What's the best way to get rid of tree rats (squirrels) ?

The missus is doing her nut as the two resident tree rats are digging up anything and everything in the garden.

My auntie traps them in a cage and then drowns them in her pond.

Unfortunately, I don't have a pond and the missus would prefer a "humane" way of dispatching the fury vermin.

Any tips?

My neighbour traps and drowns them too.

It's all a bit weird.

I suppose that borrowing an air rifle and shooting them is quite fast and painless if you must.

Have thought of that but the garden is too close to a road. Can't use an air rifle unless it is a certain distance from a public highway IIRC.

Attack their tree with futuristic helicopter gunships.

good eating too

no chance mate.

thom, char grilled squirrel as a bivy snack for tomorrow night?

BigDummy: Can't use helicopters as it all went a bit wrong for the humans in the film. Tree rats may start an uprising against mankind and technology. May be eradication by proxy: a could borrow a jack russell…

Nature against nature!

Yeah, trap and drown them. Its the best way.

Squirrel curry is OK.
Trap them and then you have to kill them, it is illegal to release them back into the wild. Drowning them is probably illegal as well you must kill them swiftly, airrifle pellet through skull works.

jimmers – Member

Have thought of that but the garden is too close to a road. Can't use an air rifle unless it is a certain distance from a public highway IIRC.

Be discrete and don't shoot towards the road….

airrifle pellet through skull works.

So would a lump of wood.

The missus is doing her nut as the two resident tree rats are digging up anything and everything in the garden.

Is it really that bad that the solution is "humane" dispatching of them?

What's to say that others won't take their place?

Live and let live personally…if they were nibbling your bikes I'd think differently 😉

Nuke
If you get greytreeratsquirrels in your loft then you will understand.

thom, char grilled squirrel as a bivy snack for tomorrow night?

i'll get one of those gun top tube gun racks from AMBA and bring an air rifle!

If you get greytreeratsquirrels in your loft then you will understand.

Maybe but they are not in his loft, they are in his garden having a bit of a dig

They're probably discussing how to kill the humans that live in their backyard right now. Let's hope it's humane.

Don't get it, your garden is being used over by wildlife so you want to kill the wildlife? How odd. I'd be glad to see them there, in fact I'd probably feed them.

You need one of these,

If they don't get eaten they will stay up the trees and off your lawn

If they were red squirrels fair enough, they are grey squirrels which are legally classified as vermin.

I don't mind the odd the squirrel coming into the garden as they are wildlife. But we have an outbuilding that backs on to our garden and the squirrels have a nest in the attic of the building so they are permanently ripping up stuff in the garden.

Never killed an animal in my life, but they are a pest.

My air-rifle is by the bog so in the middle of the night when i wake up for a piss i pick off a couple of squirrels and rabbits before heading back to sleep. Best time to get them really.

linky

According to this article in the Times, without a special license, you are legally obliged to dispatch the squirrel if caught.

The distance you have to worry about is 50m from the centre of a carriageway but you can ignore this iirc, if it does not cause distress to other people. Having said that you are allowed to discharge an air weapon (non FAC) within your garden but you have a statutory obligation to ensure the pellet does not leave your land.

Squirrels have exceedingly tough skulls and pellets (.177, .20 and .22) will sometimes just bounce off them (even guns up to the legal max). The best way of despatching a squirrel is through the chest (under the foreleg passing through the heart etc is best). If you haven't shot animals before don't be surprised if they run about, jump up and down, twitch etc when you have shot them it is just their system shutting down. To be fair to the squirrels though, you do need to be able to take them out cleanly. That usually means being able to shoot to a standard where you can put several pellets through a kill zone maybe the size of a 10p piece (for a squirrel) before you even try and shoot it. Then you have to be prepared to mess it up because of nerves when it comes to taking the shot… many people lose concentration and fluff it, either missing the quarry or wounding the animal which is unacceptable if it could have been avoided.

It isn't just a case of borrowing a gun. Oh yes, and beware ricochets and grumpy neighbours.

Yuo need to do it efficiently

available to rent, reasonable rates 😀
Jim on squirrel patrol in the park

slowjo: As a nipper in the cadets I got a marksman badge for putting a 5 round grouping in the area of a fifty pence piece at 50yds with an L98 and '22 rifle. But that was some time ago…

If they were red squirrels fair enough, they are grey squirrels which are legally classified as vermin.

Kind of irrelevant, the legalities – they're effectively the same small furry animal, they're still just animals and all it means is you're not able to secure your own property from them properly, rather than it being their fault and them needing to die!

I can see it's a pain if they're doing damage, but you can stop them better ways than killing them – it's not like killing them will make the slightest difference – they breed rapidly and will be replaced quick enough.

coffeeking: How? Any suggestions are gladly welcome. "Dispatching" the creatures is a last resort.

Turf them out of the nest (they've probably fledged(?!)) by now but I'd check first – would be a bit mean ot the littluns) and secure the building. IF they've nowhere to nest they won't stay around with the same nest building tendencies.

Wot coffeeking said.

I'm not a vegan, but imo killing for no reason is gash. If you're not prepared to eat it, or you're not fending for your life, don't kill it. Simples.

They're vermin, they destroy the gardens, plants and veggies. Its in the countrys interest to get rid of em.

We don't have access to the building as it owned by a nursing home and the council are not bothered with the building. They are happy to leave it to rot (based on a previous conversations with them on other issues that are far too long and boring to go into).

http://www.google.co.uk/products?hl=en&q=squirrel+repellent&rlz=1R2SKPB_enNL328&um=1&ie=UTF-8&ei=lBTYS4_pGpi60gTi3rj-Bw&sa=X&oi=product_result_group&ct=title&resnum=3&ved=0CCgQrQQwAg

That or take off and nuke it from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

You've got to be careful with them though, they're adapting.

tree magnet: already got some of that, to be deployed this evening. That's phase 1 of the plan.

This post is about phase 2…(if required)

this is depressing reading… classed as 'vermin' or not, they have a right to life like any other animal. trapping and drowning them? what sick, weird people.

and just cos of holes in the garden or eating a plant? ever thought that a garden should be in harmony with the outdoors, if they want to eat something let them.

on this reasoning, people should be eradicated – we mess up the environment more than any other animal.

c'mon people, get a grip. live and let live.

Think I'd be onto the council and telling them their building is causing a hazard/vermin problem and needs securing. But I have to say my over-riding comment would be "it's not forever – prob just spring, and it's hardly the end of the world, not worth killing over"

You could set up a deadfall trap it's pretty easy and kills them quickly.

Personally I'd have a word with the missus though killing stuff you're not eating is a bit iffy really.

right to life like any other animal

I think you are looking for a whole bigger argument there chief.