What Critter Chews or Claws on a Gas Can?

[jander3]

I found a hole the size of a quarter in my gas can.  This can was stored outside with gas and oil for my chainsaws.  The can was upright and seemed to be right where i left it.   

Any ideas?     



 

[petefrom bearswamp]

Squirrels wrecked one of mine a few years ago.

[thecfarm]

YUCK. Looks like a mouse with no taste buds or smell.

[chevytaHOE5674]

I've found that red squirrels will chew on just about anything that isn't steel.... hahaha

[WmFritz]

        Looks like our new pup paid you a visit

        I've seen squirrels chew softball size holes through thicker plastic then that. Usually after the corn inside though.

[thecfarm]

I've seen porcupines to some damage too,but a gas can??????

[Chuck White]

Judging by the height of the gas can, I'd say a porkupine was the culprit!

[Sprucegum]

Bears like to chew on gas cans but the can would have been knocked off your shelf. Dang bears will even go after propane bottles when they get low and give off that smell.

[Jeff]

Pine squirrels.

[Gary_C]

Is the hole nice and round like a musketball?

Or maybe it was one of the natives that wanted to siphon the gas out?  ;D

[sandhills]

A goat  ;D

[Holmes]

The gas cap is partially chewed off my Lucas saw mill motor, around the edges , black plastic.  I blame it on my wife's friendly porcupine, it is the only animal I have see in that area and it has also chewed off most of the small branches of the hemlock near the mill.

[Jeff]

We have had the gas caps chewed off and several other plastic objects in the shed up at the cabin. A porky could never get in there, but the pine squirrels do. The one year the generator, two chainsaws and the weed-wacker were all missing the pull start handles when we got there in the spring.  Anything plastic made with a vegetable oil rather than a petroleum based oil will turn them on to eating it.

[SwampDonkey]

Bears here will chew on gas jug handles and I've had one chew on the throttle cable of the saw. We were thinning one block a couple years ago and a bear was having a good old time. I think the farmer has a private dump, and he had plastic jugs and toys all through the woods. We found his den by the time we finished thinning. Find bear dens all the time cutting brush. :D

[beenthere]

I was thinking the red squirrels and pine squirrels be the same little beast.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_red_squirrel

I'd suspect them too, but wouldn't put it past a porky either.

[Gary_C]

I still suspect it was the natives from the res' just north of there. Those dirty buggers got my batteries and over $4,000 worth of machine tools not too far north from Jon and just about a month ago.



 

And the liquid on the ground is the battery acid they dumped because they just wanted the lead. Plus the acid was still running out of the snowmobile as they drove away with the cores. So look for a snowmobile that is all rusted out.  : :

[Brucer]

Well, it was a black bear that chewed on my gas can. Then batted it around a bit for amusement. Then left it lying on its side with the holes facing down >:(.

It wasn't as neat as the hole in your can.

[millwright]

We have red squirrels that will chew anthing plastic no matter what is inside.

[stumpy]

Same thing happened to me.  Went to saw after three months of activity. Found a quarter size hole chewed into the to of the gas tank on my woodmizer.

[Magicman]

Squirrels will also eat your lead flashing from around roof plumbing vents.   :-\

[jander3]

Thanks guys.  I have narrowed it down...

There are no herds of wild goats roaming the northlands in Minnesota - so that ain't it.

Bears are around but they are little more brutal - so bears are out.

Band members and I are on  very good terms.   I am a little far back in the wood to be convient for kids.  And, I checked the gas can for exit bullet holes...cause the thought did cross my mind.

Plenty of squirells so that is a possiblity.

But....my money is on porcupine. I see procupine quite frequently around the ranch.  And, I have a couple of stumps under the cabin that the porcupine have have chewed up quite nicely.

[celliott]

Squirrels will absolutely wreak havoc in a pipeline sugarbush operation. Chew the taps, connectors, lateral lines, even mainlines. Why? Probably just because they are rodents and like to chew.

Oh Squirrels....... air_plane

[Gary_C]

Band members and I are on  very good terms.   I am a little far back in the wood to be convient for kids.  And, I checked the gas can for exit bullet holes...cause the thought did cross my mind.

It's the part about being far back in the woods that keeps you on good terms with band members. And trust me, it's not just the kids. I'm told there are at least four or five members that supplement their checks from the casino with thievery. Keeping things out of sight and away from any trails will help keep you on good terms.

And you are probably right about the porkies. They are plentiful in the area and I've had to deal with more than one that would not stop chewing on everything. They'll even chew on tires and airbags on the semi and trailer.

