How to Stop Squirrels From Eating Bird Seed
- 1). Give the squirrels other food to eat. When you feed the birds by placing seeds in a bird feeder, offer the neighborhood squirrels something else to eat, such as ears of corn. Place the squirrel food in your yard and make sure it's easily accessible for the squirrels. This will help distract them from the bird seed.
- 2). Hang your bird feeder where it's more difficult for squirrels to get to. Make sure it's as far away from a tree as possible. The best place to hang it is somewhere that the squirrels can only get to by climbing down, such as from your porch away from any posts or walls.
- 3). Buy a domed bird feeder. The domed bird feeder will be more difficult for the squirrels to get into because it's very difficult to climb on.
- 4). Have multiple bird feeders for each type of seed you put out for the birds. Some birds prefer one type of seed. They will dig through mixed bird seed until they find the seed they like. For example, Blue Jays like sunflower seeds. When a Blue Jay lands on your bird feeder, he will search for the sunflower seeds and drop the rest of the seeds to the ground. They can then be gathered by squirrels and other animals. By placing only one type of seed in each feeder, you help prevent seeds from being dropped to the ground.
- 5). Use seeds that squirrels don't commonly like. Some examples include thistle seed and safflower seed. This isn't a guaranteed method because some squirrels may still go after these seeds. However, generally speaking, squirrels don't prefer them.
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