Pesty Ground Hogs.

[Queen Latisha]

Or barn has had an influx of ground hogs taking up residency. These critters have made their homes right by the riding rings and have spooked numerous horses.
Is there a way to get rid of these animals? I would like to do it as humanely as possible, yes I'm an animal lover and don't want to hurt them.
All opinions welcome, Thanks.:cool:

[Mr.GMan]

Call in Bill Murray?:lol::lol::lol:

Seriously though, I have no clue, but I couldn't resist.

[Queen Latisha]

Call in Bill Murray?:lol::lol::lol:

Seriously though, I have no clue, but I couldn't resist.

Wise guy!:D

[shakeytails]

Well..... when DH worked on a dairy farm they'd pump the chuck holes full of liquid manure and pick 'em off with a .22 when they emerged.

I've heard that if you dump used kitty litter down their holes it'll encourage them to find a new home.

My dogs think woodchucks are fine game, and eventually take care of the ones that want to call my hay barn home.

[WaningMoon]

If you loose a horse to a broken leg due to a chuck hole you will then care a lot less about being humane to them.

[babygreenqueen]

i read on google that you should put sudsy ammonia in the den entrance
which fumigates.
wear gloves and a mask.

these critters tunnel and horses fall in the false ground

i still think id like a fur hat:eek:

[TBMaggie]

I don't think putting a bunch of stuff down the groundhog's tunnel will help much - groundhogs can tunnel down many, many feet to avoid whatever you try using, or they will just make a new tunnel somewhere else.

You could try 'live-trapping' if it bothers you to shoot them....but I never had any luck with that approach. These things are just huge rats. Don't think 'oh cute little groundhog' - think 'broken legs' if/when your horse steps into a hole - makes it easier to get rid of them.

[wendy]

we hunt them with dogs. They are a serious menace to horses/riders safety.

[MoonWitch]

I have the same problem on state park ground - hunting, killing, harming the little critters is OUTLAWED!! So thanks to all the "just shoot 'em" suggestions, but is there anything else that you have found to work? We are currently trying the used cat litter trick and I'll let you know if we have any success.

[Tiki]

So your barn and riding rings are on State Park ground????

Try a few Jack Russels. I used to have 3 dogs, a lab/Airedale cross (our best guess), and Afghan Hound and an English Mastiff. They would surround the groundhog and grab it from 3 different points of a circle. They rid the neighborhood of groundhogs much to the delight of the neighbors. They are extremely nasty, viscious creatures. A horse can, indeed, break a leg in a groundhog hole. I would have no sympathy. One groundhog grabbed my Mastiff by the bottom lip and wouldn't let go. The Mastiff was shrieking until he realized the size difference. He slammed him down, grabbed him in the middle of the back and with one snap broke his back and killed him. Get some good dogs and you'll never see them again.

[Beasmom]

Get a couple of buckets of Gopher Bait. Your feed store should have some. Pour a little around any holes you find. You might have to repeat the process, but should get rid of them.

Works on Prairie Dogs just fine.

[razalter]

When our place was first built there was a groundhog in residence on the adjacent property. We were the first place built, so everything around was un-developed. Ground hog about 1/2 the size of my norwegian elkhound came trotting down the drive one day while DH was out there. Elkhound stood a 'safe' distance away barking her head off until the GH got tired of it and started chasing the dog around the tree. Funniest thing I ever saw.

I think the JRT is the best solution.

[SMF11]

I have successfully gotten rid of two fields' worth of groundhogs now. I tried several methods -- the smoke them out with poison one, and the neighbor who likes to hunt one, but neither worked. What DID work is the old used kitty litter. Just collect a bag of it, dump it in each hole and wait a few days. Then fill in the holes. Done.

I've been told they are fastidious animals and are repelled by the kitty litter.

All I can say is, it is cheap, easy, humane, and in my experience was the only thing that worked.

[Beasmom]

Hey! Good way to get rid of used kitty litter, too!

[Huntertwo]

We had a field of them at a boarding barn I was at.

Humane way? Take old tires and put them over the holes. Ground hogs can come and go and the horses avoid the tires.

As far as the horses spooking over them? Just let them get used to them.

Mind you I boarded there for about 15 years and never ever was a single horse lost due to these cute little guys.

I never can understand the hysteria of a critter *moving in*...

[Queen Latisha]

I have successfully gotten rid of two fields' worth of groundhogs now. I tried several methods -- the smoke them out with poison one, and the neighbor who likes to hunt one, but neither worked. What DID work is the old used kitty litter. Just collect a bag of it, dump it in each hole and wait a few days. Then fill in the holes. Done.

