Last Updated on: 27th February 2024, 09:04 pm
Feeding squirrels is a favorite pastime for many homeowners who have gardens on their property.
It’s common to find squirrels foraging for treats in trees and bird feeders in your yard. However, their presence can attract rats looking to take advantage of the food debris they leave behind.
To feed squirrels in your garden without drawing in rats, you need to put the food in a container that squirrels can get into but rats can’t.
Hang the feeder from a branch or pole to reduce the chances of rats accessing it. Ensure that it’s a considerable distance from your home.
While feeding squirrels can be an enjoyable hobby, taking precautions to avoid attracting rats to your property is essential.
Is It A Good Idea To Feed Squirrels?
Whether feeding squirrels is a good idea depends on who you ask.
Some people don’t see anything wrong with feeding squirrels. Many people consider it a means to help wildlife, particularly during the brutal winter when food resources are scarce.
People who feed squirrels do it for its sheer entertainment value beyond the satisfaction of doing something nice for a fellow living creature. These cute rodents can be fun to watch.
Folks against feeding squirrels often argue that it interferes with the creatures’ instinct to fend for themselves.
Feeding squirrels causes them to become tame around humans and may potentially lower their inhibition around predators. They also contend that squirrels are similar to rats. If allowed free reign into people’s gardens, they will eventually become a menace to the property.
The decision to feed squirrels is a personal one. As long as you’re not interfering with your neighbors’ lives or property, there’s no reason you shouldn’t feed squirrels in your garden if you wish to.
Does Feeding Squirrels Attract Rats?
Feeding squirrels in your garden opens up your property to rat infestations.
Squirrels aren’t tidy eaters, so they tend to drop a lot of food scraps as they eat. This will attract rats and mice looking to clear up the leftovers.
Similarly, squirrels (just like rats) aren’t picky eaters. They enjoy the same foods as rats, including nuts, fruits, and vegetables. So, leaving foodstuffs for squirrels in your garden will likely attract any opportunist rats lurking in the vicinity.
How To Feed Squirrels Without Attracting Rats
Feeding squirrels without attracting rats is easier said than done.
Remember, when squirrels feed in your garden, they’ll inevitably drop pieces of food on the ground. This lures hungry rats in the area to come and feed there.
Nevertheless, there are ways to reduce the chances of attracting rats to your property when feeding squirrels. These include:
Make Your Garden Less Appealing For Rats
To deter rats from entering your garden, make the environment unattractive.
Ways to make your garden less appealing to rats include:
Remove Food Sources
Rats will devour everything they can find in their surrounding habitat, including nuts, seeds, cereals, pet food, and even compost wastes.
For this reason, removing any possible food sources in your yard is the best way to deter rats from congregating there.
Clear up any food trash in your yard and keep your pet food in a place where rats cannot get to it. Also, ensure all garbage cans on your property are adequately secured to keep rats out of your food waste.
Seal Off Potential Entry Points
According to Neglected Tropical Diseases, rats are likelier to enter a property with structural defects. If your yard’s perimeter has cracks and holes, the chances of rats entering your garden increase drastically.
So, check the perimeter of your garden for any holes and seal them off using caulk to keep rats out.
Declutter Your Shed
Rats hide under garden sheds since these areas rarely experience much human activity. It can become dirty and cluttered if you barely use your shed, offering the perfect conditions for rats to thrive.
So, you need to clean your shed to remove clutter and debris. Organize it tidily so there are fewer potential nesting areas for rats.
Repair Leaking Pipes
Faulty plumbing and damaged water pipes might attract rats to your house because they provide a consistent water source.
Repairing your garden’s worn-out and faulty pipes will make them more resistant to rodent attacks and cut off their water supply.
If you have pets, such as dogs or cats, remember to keep their water dishes away from them at night. This will deprive rats of an alternative water supply, driving them to seek it elsewhere.
Trim Overgrown Bushes and Hedges
Trees and shrubs appeal to rats because they provide safe havens from predators.
Rats establish nests on the tops of trees and within bushes. Furthermore, tree overgrowth over your roof allows access to your home’s roof or attic.
To avoid this, keep the trees and shrubs in your yard trimmed regularly.
Special Feeder
To attract squirrels to your garden, get the right kind of feeder. Specialty feeders in the market allow squirrels to access food while preventing rats from doing the same.
They come in various shapes and designs based on their usage and installation methods. Hanging feeders suspended from a platform are ideal since they can be hung from a high branch that rats can’t reach. Since squirrels are prolific climbers and love to dangle from hanging platforms, they will enjoy feeding on a hanging feeder.
Alternatively, you can opt for a mounted feeder on a tree trunk. This feeder allows you to monitor what the squirrel is doing more easily.
Nevertheless, ensure the feeder is mounted high above the ground so rats can’t access it. According to the University of Nebraska, rats can jump up to 36 inches from a vertical surface. Ensure your squirrel feeders are at least 10 feet from the ground.
Keep The Feeder Far Away From Your Home
Mounting or hanging your squirrel feeder close to your home increases the chances of rats winding their way into your home. This is the very thing you want to avoid.
For this reason, keep the feeder away from your house and any other building structures on your property, including sheds and garages.
Clear Up Food Scraps From the Ground
As mentioned, squirrels are messy eaters that drop food on the ground as they eat. This can attract hungry rats eager to take advantage of food scraps.
To ensure this doesn’t happen, always clear up any food crumbs from the ground once the squirrels have finished eating and left.
Setting up a mat under the feeder provides an easy way to keep the area under your feeder tidy. In doing so, you’ll only need to clean up the mat in the evening before you retire since rats will likely come out in search of food at night.
What Kind Of Food Do Squirrels Eat?
Squirrels aren’t fussy, but you should still provide them with healthy food. A squirrel’s diet should include nuts, fruits, vegetables, and seeds.
Some of the best food for squirrels include:
- Butternut
- Hazelnut
- Watermelons
- Strawberries
- Peaches
- Cranberries
- Applies
Do Squirrel Feeders Attract Rats?
A feeder in your garden will likely attract rats since squirrels drop bits of food. However, you can feed squirrels in your garden without attracting rats by setting the feeder in a raised location.
Combine that with keeping your environment unappealing to rats and clearing any bits of food from the ground after the squirrels have finished eating.
Will Squirrels Keep Rats Away?
Squirrels aren’t predatory against rats, so having squirrels in your garden won’t deter rats from entering your property. They will peacefully coexist, sometimes eating from a feeder at the same time without regard for each other.
The best way to keep rats away while feeding squirrels is by keeping your property clean and removing potential attractants, such as food waste, water sources, and nesting grounds.
