Animals Archives – Strength Of The Small

Mosquitoes Animals Ground Squirrel Insects

Strong Winds Today

By JM PerezApril 9, 20192 min read925 views

Santa Ana winds are back with a vengeance with gusts as high as 25 mph (and could occasionally gust over 40 mph). Loose dirt and debris are flying out in all directions and not too long a large branch fell from a neighbor’s Elm Tree. The air quality is currently very unhealthy. As for my allergies, I can only pray they do not flare-up. I am hoping we do not have power outages.

It’s been so long, so much that I can’t remember the last time I saw mosquitoes until yesterday. They seem to have made a comeback. I don’t know what attracts them to my yard as I do not have standing water nor have I seen a single breeding ground. The thought of not being able to work out in the yard was so unbearable and my kids can’t stand them; so I sprayed Ortho Home Defense Backyard Mosquito and Bug around the house and they are now all gone. I am also in the process of treating the yard with Mosquito Barrier.

There are strange mushroom popping here and there and I read somewhere that mosquitoes are attracted to their smell. I will look around and get rid of every single one of them.

For the past months, we failed to capture a ground squirrel that burrowed under the garage foundation. We were helpless in front of the potential structural damages and spent money on products which didn’t work (Tomcat® Ready-to-Spray Mole and Gopher Repellent, AMDRO Gopher Gasser, Sweeney’s Poison Peanuts Bait, Squirrel Cage Trap, etc.)

This particular squirrel would spend its nights on our property and spend its days on the property across from ours. We bought AMDRO Mole & Gopher Tunnel Trap and had no success for the first two days as the squirrel just created an opening next to the device. On the third day, which was Sunday, it worked. It was such a nuisance. Good riddance. What a relief!

Now, if we could only capture the gopher which has been destroying the younger trees, everything will be awesome.

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By JM Perez

Gopher Rabbit Animals High Desert

Backyard Uninvited Guests

By JM PerezMarch 7, 20141 min read477 views

Since the rain passed more critters are coming out from their hidings.

I am not sure how the little Cottontail Rabbit got into my backyard and I was surprised to see it. I guessed it came from the neighbors, making its way through an opening between the wooden fence panels and ended up in our backyard. It was fun watching it run around in search for a way out when it realized I wasn’t going anywhere. I saw it a few minutes later on the empty property lot behind our Home.

Seeing that Rabbit explained the damages on my Pretty Woman Daylilies as well as the Siloam David Kirchhoff Daylilies in the front garden. I wrapped some chicken wire around the plants to prevent further damages.

Bunny. — *Cottontail Rabbit in the Backyard.*

My husband set a Macabee Gopher Trap yesterday after finding a couple of freshly dug holes in the backyard. Sure enough we found a trapped Pocket Gopher the following day, making it the second in less than a month.

It is impossible to completely rid the garden of pests and animals. Placing Chicken wire at the base of plants and around them help minimize damages and give the gardener some peace of mind. Though there are pests and animals repellents out there, we must never forget that a hungry animal will risk anything to feed.

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By JM Perez

Gopher Animals Gardening High Desert

DIY: Gopher Trapping

By JM PerezDecember 3, 20131 min read1.6K views

We are rejoicing today as the trap we set in place finally caught the Pocket Gopher, which has been digging holes on a daily basis around my Photinia Fraseri (Red Robin) shrubs. Last week, I covered a hole it dug at the base of one of the huge barrels in the front yard and it kept returning to the same hole. Yesterday, we finally had enough and my husband decided to set a Macabee Gopher Trap in the freshly dug hole.

Materials/Tools Needed:

Macabee Gopher Trap
Shovel, Garden Trowel
Wire chain (to secure the trap in place)
Stake (to hold, support and secure the wire chain in place)
Gloves or your bare hands
Fabric, cardboard, leaves, mulch or anything light to cover the hole.

