scootsk
Long Island, NY
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Well we picked up the trailer from the campground last week. While we were cleaning we kept finding strange seeds. DW open a drawer and she finds a pine cone completely shredded. It looked like an eaten cob of corn. I pulled all the drawers out and this is what we found.
These pictures are of the base of the bedroom furniture. The pipes you see are the pipes run for the washer and dryer in the front of the FW. I hard to take apart a carpeted cover to get all these pine cones out.
The next day as I was trying to figure out where the critter got in, I found another "store" of pine cones. The electrical center (circuit breakers, 12 v fuses) was filled to the brim! Sorry no pics, I was too nervous (fire) and furious to get the camera. I immediately unplugged the FW and proceeded to clean out the debris. I ended up with four bags of pine cones and half a 15 gallon shop vac of broken pieces of pine cones.
I have a red squirrel. He was seen in my yard. They are not native to my area. I haven't seen him since. I don't know if he is still in the FW. We just returned from Va. Didn't see him he whole trip. I set up a rat trap in the area where I think he got in and a squirrel trap near the access to the washer/dryer plumbing. Nothing.
Any suggestions to get rid of this critter would be appreciated.
* This post was
edited 04/15/12 11:02am by an administrator/moderator *
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rockhillmanor
On the Road
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Joined: 12/06/2003
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Check your wires on the FW! Pine cones where not the only thing they were chewing on! I left my SUV in storage for just 2 weeks and they got the wires under the hood.
And this little bugbutt cost me over $400.00 dollars to find out he stored his corn in my generator. 
This is all the corn the repair guy pulled out of the inside of the gen.
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us".
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Cool Canuck
Winnipeg, MB, Canada
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I found, literally, a bushel basket of pine cones in the underbelly of our 5th. In my case it was chipmunks. Moved the trailer and sealed up the underneath. No more problems. Red squirrels on the other hand are tenacious and difficult to discourage. They tend to do damage to gain entry. Small animal traps are effective. Disposal at your discretion. I've been told, they need to be moved in excess of 5 miles if you're into catch and release.
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4huskers
Texas
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What about mothballs; I hear they work for mice.
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Admiral
Upstate Ohio
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A rat trap with peanut butter is only a few bucks and worth a try. Make sure you do a good gap inspection on the belly and seal it with steel wool or aluminum over the holes
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scootsk
Long Island, NY
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According to the pros, mothballs will not work after the squirrel establishes its nest. I've had a rat trap set up for over a week and good helping of peanut butter, I have this set up near the area I belive the squirrel is gaining access. I also have a squirrel trap set up in the cargo area, where I believe the squirrel gained access to the area under the furniture.
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ReneeG
Meridian, Idaho
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Wow - what a productive little fella! The first year we got our fifth wheel we camped in West Yellowstone, MT, at Baker's Hole, a FS CG. During the first night, our Lab jumped up and ran to the vent under the fridge and starting going crazy. Well, we thought she was imaging things. The next two nights, a motion light at our steps kept coming on and it wasn't our Lab this time. The fourth morning, early, we were awakened suddenly by the loud chatter of a squirrel or chipmunk that sounded like it was actually inside! We crawled under our rig and couldn't find anything or anywhere that a critter could squeeze into. So we stopped worrying. Then we left and went to Ennis, MT and there while extending our slide, we found a fairly good sized mushroom crammed into a spot - the critter's cache! So, when we got home, DH crawled around under the unit and using expanding foam, sprayed every little spot, including that one, he could find AND he mounted a fine metal screen, like for a screen door, behind the wooden slatted vent under the fridge. We went back to the same spot at West Yellowstone and not a single critter could get in. Moral of the story is if they can find a crack to get into, they will get in, as attested to by your photos. Oh yes, we used steel wool in spots along with the foam.
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DianneOK
Donnelly, ID
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I would use a Havahart trap. Bait it with the door secured open for a few days to get him used to the trap. Then set it and you should have him. I would eliminate it from the gene pool in one way or another.....
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down home
south
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Could get a dog but not mine. He shares his food with squirrels and any hungry critter that comes out of the woods, except the opossum. I have to empty his bowl and put fresh food in when they visit or he won't eat.
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scootsk
Long Island, NY
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DianneOK wrote:I would use a Havahart trap. Bait it with the door secured open for a few days to get him used to the trap. Then set it and you should have him. I would eliminate it from the gene pool in one way or another.....
I've had one set up for about two weeks, with a tasty morsel of oatmeal and peanut butter,no luck.
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