If you’re anything like us, you love animals. Unfortunately, some animals are just too damaging or dangerous to keep around.
Enter the squirrel. They’re cute and seemingly harmless, but when they invade our homes and lawns they can cause costly property damage, not to mention spread fleas, ticks, and other pests to our pets and families.
So what do you do if you need to get rid of squirrels but harming them isn’t an option? Here are 5 ways to get rid of squirrels humanely, safely, and naturally.
TRIM YOUR TREES
Squirrels can leap anywhere from 7-10 feet, making a jump from your trees to your roof a piece of cake. In fact, this is among the most common ways squirrels sneak into our homes.
Not only will regularly trimming your trees help keep squirrels off your home, better manicured trees tend to house fewer squirrels and other pesky wildlife.
STOP FEEDING THEM
Accessible fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds, and bird feeders are essentially just giant welcome mats for squirrels.
To limit squirrel populations on your property, ensure vulnerable crops are shielded with wire or other coverings, that your trash cans and compost piles are tightly closed, and that any bird feeders in your lawn are squirrel-proof.
Pick up your own squirrel-proof bird feeder here.
SEAL YOUR HOME
If your yard has a ton of squirrels, it’s usually only a matter of time before they find their way indoors, which could end up costing you thousands in household repairs.
Save yourself the time, money, and headache associated with indoor squirrels and other pests by making sure your home is properly sealed. Do a slow walk around the exterior of your home, looking for potential entry points like holes, cracks, and other instances of wall, roof, attic, or basement damage. Then simply repair or replace any openings as needed.
REPEL THEM WITH PLANTS AND SPICES
Squirrels can strip a garden, plant, or tree of its fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds in only a matter of hours. But squirrels aren’t fans of every plant, and you can use this knowledge against them.
There are two main ways to go about it. First, you can try sprinkling black pepper, red pepper flakes, or cayenne throughout your garden, wherever you’re experiencing the worst squirrel problems. Just be sure to water the spices afterward to help prevent them from blowing away. This approach alone will often do the trick.
However, if you need a more permanent solution, try installing plants squirrels are known to avoid around your most vulnerable crops. Such as…
- Daffodils
- Fritillary
- Galanthus
- Hyacinth
- Geranium
- Peppermint or spearmint
- Alliums
- Onions
- Garlic
- Scallions
SCARE THEM
This approach works great, is super easy, and takes basically no time at all.
You have a few options here. You can adopt a rescue dog (canines and their urine are fantastic squirrel deterrents). You can purchase some of those cheap plastic owls and install them throughout your lawn and roof. Or, you can set up a motion-activated sprinkler, which gives your yard a quick spray anytime wildlife venture into unwanted areas of your property.