Squirrels in Yards or Gardens

How to Get Rid of Squirrels in Your Yard or Garden

Species of both ground and tree squirrels are common in residential neighborhoods throughout North America. They eat a variety of grasses, plants, and nuts and like to live high off the ground to avoid predation. Therefore, private properties with plenty of ornamental lawn trees make excellent nesting sites. Property owners may be alerted to squirrels in yards by spotting adults scampering along the ground and up trees, seeing girdled bark, and noting the appearance of tiny holes approximately the size of quarters all over lawns, which are the result of the pests foraging.

Damage

Though having squirrels in the yard is certainly favorable to having them inside homes, the pests are capable of causing a fair amount of destruction on residential lawns. For one, they feed on garden plants, digging up roots and stunting growth. They also disturb carefully cultivated landscaping and can have a detrimental effect on tree health. Squirrels often carry parasites such as fleas and gnaw on electrical wires, which can cause shorts for entire neighborhoods. Finally, infestations of squirrels in yards often infiltrate heated homes at the onset of cold weather and cause a host of other issues for house residents.

Removal

Squirrels are wild animals. They become aggressive when they feel threatened and are capable of transmitting diseases like plague via the parasites they harbor. As such, individuals should not approach the pests under any circumstances. To remove problematic populations of squirrels in yards, property owners should contact professional pest control services. Wildlife removal specialists have all the proper tools and understanding of state laws to safely and legally eradicate infestations of the pest.

Learn more about squirrel removal.