Squirrels

During late summer squirrels may be seen rolling on the ground, biting themselves, and jumping up and down. This is usually due to skin irritations from bot fly larvae, which are parasites that appear as bumps on the skin, often in places where the squirrel cannot scratch. The parasite is located only in the skin and does not affect edibility of the meat in harvested squirrels.

Squirrels can cause problems by chewing on plants, tree bark and ornamentals as well as plastic items, like electrical wiring insulation or even wood siding on houses and out-buildings. It is often impossible or impractical to eliminate the source of their chewing. Potted plants can often be moved out of reach. PVC pipes and electrical wires can sometimes be covered with a insulation material that is soft and, therefore, less attractive to chew.

Taste repellents are designed to stop chewing. They seem to work in direct proportion to the animal's desire to chew on the object. In other words, if they want it badly enough, no repellent will stop them. Taste repellents will not work on large areas, are impractical for inaccessible things like tall trees and cannot be used on objects that you intend to eat.

Live Trapping is another option. This should be done by calling a licensed, permitted trapper to trap, remove & relocate the nuisance animal.