Why is it that the squirrel has such an appreciated place in the world of animals. They are rodents. Actually they are nothing but a rat in a tuxedo. They are destructive but yet people insist on feeding them and encourage them to reproduce. One of my neighbors called me to tell me my son had killed a squirrel with his bb gun in the woods behind her house. She became angry when I bragged to her about that being his fifth one so far that month. She wanted me to reprimand him so the conversation ended when I gave her my opinion of squirrels.
They are nasty little creatures yet people feed them corn, peanuts, various types of nuts, seeds, and even peanut butter. They reproduce out of control because of the abundance of food. Since there are so many of them they believe anything outside is theirs to eat. I had 3 apple trees and 2 peach trees in a small orchard I made in a cleared area of the woods where my house is. As soon as the fruit on these trees grew to be about 2 inches in diameter I would see them coming from the swamp, jumping from tree to tree to reap the rewards. The furry little bastards would pick the young fruit, take a bite, and then throw them down because they were not ripe. Since squirrels are dumb as a bag of hammers they kept trying to find something ripe. As a result they had the trees striped of the premature fruit before it had a chance to ripen. I never managed to get fruit from these trees, this spring I cut them down. This year I won't be doing anything to perpetuate the nuisance of "squirrelis horribolis." My neighbors are going to have to spend more money to keep the infestation of the little gremlins fed.
And people think they are nice, furry friends. They are dangerous. Before I knew the truth about them I would trap them in a "have a heart trap" and take them about 15 miles away to relocate them. I did this with other varmits such as possum and raccoon when they became too numerous. When possum or raccoon were trapped they would cower scared in the back of the trap when they saw me coming. On the other hand, the squirrels would gnash their teeth and charge the cage trying to get at me. They are hellacious little monsters. Not only did they eat my fruit, they wanted to eat me too.
I recall one day when I came home from work. My wife told me there was a bird in the wood stove. She heard it trying to get out. I got a flashlight and looked through the glass doors and saw a squirrel sitting on it's haunches looking back at me. It had a "what are you looking at?" look on its evil little face. So how does one get a squirrel out of the wood burner? I knew if I opened the doors to the stove it would be loose in the house. Can you imagine that? A chain saw with legs loose in the house. I know a guy who had one in his attic and it ate it's way out. I thought for a while. Later that evening I took a jute rope up to the roof and dropped it down the chimney. Before long the furry assed rat had climbed to freedom. I have a propane heater now instead of wood. I suspect you know what I will do If another squirrel comes down the chimney and winds up in that stove.
Don't feed the squirrels. They carry vermin and they could bite your kids. If they become overpopulated a disease will thin them out just as it does other wild animals that become too numerous. Or they will starve to death. They will do any thing to collect a good store house of nuts for the winter, no one's nuts are safe.