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How Far To Relocate A Squirrel
When you want to relocate a squirrel, it’s important to consider its behavior and where it lives. Gray squirrels are found in deciduous, mixed, and coniferous forests. A good way to relocate a squirrel is to spray it with color spray before releasing it. It can swim and will return to the same area. If the squirrel is released near water, it should swim back to its nest.
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Relocating a Squirrel?
Relocating a squirrel is possible only if it’s far from its previous home. It can travel up to 15 miles from its new home. Ideally, the relocation will be within 3 miles of its current location. It’s best to release the squirrel to its natural habitat as quickly as possible. Then, the relocated squirrel will return home to its old place. Although this isn’t always feasible, it’s still a better option than releasing it on its own.
Once relocated, you’ll have to release it several miles away. The ideal distance is three or four miles away. This will prevent the squirrel from returning to its original location and causing further harm. Most of the time, relocated squirrels survive, but the distance of release is crucial to make sure they don’t escape and find their way back to your property. A study conducted in 2004 found that 97 percent of the relocated squirrels died.
The distance between where you want to relocate the squirrel and where you want it to go is essential. You want to ensure that the distance is safe for the animal, so it doesn’t get hurt. However, it is important to know where to release the squirrel if you are unsure of its release distance. For example, zigzagging isn’t much better than a straight line. You’ll also need to determine the time of day when the best time to drop off the squirrel will be.
Remember to stay away from the squirrel’s nest. They may have already fledged, but if you don’t know the exact date, you may have to wait until the babies have grown up and left their nest. It’s always a good idea to relocate the squirrel after it has left the nest. But you must follow all safety guidelines, or you’ll risk being scratched or bitten, and you may even end up killing the animal.
In some cases, it is possible to relocate a squirrel after you’ve released it. You can either drive it to another location or release it. Regardless of its location, the relocation process can be a difficult one. If the relocation is successful, the animal will be happy and remain in its new home. This will reduce the chances of a return. So, if you want to relocate a squirrel, choose a location where it can safely be reintroduced.
Read More: How to Get Rid Thirteen Lined Ground Squirrel
Squirrels will not return to their habitat if they have been displaced. You should avoid moving the squirrel too far away from the nest to avoid it from relocating. It will likely return to its original location once it regains its freedom. If the squirrel does not feel comfortable with the relocation, he may move to the nearest tree in the area that you’ve relocated.
In some cases, the relocation process is too risky. Squirrels will not return home if they’re moved too far from their original habitat. A successful relocation should be at least three miles away from the squirrel’s current location. If you’re relocating a squirrel from its current location, it is essential to provide supplemental food and a nest box for them to have a chance to survive.
Squirrels are highly intelligent animals that remember their previous home. While you may be able to relocate a squirrel within three miles of its original location, you should not release it too far from its home. The more distance the squirrel travels from its new location, the less likely it will come back. So, the safer the area, the better. But how far should you move a squirrel?
Jessica Watson is a PHD holder from the University of Washington. She studied behavior and interaction between squirrels and has presented her research in several wildlife conferences including TWS Annual Conference in Winnipeg.
Hi Jessica,
I am desperate to get (grey) squirrels out of my house, their persistence and lack of fright is driving me mad. To paint a picture, I live in a terraced 3 storey town house in the UK meaning neighbours adjoin my house both sides. Our houses are surrounded by woodland and acres of country park, I cant understand why wild animals want to invade our homes. I have been up on the roof in 2020 by means of scaffold platforms @ cost £1000. It is nigh on impossible and unsafe to climb onto my roof using ladders – which is half of the ongoing problem.
While I was on holiday in February 2019, I fear a pregnant grey squirrel got into the loft space and had kits, the timing tallies with squirrel breeding season in the UK. I’ve done everything physically possible to reinforce my roof/eaves/gables/gutter lines, I even barricaded the loft from the inside but these pesky critters keep chewing their back in. During their chewing campaign they have slipped into the cavity walls between me and my neighbours and do circuits around my house. At night the banging and crashing is unbearable. They enter my home at dusk and leave when they hear the early train approaching at 4.20am. It is worse during kit season with mothers coming and going all the time. I read once they have entered a home and built a nest the scent will keep encouraging more and more squirrels to come, it seems to be a never ending cycle. While I was working on the roof, I turfed out a big nest from one corner and what appeared to be a communal lavatory on the opposite side. I cleaned the areas with bleach and disinfectant and filled up voids with barbed wire to make it truly hostile – but they’re back somehow nestling between the barbs. At dusk the critter moves around in the wall cavity right behind my TV, I bang chairs and make loud clapping sounds but it isn’t phased. It moves around at will. I used to leave a radio talk show and a lamp on in the loft overnight, it troubled them for a short while they soon got used to it. Ive tried deterrent scents, birds made of plastic carrier bags flapping about on sticks, outdoor lights but always they get used to these new things and slip down into the wall cavity from somewhere up there on the roof. The problem is if they get into next doors lofts which is easy as they haven’t barricaded as I have they can slip into the wall cavities from there, it really is a losing battle. Recently Ive been playing a sonic video I found on YouTube, it does seem to deter them but if it cuts out in the night which it often does, theyre straight back in, they must lay in wait for the noise to stop. Plus It isn’t ideal, it gives me a bad headache and ringing in my ears all day, it cant be healthy over a long term. I bought a young cat last year, I though her presence indoors would deter them but it hasn’t made any difference. The cat chases noises inside the walls and sometimes under floorboards all over the house for hors but still they wont move on. I have not slept a whole night since before my holiday in 2019, I am woken at 4.20 every morning, I long for a nights sleep. I find this all so curious, if I go into the woods and say Boo! to a squirrel it scampers off in fright. Why can I not move these pests out of my house? Is there anything more I can do? Or is there something obvious I have overlooked? Pest controllers cannot help because they are in voids and cavities impossible to trap and squirrel poison is illegal here.. You are probably aware of the environmental damage grey squirrels have caused to forestry and our indigenous red squirrel, we have a law that states we must not let them go once trapped, they must be killed humanely. Meantime they are breeding so quickly I fear this cycle will never end. Do you have any suggestions at all?
Thank you.