The squirrels shouldn't bother your growing flower stalk or bud..I have had a few summer blooms with no problems, (and believe me we have squirrels all over the place) and I have one currently about to bloom with a 10" stalk..but this plant is on a deck. So..do you have any decks you could temporarily put your plant on.. and if you are still worried, just bring the plant in the house for a week or two until the blooms are over and then bring it back outside!! Donna

Thanks for the comment. That is a possibility that I didn't think of. I've been gradually re-introducing them to sunlight, but it has been very clear, so the sun is very strong, so perhaps I should cut down their outdoor time for a little while. They weren't out all day (or even a half day), but they were out for 3-4 hours, late afternoon/into sundown, when the sun is hitting that side of my house straight on.

A follow up from MDC online, "ANIMAL SUSCEPTIBILITY: While all warm blooded animals may develop rabies when exposed to rabid animals, some are more susceptible than others. The most susceptible animal is the fox. The skunk is the second most susceptible; cattle are third; dog is fourth and cat is fifth. Fortunately, human beings are not highly susceptible to rabies. Various authorities on rabies state that in this country if 100 person were seriously bitten about the face, head or neck by a known rabid animal, 25% would develop rabies if no first-aid or anti-rabies treatment was administered. The raccoon, opossum, ground hog and muskrat in Missouri are seldom rabid. The Missouri Division of Health Central Laboratory has never isolated rabies from a bird, fox squirrel, gray or ground squirrel, chipmunk or field mouse, wild rat, rabbit, nor from such pets as white rats, mice, hamsters or guinea pigs." While beef is inspected, I thought it was interesting that they showed a higher susceptibility to rabies than squirrels which "The Missouri Division of Health Central Laboratory has never isolated rabies from a ... fox squirrel, gray or ground squirrel," Here is a link that might be useful: Rabies

Roseunhip; Do you know what a predator guard is? Two years ago when I purchased a wooden birdhouse it wouldn't go up in the trees unless it had an ample predator guard, made from hardware cloth with the edges snipped and sharp threads bent outward. Then attached around the entrance hole of the box. Guard sticks out about 6-7" in length. I didn't want raccoons or outdoor cats climbing the tree and reaching in with their dexterious paws/hands/claws. The predator guard was a little reassurance... Same thing w/squirrel nestboxes. The wildlife center has 'em built w/predator guards, wood piece on the inside of box w/2-3" lip, to deter tree-climbing carni-/omnivores from reaching in. I got the hardware cloth idea and sketch from a book. Was in a pet-supply store on the 19th and a man came in to purchase bird seed. He despised the squirrels and admitted he'd take out his gun to shoot 'em if they dared interfere w/his seed offerings. :\ Oh yes, I know from wildlife conversations that reds are meaner, feisty, and horrendously territorial. Please send a picture of your box after you've got it in place. I love seeing birdboxes in natural settings. Some of the birdhouses and boxes they sell in catalogs and stores make me shake my head... dunno how any bird would feel safe, or homelike, in that creation?! And a note on nestbuilding materials; observed a gray squirrel tearing off chunks of corrugated cardboard from the sturdy carton (box from my foster rabbit housing) on our deck. Off she scurried w/the cardboard pieces in his mouth. Musta needa a new lining for his/her drey. Wish I had the camera at that second. ... We won't be so quick to put the box in the trash!