Andy has installed a live trap to compassionately remove threats to his fruit trees. So far he has caught five mice and one ground squirrel…he releases him on his way home, miles away from our land.
Fingers crossed it helps the problem.
August 15, 2020
**gentle smile** First of all, that is very cruel. You may be removing an adolescent squirrel from its family…. from its nest…. and depositing it in the middle of territory it is totally not familiar with. Squirrels inhabit the same 3-4 acres all of their lives. It would be the same as dropping Andy off in the middle of a foreign country & then driving away. Terrible.
Plus, thinking you’re going to trap a couple squirrels & that’s going to be the end of the problem is just a bit naive. Wildlife are everywhere… and when one is gone, another one comes. That’s how nature is.
It would be far more compassionate to simply live in harmony with nature around you… and buy your fruit from the store or a fruit market.
XOXO
So the question is, how do the farms that sell fruit to your store protect their trees from critters? Wouldn’t that be passing the guilt onto someone else?
Anyway, this article, How to Keep Animals From Fruit Trees, says it’s humane to put a live trap at the base of each tree and transport anyone caught at least five miles away. They say it doesn’t harm the animal. Where have you read that this is cruel?
Andy’s going to have some every expensive fruit on those trees. LOL
Let’s just say he isn’t doing it to save money. 😀 He loves those trees and kept replanting when animals and the fire killed them off.
We applaud his efforts and hope he is successful.
Thank you. 🙂
ummmm well glad it’s not me dealing with the “fruit snatchers”
Andy has worked hard over the years trying to grow fruit trees…he has tree guards for the trunks, hardware cloth buried around the tree to keep the burrowers out, nets over the cherry trees when they had cherries, the chain link fences to keep the deer and bears out, and mostly it has been working. This is the first time he’s had trouble with so many apples disappearing, but he isn’t giving up. 🙂
score one for Andy. Or would that be 6 since that’s how many critters he’s kept from eating his fruit? Good for him for coming up with a humane way of dealing with them.
Thank you. 🙂
All I can say is don’t mind those negative remarks above. you live YOUR life & those others should keep their noses out!
Thank you!!
super idea, when my kids were small, we used to do that and take them out to an island park, no one could bother them. thanks for the comment on the avatar. i got up thinking people might be tired of them.. i always go for over use of whatever i learn.
We love your avatars, and we love your energy and enthusiasm. It helps keep our spirits up.
We had squirrels getting into our attic last year. I bought a live trap and ended up transporting 6 or 7 several miles away. It’s the first time we’ve had that problem in the 39 years we’ve been here. We’ve had squirrels around our property, of course, but never in the buildings. Right now, we’re seeing fewer squirrels than we have in some years. It may be because of a pair of red-shouldered hawks that have taken up residence in the immediate area.
Apparently it’s a boom year for ground squirrels here this year, but we’re not expecting it to last. We had a slew of rabbits a few years ago, so many that as we would drive in they would be darting across the road. The next year we had more coyotes than usual, but scarcely a rabbit to be seen.
Will you be affected by the storm? Fingers crossed for everyone in its path.
Right now, Laura is predicted to still be a tropical storm all the way across Arkansas. The current predicted track takes it very close to us, but somewhat to the east. We’re looking at several inches of rain and a lot of wind, I think.
Good luck! It’s impressive how far inland it goes.
Love Andy’s tender heart!
Thank you! We wish we could tell the ground squirrels they’re welcome to all the land except for the two fenced-in areas. Then they would be left in peace.
You do what you have to do…it is good that he can do that. The squirrels are lucky they are being dealt with the way they are.
Thanks.