Groundhogs (Marmota monax) can make all your efforts to grow a vegetable garden or maintain a beautiful garden in vain as they eat all your vegetables. This article will teach you how to get rid of these intruders, but check your country's regulations regarding local wildlife before doing anything.
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Ammonia in the Burrow
Step 1. Choose a sunny day to carry out the pest control operation from marmots
The sun allows the marmots to come out of their burrows / shelters.
Step 2. Take about 600ml of ammonia based cleaner
Step 3. If you can't find a similar product, you can prepare it yourself with commonly used products at home
- Get a glass container. Pour in about 60 ml of water.
- Add 2 tablespoons of detergent (or soap) and mix.
- Take 480ml of ammonia and add it to the detergent / soap solution. This is substantially similar to the ammonia-based detergent you find on the market.
Step 4. Pour the mixture into the hole or burrow where the groundhog lives
Pour it all in, so that the liquid can get deep into the hole.
You should wear gloves when pouring the substance
Step 5. Get out of the area
Sometimes marmots start coming out, if they are inside. If there are puppies present, then the process takes longer as the mother first has to find a new home and then bring the puppies.
Step 6. Check every now and then to make sure the shelter has been abandoned
Step 7. If you still see any movement the next day, repeat the process
Step 8. Continue like this until you notice the groundhogs, but wait at least a day before repeating the treatment
Remember to do this only on sunny days, to give the marmots a chance to find a new refuge without problems.
Method 2 of 2: Compassionate Trap
Catching and relocating groundhogs can be a solution in some regions, but first check your local laws to make sure this method isn't illegal in your area.
Step 1. Buy or rent a "human" trap
Look for it in pet stores. These traps are quite inexpensive.
Step 2. Place the trap about 15 meters away from the groundhog's nest
Step 3. Insert lettuce leaves, apples, bananas, or other fruit into the back of the trap
Step 4. Check the trap early in the morning and in the evening
When you have captured a marmot, put on gloves and place the cage on a piece of cardboard in the trunk of the car.
Step 5. Release the animal in the woods a few kilometers from home
Step 6. It will take a week or two to catch all the marmots, but you can rest assured not to have injured any of them during their departure
Advice
- You can sprinkle Epsom salts in the garden and holes to deter groundhogs. This is an easy method, but you need to do the treatment after each rain or after each watering.
- Remove all unnecessary material, such as tall grass, piles of garbage, tall weeds, etc. Groundhogs use it as a cover for their shelter, so if they don't have any available, they won't be attracted to your garden.
- Do some movement to scare them. Place objects around the areas of the garden that you would like to protect, such as CDs hanging from a branch, whirlpools spinning in the wind, small scarecrows that move, etc.
- Plant alfalfa to keep them away from your crops. They prefer it to any other food, except perhaps apples.
- Throw away the litter used by cats in front of the opening of the den to prevent marmots from reopening that entrance. Add water to make the area more muddy and cover with sticks and several centimeters of debris. Be careful not to walk on it. Groundhogs could remove the material and re-excavate a burrow entrance. The wet clay used is sticky and groundhogs will forgo such entry. However, they can dig another entry a few meters away. This might be fine if it's outside the garden fence and you just want to block that hole.
- Fences the garden area. This is another way to protect your area, but the fence will need to go underground and be high enough, as groundhogs can climb over them or create underground tunnels. The enclosure can be a non-cruel and useful solution to live in harmony with your local fauna.
Warnings
- Chemicals can be illegal when used on wildlife, always read the product label. Also check your area's regulations regarding wildlife and pest control before any action.
- Ammonia must be handled with care. Read the instructions on the package.
- Do not try these methods in the winter, as the animals cannot find a new shelter to move quickly.
- You could perhaps use the poison gas cartridges, but that will kill the groundhog, as well as having to handle them very carefully. Since these contain carbon monoxide, they should never be used near human homes or buildings.
