Since we started letting the Duke out on the deck occasionally -- and the Duke has discovered if he charges the back screen door door he can pop it open -- the chipmunks have been a little tentative. They aren't nearly as fast as squirrels and not as agile so they are careful about Duke. Duke, on the other hand is ONLY interested in squirrels. I think there's a special DNA link in the dog's helix that tells them to go berserk if they see a squirrel.

The squirrels don't worry about Duke. They know he can't follow them. The birds don't care because they fly.

The little chipmunks are agile, but they don't climb trees and definitely can't fly.

Squirrels, chipmunk, and doves are our cleanup crew. Whatever the other birds knock onto the deck, the come and eat. A flock of doves can do a heck of a job out there.

Compared to squirrels, chipmunks are relatively harmless. They don't get into your house and eat all the wiring -- or for that matter, eat an entire terminal on an exterior pole. Squirrels do very serious damage to wiring and pay the price. They apparently have no learning curve about wiring.