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Yes, CHIPMUNKS.
These cute little boogers are not only stinking adorable, but can also be tremendous pests. I chase them out of my garage and away from the paint cans. I spook them out of the holes in the side of my house. (They were actually clawing away at the inside wall of my kitchen for a while.) I rush them away from climbing up my gutters and getting stuck in my soffits. I literally swerve my SUV and screech to a halt every day - while nearly ending the lives of my children and myself - trying to avoid hitting them as they bolt across the street. Side note: Since when did chipmunks and squirrels have such a death wish? WE HAVE DEATH WISH CHIPMUNKS! WHY do they only bolt across the street right when a truck is less than 5 feet from their general vicinity? Twice this week I have come across a gallon of dirt that has poured out of my retaining wall from what I assume to be the burrowing chipmunks. Then I started to look around. Literally every 9 inches there is a frigging hole the size of a chipmunk. They are the devil. A cute, little, furry, squeaking devil. This is the side effect of living in the woods, in a rural town, where there are no street lamps but wild roaming turkeys.
I'm not one for killing helpless and adorable animals, so I'll have to figure out something else to repel the little poopers. At least I can keep them away from my house long enough to infest another neighbor. Ideally it would be that neighbor who hates me, and always looks the other way when I wave... purposefully. I could bore the chipmunks to death by crowding them all in my dark unfinished basement with nothing but Dora The Explorer episodes screaming at full volume, on repeat. Or, maybe I could stick my preschooler on them? She has this particular pitch of voice when she is whining that is like a whistle scream, cymbals, and Freddy Kreuger nails on a chalk board - all combined. It hits your ears with such a horrific pierce that you willingly want to stab your ear drums out with the nearest number 2 pencil and run down the street. If that doesn't work she could definitely infect them with a horrible virus within hours by sneezing and coughing in the face and mouths of every one of them. Perhaps either of those could inflict a certain amount of brain shock that they'd go running for the conservation lands. Maybe I should put out mince meat pie? What the hell is mince meat pie anyway?? Isn't it a natural repellent for just about anything?
After a small amount of research... VOILA! My essential oils have come to save the day again! Peppermint oil apparently works wonders with a slew of rodents: field mice, chipmunks, squirrels, gophers, etc. Mr. devil chipmunk it's on. I'm about to go all terminator on you with... wait for it... PEPPERMINT OIL. Ooh... My chipmunk threats are so apocalyptic. *Rolls eyes.* I'll keep you posted, because of course you care, and won't leave out one oily detail.
Over and out.