I have a grey squirrel in my loft. I went up the other day and noticed some droppings and a nest made of chewed-up Scalextric cars. Left my old laptop up there with a webcam program running on it and got a picture of the furry little bastard.
What's the best way to deal with it? I'm considering sending the cat up there to sort it out, but I'm not sure how successful that would be and I'm worried she might catch fleas or other parasites.
I've read that if you use live traps it's illegal to release grey squirrels once you've caught them. Apparently you're meant to "dispatch" them with a blow to the head? Not too keen on doing that, so I'm wondering what the alternatives are.
Comments
local council pest control will remove it
failing that a shotgun
Doesn't sound like it should be too hard to outwit this particular rodent!
Barbeque or pate
This reminds me of the time I was bitten by a squirrel. And of the time a squirrel fell out of a tree during a parkrun and landed on my friend's foot. Happy times.
Pinch it's nuts.
Airgun at least a 2.2 mm. Head shot only.
🙂
Ah, but SR(NLR), I once caught a mouse in a humane trap, took it some way away to a park, set it free, and as it sniffed the gentle air of freedom, a bird came down and grabbed it with both talons. Moral? Birds are bastards.
Make sure it is a squirrel and not a gliss gliss .... they are protected
gliss gliss AKA the Edible Dormouse. A class animal.
🙂
So if it has a couple of Minders, it's a gliss gliss. otherwise it's a squirrel.
My local council were not interested in dealing with squirrels.
I got a pest control bloke in, who trapped them and took them away. I didn't ask what he did with them.
Then things got worse, and the rats evicted the squirrels. Be grateful you've only got squirrels.
Tenjiso - precisely ... if its guarded by a couple of hamsters in shades then look out
Are squirrels classed as rodents?
If so just let nature take it's course. Rodents are attracted the electro motive force that is naturally omitted from live electrical cables..........once it gets it's nashers round that, once you've reset the electrics and got an electrician to renew the cable to your sockets or lighting you can dump the thing in the bin.
Having dealt with squirrels close up, I have to admit to feeling a bit sorry for them. They seem to spend their lives in a perpetual terror. It can be difficult to imagine how terrified an animal can get.
🙂
2.2mm would be a bit small
.22 calibre best - bit slower, but better on impact.
Had a look at my local council's website. They do rats for free, mice for a fee, but they don't do squirrels.
I've ordered a MK4 Fenn Trap (£10), if that doesn't work I'll get a professional in. I think the squirrel got in via a tree in my garden that's quite close to the house, should probably get that chopped down.
But do the squirrels have insurance? Be careful of any claims their relatives might make if you cause them any injury.
Yeah, not too keen on the "dispatching" part. What do you do, hit it with a hammer?
Use a brick. A brick would do the job and you can see less of its face pleading with you not to do it as you bring it down. More of the splash is caught under the brick as well.
And do it quick. Don't let the poor little fecker suffer. If the first blow doesn't kill it outright, make sure the second one does.
That's what I'd do - I've even done that with a rat. I know you aren't meant to release them but I'm too soft to start smacking animals with a brick.