[kuronekotsukino]

So like everyone else, I have a squirrel problem.... I was thinking of doing something a little crazy. I want to actually build an enclosure around my feeder tree. It would look like big cage.
I was wondering what largest sized opening I could get away with before it would be big enough for squirrels to get in? I was hoping it would be large enough for the cardinals, jays, etc to get in.

[Joe1980]

My opinion: Don't waste your time and money. Holes big enough for bluejays and cardinals are big enough for squirrels. Let's not forget that squirrels are very smart, and WILL figure out how to get in. Also, should your birds get spooked, you will increase the chances of them getting injured trying to scramble through a fence. Your best bet is to make a feeder setup that is on a pole with squirrel baffles, but it sounds like you have a setup like mine, which is based around a tree, so we're screwed. I just live with them.

[Nature__lover]

I thought the same as joe- holes big enough for jays are big enough for squirrels.
I think a better solution would be to leave the local squirrels a handful of nuts out somewhere away from the bird feeders. or buy a specially designed squirrel feeder.
you may think it's crazy to feed them but I'm sure it would work, and remember, they'll have babies to feed soon just like the birds. I saw a squirrel with a mouth full of leaf litter and twigs the other day, for her drey.

[etudiant]

Second the recommendation of nature_lover.
I've found that the best way to neutralize squirrels is to help them stuff their greedy little faces.
They will work on a corncob or a few filberts for a long time, leaving the feeders free for the birds.

However, if you really want to squirrel proof your feeder tree, the solution is simple. Put a foot deep baffle around the trunk at 6-7 feet off the ground and cut back any other trees in the vicinity so the squirrels cannot bypass your baffle.
It may be ugly, but it will work.

[Joe1980]

I do find that squirrels will pick to eat sunflower seed first, before corn. They will take peanuts over anything else, but they run off and bury them, and return to eat the sunflower, so I won't waste my money on peanuts. Same with bluejays, they just fly off and stash peanuts, rather then eat them. But, if you think about it, a human's stomach is the size of a fist, so how big might a squirrel's be? Probably not very big, so really, how much sunflower does a squirrel really eat in a sitting?? Not enough to make me stress over it. In fact, my local flock of mourning doves descends on my feeders and eats about 10 times what a squirrel does in a sitting, but I do scare them off due to excessive numbers. So, long story short, just try and find a way to accept them, if not enjoy them.

[Nature__lover]

I enjoy the visits of my local grey squirrels, believe it or not. Two have been courting since december and are now mated and paired up. I saw the female with a mouth full of leaf litter for her drey the other day. they are so entertaining. the other day I looked out the window and saw one with a whole apple in his hands. he ran and put it on the shed roof, ran off for a few hours then came back to retrieve it and have his lunch!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/54493324@N02/5455433657/

[crazyfingers]

I guess I don't see the need for anything special to keep squirrels away. Our squirrel proof seed feeder works wonders. Properly adjusted it allows 4 sparrows to feed, if the sparrows are in the mood to allow 4 on the perch, they often bicker too much and only allow 3 at the perch, but not the squirrel. It's actually fun watching the squirrels do their gymnastics trying to get at the seed, twirl around a bit and then fall off - finally content to munch on the pile of seeds that the sparrows drop on the ground.

It is true though that twice I failed to properly latch the feeder top and a red squirrel lifted up the back and went inside - latching it behind him. By luck both times I saw him go in. I went out, opened the top and he flew out like a red rocket. The kids laughed and laughed.

[birdygrl]

Squirrels are a nuisance if you want to not have to incur a debt the size of the national debt keeping supplies of birdseed and suet. I have a suet and seed feeder combination, and NOTHING works to keep them out--and trust me, I've tried everything. I was all set to buy a pellet gun but was advised I'd be arrested for animal cruetly if I shot any of them. So I did some web browsing and found a feeder that looks as if it will actually work! It rolls around an axle, with the feeder on the axle so it won't turn. The squirrels fall right off. It also looks to be too big to allow really large birds in, which is OK because there are other ways to feed the larger birds. Check it out: http://www.rollerfeeder.com

[Dwayne]

I had a squirrel problem with my first feeder setup, a Shepard's hook with two hooks. A weekend of power tools in the garage later, I have a setup that after 6 weeks of being surrounded by squirrels on the ground has yet to see a squirrel get higher than a foot on the PVC pipe. The platform is approximately 7-8 feet in the air, and the 4" PVC pipe is approximately 4 feet long. The PVC pipe is too smooth and too large in diameter for the squirrels to be able to climb.

[nikiapple]

Originally Posted by birdygrl

Squirrels are a nuisance if you want to not have to incur a debt the size of the national debt keeping supplies of birdseed and suet. I have a suet and seed feeder combination, and NOTHING works to keep them out--and trust me, I've tried everything. I was all set to buy a pellet gun but was advised I'd be arrested for animal cruetly if I shot any of them. So I did some web browsing and found a feeder that looks as if it will actually work! It rolls around an axle, with the feeder on the axle so it won't turn. The squirrels fall right off. It also looks to be too big to allow really large birds in, which is OK because there are other ways to feed the larger birds. Check it out: http://www.rollerfeeder.com

Yes, the roller feeder looks like one of many good squirrel-proof feeders on the market. If the suet and seed feeder is on a post a large baffle that tilts below will help keep them from climbing up. If it is hanging, a large baffle above will keep them from reaching the feeder. Feeders on a metal pole out in the open with a plastic tilting baffle below has always been successful for me.

[Littlebirdman]

AHH! the battle of the Squirrels. I to have fought that battle including hanging feeders from a thin wire which they seem to slide down like a fireman's pole. I now have 2 feeding stations that are squirrel proof. I used 4 inch PVC pipe for the post put a Tee on top with extensions sticking out to hang my feeders from. The squirrels come around the feeders but are limited to only what the birds drop while eating. This has been the cheapest solution I have found.

[jzmtl]

I tried wire cage on mine, all it did was to gave the tree rats somewhere to sit while munching down the seeds.