Step by Step:

Using a shovel, open the tunnel wide enough to set the trap
Use a stake to secure the wire chain (attached to the trap) to prevent the injured Gopher from running away with the trap. Otherwise you will have to dig further to pull out the dead rodent and recover your trap.
Cover the hole with plastic, fabric, cardboard, plywood, leaves, mulch or stones (to help create the illusion that the hole has been closed from the outside).

This is the fifth Pocket Gopher we have caught since we moved here.

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By JM Perez

Animals Ground Squirrel Gardening High Desert

Life of a Busy Squirrel

By JM PerezJune 8, 20132 min read846 views

I had planned on tending to my plants today, but my attention got drawn to one particular Squirrel.

From my bedroom window, I caught the squirrel on the first picture (left) climbing on the planter and eating some of the Clarkia Amoena. As I ran outside to chase it off, it ran straight to its burrow, which is located at the next door neighbor’s backyard. When we built the Primitive 3 Legged Plant Stand early this year to raise it from the ground and prevent the Rabbits from eating the plants, I didn’t foresee Squirrels in the big picture. Just a few minutes later, I spotted the same squirrel next to our storage shed, wondering if it was safe to get into the basement, after damaging some of my Horsetail plants (picture on the right).

Either this Squirrel is starving or it just loves coming into our property. On the picture below (left), it found a nut somewhere in the backyard and it’s busy eating it. From he picture on the right, it’s just relaxing in the front yard underneath the Raywood Ash Tree. Life must be good or something for this little creature.

Squirrel Eating & Relaxing. — *Squirrel enjoying a nut & Relaxing.*

As I went to close the gate leading to the backyard, I spotted the little creature underneath the Sweet Almond Tree, enjoying a few Almonds. This Squirrel is fearless. I can’t believe how close I got to it before it ran off.

I guess after eating so many Almonds, it’s time to take a break and relax. Prior to that, it damaged and ravaged most of the plants in search of my Tulip and Crocus bulbs, seeds and digging up new sprouts. There was nothing funny about watching this varmint go through my garden the way it did. All the money spent on the plants and the energy spent in getting everything looking the way I wanted seemed to have vanished in an instant. I will be using an underground bulb cage for my next Fall bulb planting (click here for a tutorial in building yours).

So far, all attempts to get these Squirrels from our property have failed. For one we are thinking about removing all the Oleanders along the chain link fence in the backyard and installing wood fencing or Slats (none of these will prevent them from coming over; but it might slow them down as they will have to work harder).
For now, we set up a trap in one of their favorite locations. If it works, I will share the information with those of you dealing with sneaky Squirrels as well as other rodents in your yards.

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By JM Perez

Animals Ground Squirrel Flowers Shrubs & Trees Gardening High Desert

Mr. Squirrel, Unwanted Tenant

By JM PerezMay 14, 20132 min read526 views

Can someone make this wind go away already? I surprised myself yelling. High Desert weather is erratic. We can never be too prepared as it’s difficult to tell what is coming our way. One minute it’s hot and the next your running towards coverage. There’s so much dust and dirt flying around. It’s such a lovely day and I wish we could all go outside, sit on the swings with a glass of sweet tea and be amused by our unwanted tenant, Mr. Ground Squirrel.

For a month now, we have failed at capturing a fearless ground Squirrel, which has been coming into our property regardless of the steps we’ve taken to keep it out. It doesn’t eat anything, just interested in digging holes (one of the holes goes all the way down to our storage basement). It climbs and sits in the motor area of one of our cars. It sits pretty in the shade and stares right back at us like it was our beloved pet or something. I have caught it standing on its hind legs looking all around like “yeah, this is the life and it’s all mine.” I laughed so hard a couple of days ago when my husband said it wasn’t a regular Squirrel. Ever since it made its appearance, we haven’t seen Rabbits or Gophers around. In a way it keeps anything else out, but we need to rid our yard of it.

In spite of the erratic weather, we are having fun indoors, watching movies and snacking on healthy treats.

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By JM Perez