a couple of birdfeeders on a tree at the back of the house.
I can , of course, hang the feeders directly off the branch but the squirrels would be all over them

I thought perhaps a way to foil the pesky blighters might be to hang the feeders on a length of fishing line, so that the distance from the branch down the line to the feeder would be long enough to deter the squirrel.
So, first- would that work? And, second, what minimum length do you suggest?

Or, am I underestimating the blighters??

Or, has anyone found a squirrel proof way.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

Squirrels can crack any device, they are ninja's. Accept they will tuck in and enjoy watching them.

Perhaps set up a squirrel table to distract them . I actually bought my mum one of these as she has the same problems.

 

[MegaSteve]

I logged in to post on the random irritations about wasteful starlings on the feeders and saw this thread... Allegedly it was someone from these parts that came up with the idea of caging in feeders to keep squirrels out... They simply don't work or, indeed, any other device/ruse we've tried ...

Mind you, we've had a very rare visit [for us] this morning of a Green Woodpecker...
I really need to set up that wildlife camera I got herself for Xmas ...

 

[Rooter]

Squirrels need to be discouraged, Chilli flakes are apparently good at the entry points of the garden. I shoot them with my BB gun. they don't hang around long in my garden or on my fence. Muppets nearby are feeding them monkey nuts. Idiots. Squirrels are not cute and cuddly, they are destructive vermin. Having seen first hand the damage they can do if they get into a loft (Let alone the fire risk from them chewing electric cables) you want to do everything possible to keep them away from your house.

And I mean the grey buggers. Not that I am a squirrel racist, but I do hate the little grey ones more. Have not seen a red for 20 years....

 

[MegaSteve]

Squirrels need to be discouraged, Chilli flakes are apparently good at the entry points of the garden. I shoot them with my BB gun. they don't hang around long in my garden or on my fence. Muppets nearby are feeding them monkey nuts. Idiots. Squirrels are not cute and cuddly, they are destructive vermin. Having seen first hand the damage they can do if they get into a loft (Let alone the fire risk from them chewing electric cables) you want to do everything possible to keep them away from your house.

And I mean the grey buggers. Not that I am a squirrel racist, but I do hate the little grey ones more. Have not seen a red for 20 years....

Your new avatar looks frighteningly like Scott Smart...

 

[spongebob59]

https://shopping.rspb.org.uk/squirrel-deterrent/

 

[backwoodsman]

I've had a long running battle with them. I think I've finally won.

Firstly, get yourself a squirrel -proof feeder - ie one with a mesh cage around it (so that the birdies can get in but the squirrels can't).(see spongebobs post) But thats not the end of it - cos' the verminous furry--tails are cunning blighters.

Hang the feeder ar least half a metre below the tree branch (or whatever) so the squirrel can't reach down to it. In my garden the brutes were hanging from one hind leg, and shaking food out of the feeder with their front paws. Also, hang the feeder using stiff wire. I first used string and they quickly learned to haul up the feeder, drop it, and used the 'jolt' to shake out the food. Stiff wire stops this. And lastly hang it somewhere at least a metre sideways away from anything as high as the feeder. They will simply jump across. Again i saw them climb, jump, shake, drop themselves to the ground, eat, and repeated. They're b*stards.

 

[Pants]

I'm going to put up a couple of birdfeeders on a tree at the back of the house.
I can , of course, hang the feeders directly off the branch but the squirrels would be all over them

I thought perhaps a way to foil the pesky blighters might be to hang the feeders on a length of fishing line, so that the distance from the branch down the line to the feeder would be long enough to deter the squirrel.
So, first- would that work? And, second, what minimum length do you suggest?

Or, am I underestimating the blighters??

Or, has anyone found a squirrel proof way.

At least 4/5 ft of heavy duty fishing/strimmer line or as BW says wire, coated regularly in WD40 and with some sort of plastic tray over the feeder to stop them sliding down and grabbing the feeder. Not 100% but if more than jumping distance from tree or ground (at least 4ft) it helps. There again, one squirrel just bit through the line at the top

 

[Deleted member 1147]

Main problem with bird feeders is that they attract rats to your property.
A friend of mine works in pest control, and he says that he'd never have one. Once they know there's a good source of food, they'll nest close by and you don't really want that, especially if you have young kids or a dog in the household.

 

[Whereditgo]

 

[backwoodsman]

Main problem with bird feeders is that they attract rats to your property.
A friend of mine works in pest control, and he says that he'd never have one. Once they know there's a good source of food, they'll nest close by and you don't really want that, especially if you have young kids or a dog in the household.

Maybe. But I've never seen one near my feeders. And what with the birdies, the pigeons and the squirrels, they'd have a fight on their hands.

And anyway, rats are only squirrels that have gone the full brazilian ...

 

[Swinglowandslow]

Thanks, fellas . Keep the tips coming. Some very useful ones there. Particlarly about the stiff wire. Never thought they'd haul up the line!
Actually, the tree is some forty yds from my back garden, on some spare ground. I've got a spotters scope to view the birds with.

 

[Deleted member 3432]

Squirrels need to be discouraged, Chilli flakes are apparently good at the entry points of the garden. I shoot them with my BB gun. they don't hang around long in my garden or on my fence. Muppets nearby are feeding them monkey nuts. Idiots. Squirrels are not cute and cuddly, they are destructive vermin. Having seen first hand the damage they can do if they get into a loft (Let alone the fire risk from them chewing electric cables) you want to do everything possible to keep them away from your house.

And I mean the grey buggers. Not that I am a squirrel racist, but I do hate the little grey ones more. Have not seen a red for 20 years....

Fortunate to live in a red stronghold, often see one nipping across our garden.

If you spot a grey there has been an action group set up across northern England with local branches to whom you can report sightings. This group monitor sightings and if need be go out and get rid of the critters (legally).

 

[spongebob59]

Think it also helps having two jack Russell's ?

 

[jim8flog]

I stopped feeding the birds not because of the squirrels but because of the rats I started to see under the feeder picking up the fallen bits.

 

[louise_a]

I have never really had a chance to put feeders up until I moved at the back end of last year, the house now backs onto a lake(reservoir) so there aren't a great deal of trees and I have only ever seen one squirrel in the garden. My problem is Wood Pigeons, who just hoover up all the food if I let them, and to a lesser degree Jackdaws who love suet logs.

I have seen some feeders where the perch is weight sensitive so that small birds are fine but if something heavier stands on it it closes the feeding hole.

 

[jim8flog]

. My problem is Wood Pigeons, who just hoover up all the food if I let them, and to a lesser degree Jackdaws who love suet logs.

Wood pigeons are the bane where I live. My neighbour and I loose just about every flower off our plum trees to them.

 

[Deleted member 15717]

 

[Rooter]

Your new avatar looks frighteningly like Scott Smart...

Good looking chap is he?

 

[Hobbit]

My Gamo. Kicking the pellet out at around 950ft/sec

https://www.gamo.com/en/product/gamo-hunter-maxxim-igt-included-4x32wr-scope/