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| Good Communist Squirrels. |
The new neighbors are much younger and interact far more than the old neighbors. I might have interacted with the old neighbors once every two years. That is why some of us move out to rural areas. We find social interactions to be a burden.
Shortly after the new family moved in, the gentleman apologetically asked if I could trim some trees on my property because the trees restricted their view of oncoming traffic when they were attempting to exit their driveway.
No problem! I took care of the problem that afternoon. Being the forward-thinking person I am, I trimmed enough to keep the view clear for the next five years.
He asked me if there was anything he could do to return the favor.
I mentioned my dislike of Red Squirrels. They don't carry enough meat to make them worth skinning (unless you are very hungry). They are aggressive toward other squirrels. They chew their way into buildings and can wipe out a crop of nuts.
He informed me that he would make a project of thinning out their population. I was hoping he would volunteer.
I have three, mature Black Walnuts right beside our shared property line. They are MUCH closer to his house than they are to mine. Far better for him to shoot them out of those trees than for me to do so.
He purchased a .25 caliber, Pre-charged Pneumatic air-gun and has been as good as his word. He sent me the image shown above. He shot those squirrels today.
That is pretty good shooting.
Red squirrels were shoot on sight in northern Michigan, those things were constantly getting into cabins and making a huge mess. .22 with snake shot was the weapon of choice.
ReplyDeleteHe will be getting some fresh produce soon as the weather gets here . My kinda' neighbor !
ReplyDeleteYay for him!
ReplyDeleteSquirrels also kill my songbirds. Eat eggs if they can get them and there are few places a squirrel can't go. Cute but not really.
ReplyDeleteSquirrels are just rats with fluffy tails
DeleteIn the past I've live trapped and relocated ours, more recently I've used them as exercise/invigoration for the dog, but despite all her efforts she's only caught one. Still, the little bastards have not got the message and seem to delight in taunting her. It's about time to break out the RWS and knock a few down to encourage her to greater effort.
ReplyDeleteTwoDogs beat me to it above. Spring piston air rifles are good tools to have on the homestead. Plenty of small pests that require culling exist. Mine was used to reduce rats and mice when my brother's homing pigeon loft (he raced them) attracted too many. A scoped break barrel pellet rifle was just the ticket. RWS 45 in .177 sniped them on the pole mounted electric wires, n the tree canopy and along roof fascias. No problem with bodies - they were gone overnight.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you and the new neighbor will get along just fine.
My primary problem with them is they will chew the entry hole on my birdhouses large enough to get in and eat the eggs and baby swallows and bluebirds. So I have started mounting the birdhouses sideways on the pole from my usual shooting positions so I can shoot them off the front without drilling the house.--Hopefully.---ken
ReplyDeleteThe old timers always told me, "If you kill a squirrel, three come to the funeral."
ReplyDeleteI kept score one year dispatching 37 in my city back yard.
Even the grays are a problem. They like to chew the wiring harness of vehicles. That can be an expensive repair.
ReplyDeleteIn my childhood....well, no. Not gonna say, but That was MY cherry tree!
ReplyDelete