I've been told they are fastidious animals and are repelled by the kitty litter.

All I can say is, it is cheap, easy, humane, and in my experience was the only thing that worked.

Definitely worth a try, thank you.:D

[Queen Latisha]

i read on google that you should put sudsy ammonia in the den entrance
which fumigates.
wear gloves and a mask.

these critters tunnel and horses fall in the false ground

i still think id like a fur hat:eek:

I think you have enough hats!
Do you know where I can get my hands on a .22 to shoot these vermin??:D

[Queen Latisha]

Get a couple of buckets of Gopher Bait. Your feed store should have some. Pour a little around any holes you find. You might have to repeat the process, but should get rid of them.

Works on Prairie Dogs just fine.

Maybe I'll try this, if the kitty litter doesn't work.:cool:

[Oldenburg Mom]

I'm still struggling with the SOB in my barn. Kitty litter works, surprise surprise ... but only until it decomposes. They the little bastards are back ... which of course means they've never left.

The reward for the one in the barn is up to $75. And I'm STILL waiting for someone to shoot him. *sigh* I'm a softie when it comes to critters, but this one just makes my blood boil!!!!

I am going to try the gopher bait ... QL can you pour it down their holes?

[Beasmom]

No, just put it near the opening.

[yellowbritches]

My dog is a fantastic ground hog hunter/killer. She has handily kept the population down on two different farms. It is TERRIFYING to watch, since she is quick, efficient, and brutal. I always give a little prayer of thanks that she knows the difference between ground hog and barn cat, because I very likely would end up in a metal institution if she did what she does to a GH to a BC!!! :eek:

[broodmare]

We have dispatched > than 20 groundhogs by trapping them in a have-a heart. They love most fruit, the locals differ between peaches, apples, banannas and cantalope.
What you do with them after they are in the trap is up to you.
Trapping has worked really well for us.

[Huntertwo]

That canine grab and shake-to-kill is pretty terrifying. To see that type of primal skill in our pets really takes one aback.

To see the skill of a primal human with a really good .22 and a youthful eagle eye at the scope take a standing shot from almost 100 yards and get a clean kill right through a groundhog brain is also.... pretty impressive.

There is an empty groundhog hole tonight in the back pasture. Guess which primal skill got it?

Yea, sounds pretty impressive.. :sigh:

[pj]

I'm still struggling with the SOB in my barn. Kitty litter works, surprise surprise ... but only until it decomposes. They the little bastards are back ... which of course means they've never left.

The reward for the one in the barn is up to $75. And I'm STILL waiting for someone to shoot him. *sigh* I'm a softie when it comes to critters, but this one just makes my blood boil!!!!

I am going to try the gopher bait ... QL can you pour it down their holes?

When this one is lying there dead as...dead as a dead gh you are going to be SO sad.
It's going to be like the "giant" bass that people try to hook for years and years and when they do they want to turn him loose again. You won't be able to turn 'em loose, he'll be dead. His little furry face will haunt your dreams. :D You'll think you catch glimpses of him out of the corner of your eye, you'll hear the patter of his little feet and you will be SAD. :yes:

[babygreenqueen]

my dearest pj

the only haunting face youll see is that of your horse when it breaks a leg in one of these tunnels

[Equibrit]

I have a Patterdale Terrier groundhog dispatcher. She is a professional.
http://www.thehuntinglife.com/html/sections/articles/working_terriers/patterdaleterrier.html

[merrygoround]

Having an endless supply of groundhogs, who move into vacated residences with alacrity, and dare to tunnel where no one has tunneled before, we have observed that placing a hot wire about 1&1/2 to 2" above the ground will keep them out. The already present invaders were removed by placing a hose in the burrow, and flooding it. Then :sigh: filling the hole with fine sand.

[Oldenburg Mom]

merrygoround ... I would very much like to use a hotwire, but since the little bastard has tunnelled UNDER portions of the barn that no one can get to, it's a futile exercise.

pj, I know your post was very much tongue in cheek:lol: I would LOVE to borrow someone's cat-safe GH-killer. *sigh* How high do I have to make the reward before someone actually DOES something! Visions of a million dollars...or maybe a lottery-type payout over 20 years'd do the trick!

[Queen Latisha]

my dearest pj

the only haunting face youll see is that of your horse when it breaks a leg in one of these tunnels

Or my haunting face as I hit the ground.:eek:

[kcmel]

We have dispatched > than 20 groundhogs by trapping them in a have-a heart. They love most fruit, the locals differ between peaches, apples, banannas and cantalope.
What you do with them after they are in the trap is up to you.


This is our strategy as well. I will remain quiet as to their post-trapping fate :cool:.