How to Stop Squirrels From Stealing Your Bird Food

Squirrels need to eat too.

Bird feeders are popular with homeowners who love to watch the colorful, musical birds come and go from their garden. There are so many bird feeders in production that purport to keep squirrels away. Some work, some work not so well. Still, you can try an anti-squirrel bird feeder, or you can try a few other tricks.

Things You'll Need

• Drill
• Bird feeder on a drillable pole(e.g., wood, plastic, metal)
• Large nail
• 2-foot-square piece of pliable sheet metal
• Scissors
• Glue, stapler, or hole punch and metal fasteners

Instructions

1. 

   Bird feeders that deter squirrels don't always work.

   Purchase a "no squirrel" bird feeder. There are several on the market and some work better than others. Do a little research on the Internet and read the product reviews of any bird feeder you are considering purchasing. There are some with a kind of caging around the tube that holds the seed so only birds can get in, and others that close off the feed holes when a squirrel puts his weight on the perch. Still others flip around when a squirrel steps on it. With so many in production and for sale, there is bound to be one or two that actually work.

2. 

   You can attract a lot of birds with a variety of seeds.

   Purchase only safflower seeds. Cardinals and other songbirds will eat safflower seeds, but they are unpalatable to squirrels, grackles and blue Jays. Thistle is another seed that is only consumed by birds.

3. 

   Plain, unsalted peanuts make for great treats for wildlife.

   Place a tray underneath your bird feeder to catch any seeds that fall to the ground. If the squirrels cannot get the seed on the feeder, and if no seeds are falling to the ground, the squirrels will give up.

4. Scatter corn, roasted peanuts, bits of fruit, raisins and crumbs from old bread or doughnuts on the ground. If the squirrels have food on the ground to eat, they are less likely to attempt to invade your bird feeder.

Tips & Warnings

• Wild birds also like to eat peanuts.

• Never feed raw peanuts to wildlife. There is a chemical inside raw peanuts that causes squirrels to become very sick.

• Some articles advocate the use of cayenne pepper in the feed. While it is true that birds cannot taste the cayenne pepper, (and squirrels can), it can harm the birds if the wind blows it into their eyes. If you want to use cayenne pepper to deter squirrels from feed, use it in suet feed.

References

• Internet Center for Wildlife Damage Management: Strategies for Making Bird Feeders Feed Only Birds
• Wildlife Damage Control: Bird Feeders Not Squirrel Feeders
• Avian Web: Feeding Wild Birds

Resources

• Squirrel Stopper
• Bird Watching: Winter Bird Feeding