JackieandMike Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Hi, we are going to be buying an eglu and 2 or 3 chickens but we have a squirrel who lives in a tree at the bottom of our garden and treats the garden as his territory, by which I mean he is often to be seen chasing another squirrel off. He eats the bird seed and fat balls if he can get his hands on them and is very bold around the place. I am now wondering if he will try and get the eggs and if he will eat the chickens food. The eglu will be situated out of immediate sight of the main rooms but we intend to let the chickens have the run of the garden and leave the eglu and run open during the day. Any tips on mixing chickens and squirrels would be most welcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pollenbird Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Hello, We have a squirrel in our garden too. The chickens and squirrel on the odd occasion they come face to face, look at eachother for a few seconds and then go their separate ways. Our squirrel is nowhere near as territorial as yours sounds though. We also haven't had any issues with the squirrel trying to steal the chicken's food, now the moorhen on the other hand... Good luck and I'm sure someone more knowledgable will be along soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Faye&Ant Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Hi, We have a squirrel in our garden too and they just tend to ignore each other. I dont think you will have a problem Faye x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tessa the Duchess Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 We have a very cheeky squirrel in our garden, he clings to a branch with his feet and eats from the peanut feeder upsidedown He does investigate the empty porridge dish which I leave on the ground, but I have never seen him try and steal the pellets. We do have a robin who goes into the Eglu run and eats the pellets on the ground. The chickens ignore him:wink: Tessa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 We have squirrels in our garden and I haven't spotted any probs yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
muzzie Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 We have squirrels as well but they haven't been in the yard since the chickens went out yesterday. I imagine it won't be long before they are back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eyren Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 My bantams (especially the wyandotte) occasionally bok-bok when they see the squirrel who raids the bird feeder - I think they think he's a fluffy-tailed rat! Apparently squirrels will eat birds' eggs, but I don't think they would venture into an eglu - chickens will attack small rodents Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruisa Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 There are squirrels in our garden most days, & I have a squirrel feeder just a few metres away from my Eglu. The first time a squirrel seen the Eglu it stood there & flashed its tail around for a while, but since then it just ignores the hens & they ignore it. I can't imagine it venturing into the Eglu & I'm not sure if it would be tempted by the Layers Pellets or corn that I feed my hens on. I even put some corn on the bird table sometimes & the squirrel isn't interested in it at all. It much prefers the Cobnuts that I pop in its feeder. Mind you, I can only comment on the Red variety, as up here in Cockermouth we don't have any of the nasty Greys (yet). If we see any Greys they are reported & hopefully disposed of. ~cruisa~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eyren Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 Lucky you - red squirrels are very cute! I saw one (briefly) whilst we were on holiday in Scotland Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
superjules Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 We get black squirrels round here, which are mutant reds I think. They're smaller than the grey ones anyway. We don't get very many squirrels in the garden, but when we do the girls go into "intruder alert" mode and tell everyone all about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted March 27, 2008 Share Posted March 27, 2008 We have a very cheeky squirrel in our garden, he clings to a branch with his feet and eats from the peanut feeder upsidedown Snap . No conflict in our garden either - they ignore each other (and the squirrel tends to stay in the trees so they don't even seem to notice each other). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola T Posted July 19, 2021 Share Posted July 19, 2021 Actually found a squirrel IN the Cube today when I was collecting the eggs. He only ran out after I banged it loudly and then boy did he run and then out through the larger top holes in the walk in run. Thankfully my eggs were intact. The chickens looked particularly unperturbed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