[Stinny]

I have had a 30 plus year war with porcupines here in Maine. Can't believe how much damage they do. They will chew on anything but, their favorite seems to be T-111 plywood siding panels. Reg plywood too. It's obvious that they love the glue. They'll chew down to the first layer of glue and then go sideways. Like catnip I guess. Had a garage with T-111 on it that had over 20 holes started along the back. And when I would "re-locate" them at around 2 AM, more would just follow the trail right in. I "re-located" over a dozen of them in a 2 year time frame. Unbelievable.

Years later, I had the pleasure of more visiting our remote cabin... chewing on anything with plywood. Always can find a few quills around the area. The sides of a shed, the floor and sides of a small trailer I'd built. Haven't had the chance to re-locate any of these guys... yet.

[thecfarm]

I've relocated them porky for 40 years.   ;D  Pitch forks,grubhoes,shovels,baseball bats,stick of wood,rocks has all helped in the relocating part.

[Magicman]

Thankfully we do not have porcupines here.  Fire ants and armadillos are more than we need.   :-\

[SwampDonkey]

Like Gary said those things will remove the rubber from any tire, especially on a trailer. If there are any abandoned cars, buildings and brush piles you will be infested with them. And unless you shoot them, they are some tough.

[John Mc]

I was thinking the red squirrels and pine squirrels be the same little beast.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_red_squirrel

I'd suspect them too, but wouldn't put it past a porky either.

Red squirrels do favor conifer habitat.  The gray squirrels go for hardwoods.

[beenthere]

Red squirrels do favor conifer habitat.  The gray squirrels go for hardwoods.

And we have the fox squirrel in the hardwoods too, along with the gray. The fox is a bit bigger than the gray, which in turn is bigger than the red.

[SwampDonkey]

We have a mixed forest here in NB, and have plenty of both, but the grays actually favor towns around here. Out in the spruce woods you will see just the reds most of the time. In Ontario they have a black colored gray squirrel, same species. We don't have the black colored ones here.

[beenthere]

SD
No fox squirrels?

[SwampDonkey]

We have flying squirrels, but I have never seen any. We don't have fox squirrels here. In Ontario they might.

[Autocar]

Ive been known to do that when I look up at the pump and see what it cost me  :D

[Al_Smith]

It's obviously a rodent of some kind I should think .Perhaps nephew Marty of Mich could rent you a cat or three since he has so many .Although if it were a porcupine I doubt seriously if a hungry feline would do you much good .Cats are dumb but they aren't that dumb .

The squirrels seem to have a thing for plastic ,rubber fuel lines etc .We mainly have large fox squirrels ,some grays and a few reds .I would suspect the later .

[SwampDonkey]

The thing for those porkies is a good family of fishers to clean them up. When the predators are killed off you get this imbalance. I see a fisher around the woods about once a year. But way out in the unsettled areas. They are very shy critters so they stay out of site anyway.

[Al_Smith]

My buddy goes for grouse every year in the lower part of Mich .He has a very aggresive Britteny spaniel that got quilled three times before he wised up .Good bird dog but evidenly not to sharp on the uptake .

[SwampDonkey]

We just had mongrel dogs here growing up and lots of porkies. They never learned to stay away from porkies. Dad pulled lots of quills from dogs and multiple times. We had a bunch of old cars and old wagon sheds from dad's grandfather's day and those things made them home. Pull'n quills from a  snarl'n dog ain't too fun.  :D ;D

[beenthere]

Any more problems with critters chewing on your supplies?

[SwampDonkey]

On the brush saw, I had a bear chew the throttle cable. Also porkies (and probably hares) like rubber  handles grips, so we stand our saws up into a tree. I think it's salt from your sweat they are after. Yesterday in the heat I was soaked clear down to the toe nails in sweat. You'd swear it was raining. :D

[Al_Smith]

Come to think about it chipmonks are worse gnawers than red squirrels. The big hawks kind of keep the squirrels in check but I'm not so certain they fair as well with chipmonks .Those things are fast as greased lightning .

[LAZERDAN]

  Ya Ya   I was out back tonite and low and behold I look at the cans by the splitter and see the vent caps have been "nicely" chawed off.  Chippies I suspect ( Alvin,Theodore and Simon ) the regular and mixed gas.  So I was just thinking on the way back in, there was a post on this a while back ! and I see Al Smith is all over it. A little suspicius  hmmmm                        Lazerdan

[Al_Smith]

Alvin and cousins are a pain in the behind.Those little rascals can get into anything .Store seeds in the darnest places .They even store D-con which is why it doesn't affect them .

Those little darlins even  figured a way to fill the air filter breather housing of my wifes Cadillac up with seeds .Lawdy do I miss that old land cruiser .