Any ideas on how to get rid of groundhogs? I don't want to kill them, just deter them.

[Arkansas Granny]

I came home yesterday to find that the metal bucket I keep birdseed in had been knocked over and the lid was off. I didn't know what could have done that unless is was a racoon, but they are generally nocturnal. Later that evening I saw something moving on the front porch and discovered a pair of groundhogs trying to get into the bucket. They were back at it early this morning.

I've seen a lot of wildlife in my yard including skunks, possums, squirrels, rabbits and racoons, but this is the first time I've seen groundhogs! I don't want to hurt them, but I would like to discourage them. I'm thinking rags or cotton balls soaked with peppermint oil or possibly ammonia in a dish might work, but I have no experience at all with this problem.

Any suggestions?

[FalloutShelter]

1. I used have a heart traps and then

put the groundhogs in the groundhog relocation program.
Took them for a drive and released them in the woods near a lake.

Don't know if this is an option for you.

[Arkansas Granny]

2. I don't drive, so that wouldn't be an option. I wouldn't even care if they stayed around the yard,

I just don't want them wasting my birdseed.

[gab13by13]

3. Better than a 475 pound bear laying under the feeder eating sunflower seeds.

[Arkansas Granny]

4. I'll have to agree with that.

[Jilly_in_VA]

5. Do you know where their den is?

Mothballs work sometimes. Otherwise the Have-a-heart trap and enlisting someone else to drive them elsewhere might be an option.

[yellowdogintexas]

6. they are very destructive to crops.

Farmers hate them. When I was growing up I would often see groundhog carcasses draped over a fence; one particular one often had several at one time. This fence was around a field that not near anyone's home

In my opinion, the best use of the proverbial shotgun in the back window of the pickup. I am not a fan of hunting but I understood the farmers' motivation..

Like moles, they were especially damaging to the root systems, especially corn and tobacco.

Your state's agricultural extension service should be your best bet for solutions to this problem

[Atticus]

7. Predator urine is available on line. Home Depot and Rural King have wolf urine for about $10.

I assume your ground hogs would be discouraged by that scent. Coyote and other scents also said to work.

[SheltieLover]

8. Would wildlife service be able to help by relocating?

Since your main concern is birdseed, can you store it somewhere not easily accessible?

Call some local vets & ask?

Good luck!

[Pobeka]

9. Grind up some really hot red peppers to a powder.

Like little red Thai chilis, or cayenne.

Sprinkle it in the birdseed.

Next time the groundhogs (squirrels, racoons, rabbits, rats, mice) try it will be the last time they try it.

Birds are insensitive to hot peppers.

[Fla Dem]

11. That's a great suggestion. I can have up to 8 squirrel around my bird feeders.

If red pepper can keep them away and still attract the birds, I'm giving it a try!

Hopefully it will also deter the raccoon who comes around at night. He's adorable, but digging up my plants and garden.

Thank you!

[Pobeka]

22. We had a racoon chewing on a drip line many years ago.

Chinese hot pepper oil worked wonders.

Sprinkle hot pepper powder around those plants -- so when they are digging the pepper will get on their paws. I hope that works!

[zeusdogmom]

23. It works

You can even buy bird food already laced with the hot stuff. Kind of handy if you feed the h
solid blocks of suet, etc.

Buy the largest biggest container of hot pepper powder you can find and add it to the bird seeds. Your local birds will thank you.

[LakeArenal]

10. Haha. It reminds me of:

We had moles. I took the hose and ran it down a hole and let it run for hours. Later my yard was like the human veins map. Swollen threads running through the yard. Did nothing to stop moles.

[Arkansas Granny]

13. I've never seen them or any signs until last night. I would be happy if they would just move on.

Someone up thread mentioned predator urine, which sounds promising.

[AndyS]

14. Try . . .

Cayenne pepper. Sprinkle it liberally in their den to encourage them to move and mix it heavily with the bird seed. Birds can't smell or taste the pepper so it has no effect on their feeding, mammals on the other hand . . .

You'll have to re-apply the pepper to the dens often enough to keep it fresh. Over time you can hopefully nudge them to a satisfactory location.

[Marthe48]

15. I had a mother and 3 young ones in the yard

But I think they have moved on. I haven't seen any under my building or in my yard for almost a week. Saw one dart under the neighbor's deck. I've been pet sitting a little dog since last Friday. Maybe that encouraged them to move on.

