We live next to the Freeborn County fair park in Albert Lea. We feed birds all year around. About four years ago, in the fall, we noticed a big increase in the number of gray squirrels at our bird feeders. The next fall, the same thing, another increase. It dawned on me the increase was due to the Winnebago type campers staying in the fairgrounds from early summer till early fall, feeding the squirrels while they were there. When they left, the squirrels had to find a new source of easy to get food. They found our place.
Two falls ago, I counted 17 gray squirrels in our back yard at one time. It got so bad, they cut through a garage screen door to get into the garage and then they chewed holes in two separate plastic garbage cans to get at the bird food inside the garbage cans.
Twas then I declared war on the gray squirrels. I purchased a live trap, put bait inside the trap, and transported those trapped to the cemetery. I was trapping and releasing five or six in the cemetery every day. Much to our surprise the number in our back yard was not decreasing, if anything, it was increasing.
I did some research on gray squirrels and found out they had a built in homing device. The question became, “When is their homing device not effective?”
I bought a can of pink spray paint and sprayed each squirrel before releasing. I caught four, sprayed and released them three miles away. Two days later, gray squirrels painted pink were in our back yard. Same song, second verse, only six miles away. Three days later, more pink squirrels. Third verse, same song, only nine miles away this time. I only painted two, as I ran out of pink paint. Four days later, more pink squirrels in our bank yard than ever before.
About three years ago, in the fall, a young family moved onto the same street as we live, just five houses away. Being good neighbors, Genie and I stopped in and welcomed them. The young son told us they had seen pink squirrels.
I decided to spray paint the next round of trapped squirrels using orange fluorescent paint. It worked. No orange squirrels after they were released 10 miles away. However, pink squirrels were still plentiful in number in our back yard.
I went for a walk last week on that beautiful, sunny, high forties temperature day. As I walked by our new neighbors, their young son Dax was playing outside with his sister Laila. I asked them if they had seen any pink squirrels lately. His reply was, “Mommy’s friend is not letting pink squirrels go in our yard anymore, she caught all of them.”
Now for the rest of the story. The number of gray squirrels in our back yard is being reduced after spray painting orange and releasing them six miles away.
And Genie said to me, “Orange you glad?”