Some backyard plant, flower, and tree lovers would rather poison squirrels than feed them. And they do.
It's the city version of the farmers vs. the ranchers, and for a long time I favored the squirrels as the higher life form (but there are other interpretations of "higher" and "lower" life forms, y'know?).
However, some squirrels began exhibiting sick behaviors [wanton destruction of window sashes and frames as well as plants--for the last 34 years!]. One of the flower lovers got fed up and served them Jonestown Kool-Aid (I presume). When you see a squirrel taking down large tree branches every chance it gets, something must be wrong. Could have been rabies. Everyone with windows on these adjoining back yards looked the other way when the Kool-Aid was served.
Thing is, who's going to test squirrels for rabies? They will enter your rooms if a window is left open, and for those with children that's more than unhealthy.
Now transient squirrels stop by to chew on my window frame (it is chewed clear through to the brick at the bottom), but they don't homestead. It's just as well. They know the back yards around here are perilous for rodents. I still spray what's left of my window frames with copper spray paint--they're too canny to eat that.
One of the previous neighbors tried to trap the squirrels so he could release them in Central Park. Grey squirrels too squirrely for that--only a baby got caught, and I released it myself--very gingerly. [It was screeching like a human baby around 6 a.m.]
Even a few transient squirrels do an ace job of preventing any form of plant life from surviving, though. At least they're no longer taking down tree branches. That was unacceptable. I'll bet the UK reds don't do that.
[This message has been edited by Terese Coe (edited December 01, 2008).]
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