Help, my bird feeders have been taken over by squirrels. How can I keep them out?

One feeder is standing on a pole and up they climb to get to the feeder. Have already tried WD-40 and vaseline on the pole. Didn't work. The other one is hanging from a branch in a tree and they climb the tree, walk on the branch and down the feeder to eat. Bird seed is costly and they are driving me nuts.


Thanks in advance.Help, my bird feeders have been taken over by squirrels. How can I keep them out?
put red pepper into the bird feeder onto the seed


the birds actually like the pepper taste and the squirrels hate it.


there is a product called squirrel-off..... all it is - red peppers crushed.


don't get it in your eyes.Help, my bird feeders have been taken over by squirrels. How can I keep them out?
You can purchase a metal baffle and attach it high enough from the ground so that they can not jump over it. Also have the feeder far enough away from a tree or some other thing that they can jump from.
Ah, one of the eternal frustrations of gardening. All I can tell you is that there are more than a few squirrel-busting devices available at most garden and feed stores; some work better than others.





Personally I prefer to just shoot the little vermin, but most people are nicer than that.
my cousin used to play drums and he broke a cymbal at a gig (I have no idea how he managed that), my grandfather used it over top of his bird feeder.





It was a bit larger than the top of the bird feeder and it was high enough up the bird feeder tether that the cymbal wasn't directly on top of the feeder but it was low enough so that it kept the squirrels off of the bird feeder, it was also wide enough that when the squirrel went to the edge of the cymbal to try to get to the seeds, he'd fall off.





The downside of this was the squirrels then worked out another way to get at the bird seed. They would leap at the feeder and try to catch on it and swing until they spilled the birdseed on the ground. They would have been able to eat the seed too if the doves didn't run them off. That's the only time I've ever seen 3 birds puff their bodies out, spread their wings and walk menacingly towards a mammal. It was really quite amusing.





anyway, Pop got tired of fighting the squirrels and bought a squirrel trapeze and put it in another part of the yard. The squirrels starting playing on that and eating the suet he left for them there and they left the bird feeder alone.
shoot them or google it
make it as an obstical course and enjoy the entertainment as the try to finish it.... then there is the semi automatic paint ball gun which can be a lot of fun and colorful
Get a cat.


Oh wait it would attack the birds.