OT--On a lighter note
 

As most of you know, I have a seemingly never-ending series of homeowner disasters besetting my modest townhouse. The latest: squirrels in the attic. This started about three weeks ago. I sighed, wondering how much THIS was gonna cost me, and pulled up Angie's List. I found a company that sounded pretty good and called them.

The guy came out the next day and went up in my attic. He came down with a photo of a football-sized hole the critters had chewed to get into the attic. He told me I was fortunate to have noticed before they did too much damage--eventually the bill could have run up to $15k to repair the damage. As it is, they could take care of the whole problem for $1500, which included installing a one-way door so the squirrels could get out but not come back in, repairing the hole, and installing gutter guards all around the house. Included a lifetime warranty. Plus the guy who came out for the estimate was very nice and fascinating--he's an environmental biologist who specializes in bats and he told me all kinds of interesting stuff.

Now, I've had SO many disasters that $1500 for a guaranteed fix sounded like an actual BARGAIN (oh, and Angie's List customers get a five percent coupon). So I sign the contract and pay my deposit. The guys came out and installed the one-way door and the gutter guards, and they will be back in a few days to seal up the hole and take the door (once they verify the critters are completely gone).

And it's been blessedly silent, until today (they get active when it is cold outside). I didn't hear them in the attic, but could hear them running across the roof. (My neighbors said the day the guys were out to install the one-way door they saw 4-5 squirrels scurrying around the roof in apparent dismay as they tried to figure out who locked the damn DOOR.) Suddenly I hear this loud THUD right outside the window of my office, where I was working. I opened the blinds and there were two squirrels trapped on the iron grate outside the window. By the time I went and got my camera, one of them had figured out a way up or down, but one was getting increasingly stressed out about how to deal with this situation.

Here's what happened:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrIFAMMXQE0

As you can see, the critter had a bit of a problem with ACCEPTANCE of his situation, but he eventually did what we all have to do. Have faith, take a deep breath, and JUMP. :)

LC - that tail tells the whole story.

Awesome...thanks for the wildlife tour!

(We had the squirrel problem in a fixer upper we bought once...fortunately we also had a large cat who was, well, dumb as a rock (he was once lost for five days and I finally found him less than half a mile from home, which is how he became an indoor only kitty) but he had some impressive exterminator skills. I let him in the attic and he terrorized them all into moving out in two days. Good kitty...it may have been the only time in 25 years of pet ownership that one of them actually saved us money!)

Lovely dramatization of someone with a solution they don't like.

Yep, squirrel, I get it.

Haha that is an awesome video! I have no affection for squirrels but felt bad for the little guy. And in the end he did what needed doing and life got better. :)

Lexie, I laughed and laughed! I've seen that tail-shaking thing so many times from the horde of squirrels here, very familiar w/that sign of stress.

But what I really want to know is how did he cling to the glass of the window? I mean, at some points he clearly seems to be just walking right up the glass a la Batman, not hanging onto the frame or any other protrusion!! If my squirrels ever develop that ability, I am throwing in the towel and moving someplace that has no rodents, indigenous OR imported (is there such a place?).

Just this AM I watched a squirrel creep out the horizontal pole holding my suet feeder and hang down off the pole. He found himself unable to crawl down the too-thin-to-climb-but-too-thick-to-flex wire to reach the feeder but saw that he WAS able to hang by his back feet and reach the chain attaching the feeder to the wire hanger. He then hauled the suet up, hand over hand, using the chain.

About the time he got it to his face, I screamed at him "put it back, you little $#%@^!!" and he dropped the chain and launched off the pole w/a leap much like the one in your video. I just went out and removed the chain and lengthened the wire--the battle continues.

Hahahaha....! That was epic, Lex, thank you for sharing!!

Nah, he's not Spider-Squirrel--there is actually a screen out there that he's climbing up--it just doesn't really show up in the video.

I sent a link to the video to the Critter Control company I hired--thought they would get a kick out of it. I got a reply this morning from one of their schedulers, who loved it--she said the most gratifying moment was when he threw in the towel and gave up.

Oh, and the part that cracked me up the most, personally, was the head whipping back and forth right before he takes the plunge. Just checking, I guess, to make sure he wasn't missing some other way out of it, or maybe a check for lurking predators before taking the Leap of Faith.

Well thank the good lord for THIS! Whew, squirrels are NOT developing super powers...

That is great!

As long as they didn't install the one way door backwards you should be in good shape. : )

I squealed!

So funny, and, as you say, an apt metaphor.

P.S. I'm pretty sure I make some of those tail movements myself, for example when I'm on a higher diving board than I'd intended. :) Thanks for sharing.

Spider squirrel
Spider Squirrel
He'll get inside- so keep it real

Through the roof
Through the door
It really doesn't matter..
Anymore

To him,
he'll hide up inside your roof space
Being posted is no big disgrace
Look out for spider squirrel.

Phoenix, that is a SCREAM! OMG, way too funny...

HP and all of you, this is deadly serious- S/S has a secret identity. During the day, he goes about his normal life- disguised as Tupperware consultant..shhhh.

Phoenix......OMG! I WONDERED where that Tupperware, in the attic, came from!!!!!

I wondered where Tupperware salespeople came from!!

Be careful, dear squirrelites- your phone may ring. A high pitched, helium gas sounding voice will ask you...'have you checked the Tupperware?'

The animal that fills that ecological niche in Australia is the possum. I was amazed at the similarity in behaviour and nuisance factor. Nature abhors a vacuum and there was obviously a vacuum in your attic Lexie.

Stop!!! I have guests in my house who are still asleep and I'm going to start laughing out loud and wake them all up! :lmao