Grease up the legs with petroleum jelly and then liberally coat them with cayenne pepper...you will have to do this from time to time as the mixture will wear off...mind you, I'm not a tree hugger, a .22 is a sure thing, I just can't seem to be down there when they are !...besides I get a mental image of one of those little scoundrels "hotfootin'" and makin' faces and it cracks me up!