Chipmunk Control
A Few Tips On Effective Chipmunk Control
Chipmunk control is, in a way, like herding cats. It's not impossible, but can be very difficult, and often seemingly hardly worth the effort. For most people, one or two chipmunks scampering around the yard is a welcome sight. They are cuter than the dickens, and entertaining to watch. So why, people may ask, would you ever want to try to control the critters.
There are a couple of good reasons why you might want to put a chipmunk control program in place. If one, two, or three chipmunks have found your property to be heaven on earth, it may not be long before the relatives move in. Second, as cute as they are, they can be quite destructive. So, if you have a large number of chipmunks who are being destructive, pests in other words, you have a situation you'll need to get under control.
There are a number of approaches you can try. Finding out what they like to eat (quite a lot of different things actually), and eliminating those items from your property, might discourage the animals from sticking around. If you just have a few chipmunks, and not an infestation, be aware that they eat insects, snails, slugs and mice. If the chipmunks are not into things you don't want them to be eating you might be content to let them be. But they also are fond of raiding the bird feeder, they will eat bird's eggs and even small birds, plus fruits, vegetables, and flower bulbs. They occasionally chew on electrical wiring insulation, and in that respect can create hazardous situations.
If you have vegetable and flower gardens, and/or fruit trees, removing what they like to eat is not an option. Then you'll want to make your property an unpleasant place for them to live. Repellent sprays can be effective here, although with chipmunks nothing is 100% guaranteed to be effective. You can spray prized plants and trees so that they smell and taste bad to the chipmunk. Chipmunks, unlike rats or mice, are finicky about what they eat, and won't bother with anything that is unpleasant. Of course if you have more than a small backyard it may not be practical to spray everything, and chances are you'll have to repeat the spraying program from time to time.
If taking away food sources or making the environment unpleasant are not practical chipmunk control options, then you'll have to resort to more drastic action. If you go on a chipmunk killing spree, you can be certain that every young kid in the neighborhood will positively hate you (and a few of their parents as well). Of course if you hire a couple of the young kids to do the job, they make look at it differently. Also, while authorities often condone the killing of pests, it's always best to check first, especially if your choice of weapons is a .22 caliber rifle, which could be illegal in some areas. If you resort to poisons, there are precautions which must be taken to protect pets and children. Still you may have to do this if you feel you're being overrun with the critters. A more humane solution is of course live trapping, where you can trap the chipmunks, and take them a few miles away. This will probably work for you, the chipmunks won't be upset for long, and your neighbors will approve.
You plan of attack for chipmunk control can take several paths, and it won't hurt to try to find out what has worked for others in you locale, to avoid wasting time on ineffective methods.