Just Evicted a Squirrel from Attic

[WilliamH4]

A red squirrel made its way into my attic/soffit. I thought I heard something moving around on occasion, but wasn't positive (thought it was probably a bird that got stuck in the attic). Then, all of a sudden, 5 of my security cameras went offline. After some investigating, I realized I had a squirrel in my attic. It chewed through my security camera wiring. I trapped it in a live trap, and let it go. I feel badly as it collected all kinds of nuts and found a cozy home, but I can't let it live in my attic. It's a Red squirrel. I want to build a den for it. I know it may not move in to the den, but I want to make an effort to help it. I've seen plans for boxes stating "minimum" 6 x 6 x 20 with a 3" opening. The Red squirrel is very small compared to the Gray squirrel. What dimensions should I use for a Red squirrel's box? Also, how might I help it with its food supply? I collected some of the nuts I pulled out of the soffit, but I know there's more I can't reach.

[TubeDriver]

Thanks for not harming your little neighbor. There must be a hole somewhere in your attic leading to the outside. Find this hole and patch it up with some hardware cloth so he can’t back inside.

I don’t have much experience with Reds, but they would probably like most any squirrel box nest (look for plans that include predator guards). I would make the opening 2” for a red (that even works for most Greys).



A red squirrel made its way into my attic/soffit. I thought I heard something moving around on occasion, but wasn't positive (thought it was probably a bird that got stuck in the attic). Then, all of a sudden, 5 of my security cameras went offline. After some investigating, I realized I had a squirrel in my attic. It chewed through my security camera wiring. I trapped it in a live trap, and let it go. I feel badly as it collected all kinds of nuts and found a cozy home, but I can't let it live in my attic. It's a Red squirrel. I want to build a den for it. I know it may not move in to the den, but I want to make an effort to help it. I've seen plans for boxes stating "minimum" 6 x 6 x 20 with a 3" opening. The Red squirrel is very small compared to the Gray squirrel. What dimensions should I use for a Red squirrel's box? Also, how might I help it with its food supply? I collected some of the nuts I pulled out of the soffit, but I know there's more I can't reach.

[WilliamH4]

Thank you, TubeDriver. I'll take a look at some of the plans and get something put together tomorrow. I really feel badly for putting the little Red out. It went through a lot of trouble collecting those nuts and had a comfortable home.