Squirrels chewing holes in your birdcage.
 

Does anyone have any idea how to keep the squirrels from chewing holes in our birdcage, short of shooting the dam things?

Who ever comes up with a way to beat these pesky squirrels at their game is going to go home with 'all the marbles'

they are tough, resilient and creative

they may be seeking water...you might try making water available to them outside your birdcage

when we lived up north I'd find green leaves on the lawn on hot summer days....finally I found out that it was the work of squirrels....they would bite off the leaf so that they could drink the water (sap) flowing in the outer branches of the tree

Squirrels
 

No, you can't shoot 'em. I've even trapped them, but others show up. Make sure there is nothing for them to eat in the birdcage. My solution was, as an OP wrote about providing water, was to put up a birdfeeder. Yeah, I knew they would go after it. But they do leave enough for the birds to eat.

This is Earl D. Squirrel, a retired acrobat enjoying life.

Maybe trap them and haul them off to wet land away from housing?

Get a hawk.. lol. Where we live now the squirrels like to feast at the bird feeder out by my shop. There will often be a red tailed hawk sitting on the peak of our roof like he's waiting in line at the buffet..

Have you seen a squirrel? At my place the varmit man thought it was a rat. He set a trap by the hole and no more problems.

I keep my birdcage inside my house so my birds don't get eaten by squirrels or catch covid because they refuse to wear masks. :loco:

We have seen the squirrels. They are chewing the holes high up in the birdcage. If the rats were the problem then they would be chewing holes near ground level. We saw a red tailed hawk dive bomb our next door neighbors birdcage to get a gecko and go right through the screen. The poor bird was stunned and trapped inside the birdcage. I had to call my neighbor, who was up north, and get permission to go into her birdcage and leave the door open so the hawk could find it’s way out. I guess these are the type of things one deals with when your property abuse a preserve. It’s a good problem to have : )

Squirrel problem
 

A product called Liquid Fence. It could be applied to exterior of bird cage. The initial odor wears off but animals can smell it. Home Depot

If you spray bleach on the screen when you clean it or have it cleaned, they will not chew on it. Or, just spray diluted 1:1 bleach:water if cleaning is not needed. I have used clear packaging tape to repair any holes. It frustrates them as they can't get a bite because it is too slippery.

Rats with a bushy tail.

Illegal to trap and release in Florida check the law

Remove their food source. We had a palm tree with palm berries on it next door. That is squirrel food. If you our your neighbors close by has a palm tree with berries on it cut them down And clean up all the berrys. Once our palm tree was down all the squirrels were away.

I would use dried blood I purchased from a nursery that would repel squirrels from digging up potted plants. It worked very well.

I filled a kids water gun with vinegar and would run out and spray the squirrel. After a few weeks no more squirrels. They actually run across the grass now then jump onto the neighbors bird cage. I read it somewhere, they hate the smell and when they try to lick it of, hate the taste, cheap and it worked for me. Give it a try and it's kind of fun shooting them.

I sprinkle black pepper and cayenne pepper around the bird cage. I get the pepper at the dollar store.

Thats what pellet guns are for. Pop a few in his butt

Just remember, all you bird feeder people, they attract rats. Get rid of the feeder, no more rats. Squirrels are a real pain. They are in my palm and used to run across my roof. Not that the tree has grown about my roof, they go up the trunk. I got some ugly smelling spray and now spray the trunk. They don't like it. Got it at Sparr.

Squirrels on the birdcage
 

Place 1/4 cup red pepper flakes in a pint of water, boil, & let cool. Strain the liquid into a spray bottle and spray the screens. We had a squirrel chewing through the soffit. We sprayed the area and watched. Next day the squirrel returned and after one bite was gone for good. Red pepper flakes among plants also keeps rabbits from eating your flowers.

I had this same problem with and snakes getting in , we laid moth balls all the way round the outside edge of the house , so far so good

What about moth balls? Could they detour the squirrels.

Buy a Pit Bull.

Skip

The reason the squirrels chew on the lanai is not food related. They do it to file down their teeth, which never stop growing.

Squirrel Chewing Habits: Their Fun that Wreaks Havoc on your Home | Regional Wildlife Services

Ditto the hot pepper approach mentioned above You can make your own or by hot pepper spray. This will keep any mammal away from your cage. Down side is you need to reapply after rain. Up north I use hot pepper suit for the birds and the squirrels won’t touch it. Birds can’t taste it, mammals can.

I’ve tried LOTS of cayenne and seeds with cayenne added with no success. However, I do have a little bottle of Mongolian Fire Oil in the cupboard. I’ve thought of drizzling that on the top of the feeder, where squirrels land but birds don’t. Let them have a lick off their paws.

Really, though, have you ever wondered why we don’t just feed the squirrels and enjoy their antics? They may be rodents, but they are beautiful. More so than many of the birds we feed.

People need to quit feeding the wildlife, all that does is cause rats and squirrels. This is Florida the wildlife have no problem finding something to eat.

Interesting idea, however, it would not be good for the chemistry of the pool to get bleach in it.

Hmmmm, our next door neighbor has a palm tree full of berries. Good information, thanks.

The idea of removing palm trees because of their nuts is a good one; the down side is the cost. It's about $1,000 to have a palm tree removed. Your neighbors may not want their landscaping disturbed.

Squirrel
 

Squirrel Taste pretty much like rat!

Rat trap and peanut butter

Live trap hardware store

Back in new England the big problem was after I put out the bird feeders in the fall. Squirrels and white tail dear would always stop by for a late lunch or early dinner. I just bought more food and suite blocks. I hunted but also believed in the helping the circle of life by doing my part in the cold snowy winters to help wildlife survive.

While this won't help you with your squirrel problem, it's sure to make you smile


Building the Perfect Squirrel Proof Bird Feeder - YouTube

Squirrels
 

No actual experience with this, but have visited with folks who had plastic snakes on their roof. When I asked about it, they said keeps the squirrels from chewing on the pipes for their solar water heater for the pool. Would be an economical thing to try.....

I have used the sharp stream on my garden hose to shoo a squirrel away. I really don't have a problem with squirrels in my area. Maybe he/she told his/her friends to stay away from our house because there was a tsunami. LOL.

As my 6yo nephew said: Find 'em, Kill 'em, Cook 'em, Eat 'em.

Encourage residents not to feed them. They are rodents (aka rats) with furry tails and cute eyes. They feed and breed. If you don't have a lot of oak trees in the area, they are drawn there with store-bought feed!

If you have Oak trees near by or on your lot, that complicates the situation. Prior to retirement we lived full-time on a large beautiful lake with two big oaks in the back and three out front. They lived in those trees with lots of acorns. Plenty of food that they stored up for the Illinois winter. I don’t recall any problem with squirrels chewing holes in our 20x35 screened back porch/lanai we built on and we lived there 10 years with them. I do recall raking up acorns some years until I was “sick and tired” of acorns. However, somehow they got into our neighbors lovely home two houses down while they were enjoying a Florida vacation and did over $50,000 damage. Sorry another story. Bottom line we luckily lived with the “pests” without any major issues. Like I mentioned if you have oaks and acorns good luck. Because of our past experience, one of the first thing we did here was get rid of the small oak tree that was planted In the front yard by the Developer.

I can tell you that my wife wouldn’t be happy about removing her two beautiful palms and “happy wife - happy life”! Yet to see a squirrel here at our home.