LOL. I have been having the same problem here. The squirrels have taken over the bird feeder. It has been a longstanding problem. And we have to take it in at night because the raccoons knock it down and empty it out. Any solutions?
kabar, it's 9:30pm Sunday night and I'm just now able to get time to read through today's thread. I sympathize with your and rod's squirrel troubles. You might want to check out the following item I read about a few years ago. It's called the Yankee Flipper Bird Feeder. Here are a few links:
http://drollyankees.com/product/yankee-flipper-bird-feeder/
Some videos: (They're a bit cutesy but fun to watch)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=283&v=Q3C8VI5InJY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3Ut-BA6WW4
*Disclaimer - I don't have one. Hope you find this info useful. ;-)
P.S. - Amazon and Walmart have them for much less than the mfg.