Agreed on the Dusk shooting. seems that is when they start out for the night. I have a TON of possums. I am dead due west of Jacksonville. In the woods though. A lot of armadillo and possum here . I do shoot them after dark too…they just wander by and bye-bye they go…
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Funny thing…I didn’t start shooting them because of my fruit trees. My area has a very nice Quail, Turkey and Dove population and when i bought the property it was extremely overgrown and never cared for so i noticed a badly diminished population of those birds there. My neighbor tipped me that possums, armadillos and raccoons eat all the eggs that get laid on the ground and those very birds lay all of their eggs on the ground. So i started preventative measures about 4 years ago and now I have a very nice ,healthy population of Quail, Dove and Turkey. I think that’s better than just a fair trade…IMO
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I’ve learned from experience that one should examine the ease with which the trap is set. Some traps are a bear to set, esp to get a hair trigger. The larger the animal the harder it is to set. I can do mice and vole traps, but don’t have the strength for much larger than that. That may not be an issue for you.
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I have seen people gas them(with natural gas or just Co2 for safety) in a trash bag with the trap, and then drown them. It is an extra step but they die in their sleep. Or use a lethal trap, make the whole thing fast.
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Regarding Tube Traps:
I bought one of the cheaper “copy cat” brands and returned it due to poor quality and no safety latch. The manufacturer WCS, Wildlife Control Supplies, makes a good product. The cheaper WCS model will rust but it can be painted or the more expensive stainless steal model is available. I recommend WCS but does anyone know of a better or less expensive quality product? I wonder if the electric models work?
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Some plants like Daffodils & Crown Imperials are supposed to repel rodents… Not sure how well they actually work in various applications, but can’t hurt to try? Worst case, they have little effect…but you still at least have a much prettier garden! 
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One year I planted 100 daffodil bulbs. 80% were eaten by some kinds of rodents. I doubt if they would deter squirrels.
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Or chimpmunks
As Jerry Lehman would say, “You can have squirrels or nuts, but you can’t have both.” I would take it a step further and add fruit to that. Also, with the amount of cotton rats I’ve caught it’s obvious why I hardly see any undisturbed pecans. I plan to stay 3 steps ahead in the coming years.
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IMHO ‘deterring’ a determined rodent is an exercise in futility, and I wouldn’t waste time or resources on such.
They continue to be a problem for you (and your neighbor if you are relying on those useless whirlygigs). Resources put towards elimination serve you and mankind better.
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I hear that the Rugged Ranch Products SQRTO Squirrelinator Trap works well. I’ve seen video that suggest they do the trick.
But that doesn’t kill the squirrel. Having to figure out how to get rid of it is the hard part for me.
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I for the most part don’t kill animals or critters… even after 20 years in the USMC. I must have grown soft. I let my wife do it. Hmmmmmm I hear squirrels are good to eat!
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My hubby won’t even look at a dead animal. Let alone killing one. I have to dispose them. I don’t mind throwing already dead animal in the garbage but I don’t have the heart to kill it.
Wonder if you can take squirrels to the local park?
I hear they come back to you unless you take them miles and miles away.
I believe that comes with a large plastic drowning tray. I cover the trap with a table cloth the lower it into the water and walk away. It IS hard but it gets easier when you see your harvest disappear.
Last year I had over $1000 in repairs from damage done to my house by squirrels. Enough of these kinds of events forces you to do the hard things you’d rather not do.
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I found out “just one bite” is the best solution to the squirrel problem in my orchard.
So I had one of these victor electronic traps at home and figured I’ll try it and see what happens. I left it outside w strawberries as bait and no body was tempted to go inside. Then I tried pieces of bagel. That got squirrels’ interest. They went in, got the bagels and went out. No harm. So I figured I’ll give it fresh batteries and try. Same thing. They went in, grabbed the bagels and left. No body seemed to get electricuted. Just wanted to post that I had no luck with it. On the other hand I found out squirrels can’t refuse bagels.
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Squirrel is good eating. I learned how to hunt by following Dad around while squirrel and bunny hunting, then began hunting them on my own when I was 12 or 13. Squirrel quartered up, dusted with flour, dipped into egg wash, covered with crushed cornflakes and fried in a cast iron pan would be considered a delicacy in many areas (of rural America anyway)
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