Squirrel!

Over the past couple of years, we’ve had birds in our attic. They rip the metal grating that Calvin carefully staples over the vents, and they raise their young. It’s a constant battle, but surely we’ll win at some point. However, this year we’ve had a bit of a distraction that’s kept us from even thinking of the birds. It’s a squirrel.

Yes, Rocket J. Squirrel has taken up residence in our attic. How do we know it’s Rocky? (For those of you who don’t remember, Rocky was the squirrel in the Rocky and Bullwinkle cartoon. I loved Mr. Peabody better. But then, he was a dog so that’s self-explanatory.)

Back to Rocky. We know it’s Rocky because this squirrel’s smart. You see, Cal doesn’t want a squirrel living in the attic so he borrowed a cat trap. It’s a humane cat trap, and Cal intends to capture Rocky and transport him far, far away.

(Digression: If the squirrel’s Rocky and we’re trying to capture him, does that make Cal Boris and me Natasha?)

Cal laced the trap with crackers covered in peanut butter. We’ve been told it’s a favorite of squirrels. This morning we heard the trap “pop.” Cal pulled himself into the attic. No we don’t have a pull-down ladder. Instead, we have a slanted gap. You have to have serious upper body strength to get up there.

Through the ceiling I heard grumbling. It turns out that Rocky picked the trap. He burrowed into the insulation and came up at the bottom of the mesh trap. Then he carefully gnawed the crackers through the bottom of the cage.

Tonight Cal found pieces of wood that fit into the back of the trap and we tied them in place so Rocky couldn’t shift them to get at the food. Then Cal put the trap lengthwise on beams to make it even harder for Rocky. Now we’re all listening for the “pop.” But so far, no dice. Rocky is trying to figure it out. I’ll let you know what happens. If we catch him, we’d better keep our eyes open for Bullwinkle. Doesn’t he always rescue Rocky?