Getting rid of critters – truck damage

Hi all,
I just found out I have a 2K repair to do on my brand new Truck. A chipmunk or squirrel got up in the engine compartment and chewed up a 850.00 wire harness.

The truck sits in my driveway during the week, as I only use it on weekends now. What can I do to eliminate this problem going forward? Do I need to just drive it more often, thus eliminating the possibility? Parking in my garage isn’t an option right now.

I live in Eagan, and I never thought I would have to worry about this – especially during the summer. I don’t think I could be more pissed off right now.

Thanks for any advise.

I had chippies fill the airbox to my old motorcycle with dog food. I was pretty annoyed when I figured out why it wouldn’t start.

I ended up moving the dog food from the garage to the back porch of the house and setting a large rat trap to take care of the critters. I had about one/day for almost two weeks, and haven’t seen any around since.

Of course, beheading the offenders and spiking their heads in a circle around my bike probably helped keep the others away.

Nubbin,are you sure it’s a squirrel or chipmunk?I’ve had mice inhabit my vehicles more times than I can count.I’ve even had them nest inside the cover on my outboard where they proceded to do some damage.The last couple of years I’ve been cutting up a bar of Irish Spring(my wife read this somewhere)and putting pieces of the soap everywhere.In my Otter sled during the summer,my outboard in the winter and in the air filter compartments of my vehicles all year long.So far…so good.Yeah,they can really do some damage.I could tell you stories that would probably be funny,had they not happened to me.Mike

My buddy winterizes the cabins at his resort with mothballs. Not the best smell around, but it does the trick keeping all sorts of unwanted guests away.

The amount of damage would indicate either a chimpunk or squirrel. I do know we have chipmunks around, so that is my guess. I heard the reason for the cost of the harness is that the wiring all needs to be replaced. There is no ‘harness’ to plug in and out. Unbelievable. Time to get the SKB or Benelli out and pick a few off.

If you can catch the critter(s) in the act, the best way to deter future such attacks is to leave the dead body(ies) laying there (it works for rabbits in the garden, too). Otherwise, I have stored the boat in the winter and the sleds in the summer with Bounce fabric softener sheets placed strategically around under the hood and in compartments.

Sorry to here about your misfortune! I would think that any form of attractant combined with entrapment would be good for reducing local numbers and then following a suggestion or two from these other guys might prevent others from “moving in”. Best of luck to you!

the have-a-heart live traps work excelent for chipmuncks. we’ve had a problem with them out here for several years and we always tried the large rat traps. we got a few but we not enough to keep the pop. down. when we started using the live trap we would catch one every day until they were gone . no bait or nothin’. those things are just so curious that they’ll walk right in them.

they’re not very expensive and they work great. what you do with the chippies after you catch them is up to you. you can either relocate them or be creative and dispose of them some other way .

I have 2 Haveahart traps set every day for the squirrels in my yard. They will chew up everything and raise heck with all your bird houses and feeders. I have plastic lawn furniture that is covered in teeth marks. For some reason the little critters love to chew on plastic. Last year I got 51 and so far this year I have caught 16. I just got one this morning. I haul them across the river over to Wisconsin. I think they will like the cheese over there better than at my house. If they can swim the river and make it a couple of miles back to my house then they deserve to live here. So far I don’t think any have made it back.

Hey Guys,
Where can I pick up those live traps? I think I might have seen them at Fleet Farm. I have been using some rat traps, and they are getting sprung daily. However, nothing is in them… wondering if it is something bigger than a chipper, as they should be caught in a rat trap (I think).

Too bad I don’t have my old 220 Conibears from my trapping days – when fur was actually worth something. he he.

You are correct, Fleet Farm carries them. There are two sizes I’ve seen. I’ve used one for rabbits and they work great.

Comanchero – 51? That is one heck of a lot of squirrels!

Here is the link for more info:
HAVE A HEART TRAPS

Hey! Don’t be hauling those critters over here. Next thing you know they will be getting the vote and we’ll end up with a wrestler as Gov.

Yup – and your new governor’s name will be: Chippy Chipmunk.

Yea – 51 last year. I actually keep a log of when I catch them and where in the yard I catch them. If you haul them a few miles away they won’t come back. Put a few major roadways between where you release them and your house or do like I do and put a major river between you and the critters.

Last year I got 1 in January; 1 in February; 5 in April; 7 in May; 1 in June; 3 in July; 1 in August; 13 in September; 14 in October; 3 in Novermber; and 2 in December = 51 total. So far in 2003 I got 2 in January; 1 in April; 9 in May; and 4 in June for a total of 16.

I use a large glob of peanut butter on a cracker. They just gotta have it. I have had a few that were pretty smart and could sneak in the trap and delicately pick up the cracker and back out. I took care of them in other ways

I hate them. The only good squirrel is a cheesehead squirrel, I say. I have thought of using them for muskie bait. One treble in the nose and a stinger treble in the tail. Toss them out and let them paddle around on your favorite muskie spot. Lure manufacturers keep dressing lures with squirrel fur – why not use the whole squirrel.

That Haveaheart trap shown above is the one I use. I got them at Fleet Farm. Best money I ever spent. It is kind of fun – I gotta beat last year’s record. I have my traps set so I can watch them from the house. Last night a racoon or something big was in one of the traps. It was sprung and upside down and the critter left a large pile of dung in the middle of my backyard. I kinda feel like he is challenging me now – the wife told me to leave it alone – probably a big skunk that will take me on.

Well, I got my first squirrel this weekend. I actually got it in a rat trap. IT was one of those nasty little red squirrels. Since this is a kid friendly site, I won’t elaborate on the fun I had with it, as it was scurrying across the driveway with the trap.

I did get a box trap, but those cagey tree rats won’t go in them. I have a feeling that little red was the one responsible for the damage to my truck.

You all using Peanut Butter? Not having much success here…. chipmunks don’t seem to be going after it.

Got a doubler this morning… both in rat traps. The first one woke me up when the trap snapped; I ran out and it was just stunned, so I took care of it. It’s partner then proceeded to go into the other trap 10 minutes later !!

There still were 2 others standing around when I went out, and they don’t seem to like that box trap…. any hints?

Dog chow + rat trap = broken neck.

It’s the formula that’s worked for me.

Hershey’s Chocolate Bar !!

Finally got 1 in a box trap this morning. I did the humane thing and let it go by Dave B’s house… he he.

No problem. Now I can do the human thing and have it for dinner.

Quote:

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No problem. Now I can do the human thing and have it for dinner.

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I got a little Red Squirrel in the trap this afternoon. Mean little critter – hissin and snapping. We were going out for chinese in Woodbury so I hauled him over to Yuppie land. I let him go next to this gazillion dollar house – they had a bird feeder the size of the Lowell Inn. I figured he could move right in with them. I think they had a designer bird house next to the feeder. That should work out OK for everybody involved!! That squirrel had such an attitude that he may do a Trading Spaces on part of their house.