Catching a squirrel

sandhills · February 18, 2011, 03:46:59 AM

I don't know if this should be posted as an outdoor topic or indoor topic but think it's rather comical either way. Yesterday i get a call from my aunt and it seems one of her dear friends had a squirrel fall down her chimeny and was trapped in her fireplace and can I help with removal, ok easy enough I think to myself, ha ha ha. My wife and I head up there, just took a heavy blanket to throw over it and carry it outside, well the police had already been there and missed catching it with a fish net so it had made it up into the ducts behind the fireplace. I tried to find a live catch trap that would fit inside the fireplace but no one had one so on to day 2. Go to bomgaars this morning $42 later got a squirrel trap (can't hurt the poor thing you know :

) and go to place it but she's not home. Come back later and she's there, I knew she had a black eye from a fall a few days earlier but didn't know she also broke a rib in the same fall (she's in her eighties by the way) so here I am dismantilling her fireplace with her laying on the floor banging on the tin work with a curtain rod telling it to "come out, come out" it took a long time to convince her to get off the floor and out of the way, I really wasn't sure where he was going to come out of but knew the state of mind he was in and really didn't care to see him tare skid marks over her face when he left. I tore the fireplace down just shy of taking the bricks out of the wall and still hadn't got to him. I had planned on just setting the trap and didn't have any tools with me so I didn't get much accomplished other than irritating the heck out of the squirrel. Went back tonight with the wife and girls, hoping they could occupy her long enough to keep her out of harms way and keep her from getting on the floor again and told my wife I didn't care if it cost me 50 stitches, if I can get a hold of him I'm not letting go till he's at least 50' out the door. When I looked under the fireplace I could see everything but his head, no lie ask my wife, at that exact same moment my cell phone in my pocket started vibrating, scared me plumb to death, I didn't have my welding gloves on yet but had already started reaching anyway cause I saw my chance :D. Well that's it for day 2, he went flying back up into the duct so I set the trap, see how tomorrow goes, my little pellet gun would have went a long ways tonight.

Norm · February 18, 2011, 08:21:55 AM

If you'd asked yesterday I'd of made this so much easier....just light the fireplace up.

Problem solved. digin_2 :D

Autocar · February 18, 2011, 08:33:18 AM

:D :D :D

ely · February 18, 2011, 08:41:25 AM

its all about the food here norm. ;D

Woodwalker · February 18, 2011, 08:57:21 AM

I have a Jack Russell that would love to get in on this act :D

sandhills · February 18, 2011, 11:48:14 AM

Quote from: Norm on February 18, 2011, 08:21:55 AM
If you'd asked yesterday I'd of made this so much easier....just light the fireplace up.

Problem solved. digin_2 :D

Norm, that was my first thought, but the little old lady didn't want it hurt, and seriously thought this thing was gonna walk out of the fireplace, look at the open patio door and just walk outside. I couldn't convince her he was one pithed off unit and was gonna come out of there 100mph no matter what she said to it, then we'd be chasing it around her house. The trap actually worked and he was successfully caught and disposed of today 8) That thing cost me about 5 hours and several trips to town :-\ did get a big loaf of banana bread out of the deal though

Oh yeah, one of my neighbors had the idea (not knowing he wasn't actually in the fireplace) just drop a bowling ball down the chimeney. He couldn't stop laughing when I told him why I needed the trap.

ErikC · February 18, 2011, 11:56:35 AM

It's just one adventure after another, right sandhills

sandhills · February 18, 2011, 08:29:56 PM

Story of my life Erik, keeps things entertaining though

sprucebunny · February 18, 2011, 08:33:59 PM

I like the bowling ball :D :D That cracked me up !!!

Much as I like squirrels, once they get indoors, the gloves come off. Just ask the one that stood on my laundry pile and yelled at me ;D

Norm · February 19, 2011, 07:52:10 AM

You must have friends just like mine to think up the bowling ball. :D

Will we be seeing a thread on the food board about squirrel for supper. ;)

semologger · February 19, 2011, 11:43:40 AM

I never have had squirrel Pancakes.

sandhills · February 19, 2011, 04:06:04 PM

Quote from: semologger on February 19, 2011, 11:43:40 AM
I never have had squirrel Pancakes.

:D :D :D
Sorry guys no thread on cooking squirrel, flattened or otherwise ;), she wanted to see him released so I had to do it. Funny thing was she told me take him clear back in the alley and point him away from the house, he came out of that trap like a rocket sled on rails, did a 180, under her fence, and right up the tree beside her house :D :D I really couldn't help but laugh. By the way she has a few really nice black walnut trees in her yard ;).

SwampDonkey · February 19, 2011, 04:27:34 PM

Rat trap with peanut butter and a sherbet on top. End of that foolishness.

beenthere · February 19, 2011, 07:54:58 PM

Hmmm?
Our squirrels have bushy tails. What is in that trap?

doctorb · February 19, 2011, 08:02:23 PM

Did you consider placing a length of 1/2" rope down the chimney to the flue and then starting a small fire? I think he would've survived, but I don't know which way he'd come out.

sandhills · February 20, 2011, 01:52:31 AM

Doctorb, I thought of a lot of things I could put down the chimeny that he could use to climb back out but was at the mercy of one little old lady who owned the place and really didn't know better, and that pretty much says it all. ;) The chimeny had a vent that only opened up to about 4" and she was sure he couldn't get through that, but yet he could get through an opening about 1.5" into the duct work. :

I don't care, he's gone and she's happy, life is good again ;D.

SwampDonkey · February 20, 2011, 05:17:42 AM

Red squirrel beenthere. I've caught them by rat trap and box trap as well. Have to clean up on them every so often. ;D

clww · February 22, 2011, 06:56:15 PM

How about a trip to the hardware store for an early Mothers Day gift of a chimney cap? So you don't do the same thing all over again when that squirrel has a litter and they find out what a neat place that chimney is for hide-and-seek. ;)

isawlogs · February 22, 2011, 07:03:18 PM

Sheeesh, don't tell him that , we may be able to get a sequal out of this for next fall. !!!! :D

CX3 · February 22, 2011, 09:57:52 PM

I couldnt help but laugh. I would like to see how long you hung on to that squirrel when he was chewing your fingers off like hotdogs :D 50 feet would have been a long stinking ways :D :D

sandhills · February 23, 2011, 12:29:14 AM

Quote from: CX3 on February 22, 2011, 09:57:52 PM
I couldnt help but laugh. I would like to see how long you hung on to that squirrel when he was chewing your fingers off like hotdogs :D 50 feet would have been a long stinking ways :D :D

Oh no, I wasn't gonna be running with him, he was gonna turn into one of those flying squirrels, all I had to do was hang on until I got it to her patio door. Trust me, by this point in time I could've done it (it very possibly could have been suffering from lack of oxygen by then though) ;D.

SwampDonkey · February 23, 2011, 06:33:45 AM

Mississippi Squirrel Revival

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K16fG1sDagU

clww · February 23, 2011, 08:51:03 AM

:D :D :D :D
Ray Stevens-Always funny!

doctorb · February 23, 2011, 09:01:52 AM

Swamp-

Could be one of your better posts! :D :D Never seen that one before. Very appropriate for this thread. Doctorb

sandhills · February 23, 2011, 11:51:26 PM

SD, I can't tell you how many times I thought of that song while I was trying to dig him out of that fireplace, thanks for posting that, I'd never seen the video. Here's a picture of the end result.