In our county in Ohio, Dept. of Natural Resources will kill them. No options. The ammonia soaked rags are supposed to make them leave. My friend had one under her porch last year, and used the rags. It was gone by the next day.

If you can put your seed and other goodies away, they might not have a reason to stay.

[kimbutgar]

16. My neighbor had this little siren that has an unusual frequency that drives them away

I haven’t seen them in my yard since she started using it.

[Kali]

17. I don't have experience with ground hogs but I do have

plenty (too much!) with lots of other rodents and small mammal pests. my usual rant is about using humane lethal means. I despise "trap and release" because too often it is just a fool-yourself, feel-good failure.

first line of "defense" is exclusion and reduction of attractants. this usually means care in feeding wildlife (or not doing it), securing garbage containers, feed containers, closing access points and good fencing. you can also try active deterrents (such as chemicals or water/electricity or natural predators).

when these invariably don't work 100%, removal becomes necessary. shooting or traps are the most effective tools. fast, humane, lethal should be the goal. nobody likes to kill cute cuddly critters, but they can carry parasites, disease, and are extremely destructive to structures and vehicles. they are mostly prolific breeders and are also prey animals in the natural order of things. when they are "released" they are highly likely to end up becoming either that prey, starving or stressed from the move, or a problem for someone else. I find that to be gutless and irresponsible.

[Bayard]

18. I agree with moving the bucket, or hang it up where they can't reach it

Take away their incentive.

One of the Pyr's killed the only groundhog we've had come inside the fence. Couldn't get it away from him, they're very territorial. We catch raccoons and possums in traps when they start getting into feed. They can't get in the barrels, but they go for the cat food, and tear up everything else.

We relocate the raccoons, but dispose of the possums. They carry and spread a nasty horse disease--EPM.

Around the chicken and goat pens, we have these battery-operated contraptions that come on at night to constantly flash 2 red lights. They simulate predator eyes. I would think they would work on a groundhog.

[Ferrets are Cool]

19. I use a container with a means to secure

The lid. That seems to be the easiest solution.

[Arkansas Granny]

24. I have the bird seed in galvanized pails with locking lids to keep squirrels out. I haven't been

locking the lids, just pushing them on, because it wasn't necessary for the squirrels, but I've got them securely closed now. They can't reach the feeders, but the birds do scatter some food on the ground, so they will probably find that. Since this is the first sign I've seen of the groundhogs, I'm hoping to make the area as inhospitable as possible so maybe they'll move on.

[FSogol]

20. Move the seed up so they can't get to it, then place moth balls round the area.

All critters hate moth balls.

[Arkansas Granny]

25. I'll get some mothballs. Tonight I'm going to saturate some cotton balls with

peppermint oil and stash them around the porch and foundation. I might try some soaked in ammonia, as well.

[FSogol]

26. Good luck, years ago, my Dad succeeded in chasing away groundhogs that were digging

under a concrete slab. He finally got them to move out and then a family of skunks moved in.

[Arkansas Granny]

27. I have regular visits from skunks as well as possums and racoons.

raccoons. Squirrels and bunnies are around every day. This is the first time ever seeing a groundhog.

[SWBTATTReg]

21. Well, good luck. My grandma would just run up to me, hand me the 22-cal rifle (we were in the

Ozarks), and yell at me to shoot the ground hog, usually munching on the grass and other garden goodies out by the outhouse. And we would use the 22-caliber rifle, which makes a lot of noise, which for the most part, scare the critter away. You have to be a really good shot to hit such a critter w/ a 22-cal. rifle (because if you tried getting any closer to shoot them, they'll run off). And if you're nervous about using a gun, perhaps use a BB gun instead. Some of the newer models have the range and power to actually hit one and discourage them from hanging around any longer (some models can handle rock salt too, instead of the metal pellets).

I don't know what else to tell you. And usually if you see one groundhog, there's more in the background that you haven't seen yet too.

Some people on this trend did suggest some good things to try, perhaps you'll have some good luck w/ that. There also are quite a few things on Amazon that you can buy too, repellent-wise, chemicals, sonic emitters, etc., but depending on how big your yard is, then it gets to be a little bit much to buy enough to work. Good luck!

[Emile]

28. I use shavings of Irish Spring soap

around my hosta plants to keep animals from tearing them up. You might try that around your bird seed.