Condo Association Seeking Court Order To Stop Woman From Feeding Squirrels

[matcom]

<snip>

FORT PIERCE -- A Port St. Lucie condominium association wants a court order to bar one of its residents from feeding squirrels, according to a suit filed Thursday in St. Lucie Circuit Court.

Tanya Hiller has ignored four "cease and desist orders" from the condominium's directors dating to February 2003, the suit said.

The board of directors of the Anchorage on the St. Lucie has determined that feeding squirrels constitutes a nuisance because they can damage screens and other property, the suit said. The feeding also encourages other wild animals to come to the condos, on the St. Lucie River, the board believes.

Circuit Judge Ben Bryan, who presided over a trial involving pigs living near a Martin County golf course, has been asked to issue a court order banning squirrel feeding.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/localnews/content/auto/epaper/editions/friday/martin_stlucie_04bdaa0832d7719e00d9.html

[ewagner]

1. I can understand why

We used to feed the squirrels here but it got totally out of hand. One morning we found 26 (yep counted 'em) of the furry little thieves waiting for their morning handout. Worse yet, the practice drew a family of Red-tailed hawks to the neighborhood who had no qualms about killing and eating a squirrel while we were enjoying OUR dinner on the three-seasons porch.

Squirrels are a kick to watch but I think its best to allow them to exist without our interference.

[pansypoo53219]

7. when i was a kid

up at the family cottage, a hawk carried off a red squirrel. so cool. i always root for the predater.

[Bunny]

2. Actually, I don't have a big problem with this.

I don't want the little varmints around my house, either! They're destructive!

Plus, I have a visceral loathing for most rodent-type animals. I freak out over mice and rats, squirrels and chipmunks are not much better, in my opinion.

Off with their little heads! :evilgrin:

[Az]

3. Nature is just so messy

We should do away with it.

This sounds like a bunch of bird feeder types getting angry at the squirrel fans. There is an on going fued between birders and squirrely types. Squirrels being the ingenuitive little thieves they are can crack nearly any birdfeeder. It has gotten to the point where major attempts to create a squirrel proof feeder have been undertaken (all failed though, squirrels are just so tricky).

Count me on the squirrel team.

[fudge stripe cookays]

4. Check out Droll Yankees...

They make a birdfeeder called a Yankee Flipper.

reprehensor and I stumbled across the company video last year while we were out antiquing.

They send the video out to places like Wild Birds Unlimited (and this little mom and pop store we were in), and it is HILARIOUS!! They've added sound affects, and we had tears running down out faces!

The basic premise is that the bottom bar on the feeder is rigged, and if anything heavier than a bird lands on it, it starts spinning! The squirrels can't hang on, and it ends up flipping them off into nearby bushes.

They used to have a realplayer version on the Website. I'm not sure if it's still there, but it doesn't have the sound affects of the squirrels going "Whooooaaaaaaoaaaoaoaoa!!!!!" It's still cute though.

http://www.drollyankees.com

FSC

[Az]

5. Squirrles beat that one

They figured out that it was counter balanced. So if two squirrels hit it at the same time they are ok. Yay team squirrel!

[fudge stripe cookays]

6. Amazing! I hadn't heard this!

Smart little bastards.

I love to watch him at our backyard feeder. We've got WAY more birds than squirrels, so I like the little guy. I think it's the same one each time. We don't have a lot of trees in our boxy, new suburb.

As long as they don't eat my bulbs they can stay. Chickenwire and luck will keep them safe.

[ewagner]

9. No doubt, squirrels are smart little critters

My neighbor feeds the birds and has had a running battle with the squirrels for two years.

He' flying the white flag from his back porch now....total, unconditional surrender!

[Flaxbee]

11. Team squirrel here, too...

or, as we call them here at our mountain home, "belkas", belka being the Russian word for squirrel. Seems to fit them. We're overrun every morning, and it's like our own Cirque de Soleil out there. So many flying leaps! And swinging from trees! And chasing one another around the deck railing! Endless entertainment.

But, I like my birdies, too. This feeder supposedly is squirrel-proof (provided you don't place it too near a tree or other launching point): http://www.evasolo.dk/products-birdtable.html

[pagerbear]

8. Maybe they can keep folks from feeding pigeons in NYC

[Liberal Classic]

10. Homeowner associations

Tinpot tyrants.

[Az]

12. Here is what to do with the squirrels

Go fishing. Squirrel fishing. Its the latest craze. People like. Squirrels like it.

[noonwitch]

13. I feed a couple of stray cats in my yard, but they keep the squirrels away

I know one of my neighbors hates that I do this, but he could call animal control or the ASPCA if he doesn't like it.

I've been feeding one cat for about a year (I call her Hillary). Hillary had a baby recently, so I feed her too (Chelsea). They will only let me get so close, and I would take the baby in but I already have a cat and a dog, and can't afford another vet bill. I also don't want to expose my animals to any diseases that strays can carry.