Battle or game??

Because our squirrels seem to have figured out the bird feeder and were rapidly eating up the birdseed faster than we could keep it filled, we decided to take action. First of all, we bought a new bird feeder with a unique suspension device. When anything more than just an ounce or two puts that weight on the perch, the perch lowers. Attached to the perch is a gate which closes off all the feeding holes. Thus, a light-weight bird can enjoy a meal while a heavier bird or a squirrel will find a metal plate blocking their way. It isn't foolproof as a squirrel could hang onto the barrel of the feeder and reach down to the feeding holes. We'll see if any of them figure that out.

Then we felt sorry for the little creatures and decided on the second tactic - diversion. We got a "windmill" type feeder for the squirrels so they wouldn't even be interested in the birdseed. Corn cobs or feeding blocks can be attached at the end of each of four arms and the squirrel can spin the wheel to his favorite selection. So far they've taken the most convenient cob. We're hoping they get more creative.