How Squirrels Can Inflict Costly Damages

When it comes to nuisance wildlife, most people consider squirrels to be relatively less bothersome than raccoons, opossums and some birds. But upstate New York is home to a particularly large squirrel population, which can make squirrels in the region a little more relatively mischievous. Upstate New York is home to large populations of both red squirrels and eastern grey squirrels. Flying squirrels also exist within the state, but they do not cause as many nuisance issues as their flighteless counterparts within residential and public properties, but they do sometimes make a home for themselves within bird boxes. It is well known that squirrels can maintain a nuisance presence within residential properties, and nobody wants to find the animals in their home, but squirrels often inflict damage to home’s yards that can be costly for homeowners and businesses.

Squirrels often travel across power lines in residential areas, causing power outages, and sometimes chew through a home’s electrical wiring. Squirrels in upstate New York often use power lines as a bridge for traveling onto roofs where they can access attics. In many cases, squirrels will cause some degree of destruction while making a proper nesting area within an attic. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, squirrels have also become a problem for the Maple Syrup industry in upstate New York, as these rodents have been found chewing through plastic syrup pipelines that drain sap from maple trees. For example, Brian Ducharme of Salem has been at war with squirrels for years, as the animal’s have destroyed every piece of sap-tapping equipment on his property twice. The squirrels destroyed taps, mainlines, saddles and other expensive equipment in his 2,000-tap section. Despite shooting more than 300 squirrels in just a few months, the critters keep causing damage, and this is a common problem all over the maple-belt. Custom designed wire mesh fences and physical barriers around trees can prevent squirrels from inflicting damage to property items.

Have you ever encountered a squirrel as it was damaging your property or nesting within your garage, shed or attic?