I've got moles! Gaack! How do I get rid of them?

[supernova]

Any good tactics?

I went out into my front yard today and noticed that the ground was especially squishy... dry squishy around a cluster of azaleas and camelias that sort of hide camouflage my heat pump box.

I'm really afraid they are going to get into the heat pump equipment.

How do I get rid of the little varmints?

[Recursion]

1. Whackamole NT

[ogneopasno]

2. We did the gas bombs a couple times, and it helped a little tiny bit.

Sitting up at night with a .22 and a flashlight is said to be the best.

I sympathize. They are tenacious, destructive little buggers.

[matt819]

3. Jack Russells

No moles, no mice, no porcupines, and only the occasional bear.

[DemReadingDU]

12. get a beagle

our beagle caught moles in our yard, and a chipmunk

[DBoon]

19. get a pit bull

they love chasing small furry critters

I know someone who swore by them for gopher control

[Cirque du So-What]

4. Humane traps are probably the best choice

but I got rid of them in my yard by pouring used cat litter all around their burrows.

[Grinchie]

34. I guess you're not worried about Histoplasmosis then...

Cat feces carries the disease Histoplasmosis which will cause birth defects if it is contracted by pregnant women. The most common vector is digging in the garden where cats have defecated.

I recommend that you avoid contaminating your garden as a precaustion to spreading this very common disease to some innocent and uneducated passerby, such as children who might play in your yard.

Bury that stuff in a pit like any other infectious waste. 1 meter deep at the least.

[Muttocracy]

5. some ideas here, though I like the cat litter idea from the ealier reply!

http://www.extension.org/pages/Mole_Damage_Management

[hlthe2b]

6. Rent Caddyshack?

sorry, couldn't resist...:evilgrin:

[MnFats]

7. I have them also. Slay them without mercy.

Here is something I tried toward the end of the season and I couldn't tell for sure but it seemed to have some effect (will try a more definitive program next spring if they're still around. Get several bottles of liquid Irish Spring soap and pour it down the most active holes.
I don't know if it's the heavy scent (unbearable on humans, if you ask me) or what.
might be worth a try, hun? at least you could make life unpleasant for them.

To make matters worse, I have a blind dog. he can only growl forlornly while they taunt him.

[Tammie]

8. Fox Pee

I got rid of groundhogs using this stuff. Apparently, it works for moles too. Worth a try.

http://www.critter-repellent.com/mole/getting-rid-of-ground-moles.php

I also keep raccoons away with coyote piss after they broke into my gable vent. I got piss in my basement to repel just about anything that comes to my doorstep. LOL

[Kali]

9. moles are ok in my book (insectivores)

gophers are the bastids I can't stand. Cats keep 'em in check.

[RoyGBiv]

10. Lawn chair ...

Ice chest. .22 rifle.

Seriously, though, it's not an easy process, and the .22 method is only really effective for working out murderous impulses and aggression ... not that there's anything wrong with that.

To really get rid of them, you have to identify their active tunnels and set up traps ... and then figure out what to do with them once trapped, which is generally even more difficult than the actual trapping. I can't help you there. You might contact the local humane society to see if they have any suggestions where you live, but by and large, killing them is going to be the result whether you do it yourself or not.

I lived in a house built on a pasture for a couple years, and the land owner and I spent two seasons trying to get rid of the moles that showed up. The most we succeeded in doing was forcing them to move.

They eat worms primarily. Do you water your lawn a lot? You can try changing their habitat by letting the area dry up if that's an available option where you are.

[jules1962]

23. Humane societys are for domesticated animals

They are stretched to the limit just handling dog and cat issues. They do not have the funds or the manpower to take care of problems such as this.

[RoyGBiv]

24. I'm aware of that ...

The people at the Humane Society tend to have better knowledge of these things and can point you in the direction of where to go locally to get some assistance.

Or at least they could where I lived.

[ben_meyers]

11. Pitch fork!

Usually I use a worm and grub killer to eliminate their food source, it may take a while.

Meantime use a lawn roller to pack down the trails then wait for them to start moving again. Lead them by a few inches and then fork 'em.

[Grinchie]

35. Thats a Mole -- You want those....

It's kind of scary that only one poster here mentioned the difference between Moles and Gopher, and the majority is bent on using Soaps, Poisons, Animal Scents extracted from some other predator, .22 long rifle, camping at night when they are not nocturnal, etc.

First of all, Identify your creature before you declare war. Secondly, the hammer is not always the best solution. You could also try planting more to offset the loss.

Thirdly, destroying a Mole to save a lawn is so stupid that I have to cry. Grass is so cheap and easy to grow, why on earth would you want to kill a miracle of evolution so save a lawn that will survive until the next century with or without you?

People need to step back and take a breath and think out things more.

[Muttocracy]

13. some gadgets:

http://www.gemplers.com/compare/mole-repellents

[tularetom]

14. We had 'em years ago in a pasture

I borrowed my neighbor's D6 and pulled a ripper though there and trashed their burrows. I either smooshed a lot of them or scared them away because they never came back.

Gophers I can shoot but moles - no way.

[femmocrat]

15. Dermatologist?

Sorry! ;)

Actually I thought moles were beneficial as they eat the Japanese Beetle grubs. The squishy places go away after awhile. We have them too.

[JohnnyLib2]

16. They won; I lost. We coexist.

Sometimes we watch Caddyshack and find peace of mind again.

[lordsummerisle]

17. Put sticks of Juicy Fruit gum down their tunnels

and they'll never come back...

:rofl:

[Liberal Gramma]

18. I had them too

I had to call a molecatcher. It took about six months to catch them but I haven't seen them for a couple of years now. They eat insects and grubs, so spraying your lawn to kill pests might help. Pepper compounds did nothing, and a garden hose in the molehill did nothing. You might get a cat--cats hunt moles and when the moles figure out there's a cat at home, they find another yard to destroy. Good luck!

[busybl]

20. oil of peppermint

on cotton balls. Drop them down the holes. they will go away

[juno jones]

21. Cat.

If you're not into a housepet, adopt a feral or farm cat or two from the pound. They often come pre-neutered. We had a female for awhile that adopted us on her wanderings and she was literally murder on the moles in our yard.

[unhappycamper]

22. I'd call the 3rd BCT permantently stationed in the US.

Get a flight of A-10s loaded for bear. A few passes with the 30 mm depleted uranium gattling gun should soften them up a bit. Then cluster bomb the shit out of them. Follow that up with some laser-guided 500 lb JDAMs.

If you're still having problems, a B-52 Arc Light mission should clean up the left overs.

Of course depleted uranium slugs have a half life of 4.5 billion years and the cluster / JDAMs may make a mess of your front yard, but thosr critters should be toast.

[hipneck]

25. Natural method

There's a plant that repels them pretty effectively if you use it as a border. It's this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopher_plant

There's a bunch growing in our garden, though we didn't know what it was.

We left it alone when planting, because my wife thought the "alien pod plant" just looked cool.

Recently I started researching gopher prevention, and realized that it's the fabled gopher plant. Sure enough, the only part of our garden without gopher mounds is where these plants are growing. I managed to save a few hundred seeds and will be planting borders around the beds.

The plant is toxic to many animals, and may irritate your skin. Most herbivores are pretty smart about not eating poison plants, but you might want to wear gloves if you handle it.

[Grinchie]

36. Gopher Plant, although pretty, does not work so well

It's more of a several year approach, but the plant is a nice ornamental.

They are very hardy, and will become established easier than arundo grass Lol

[RedLetterRev]

26. I've had good success with Solar Molers

and a curious cattledog. She's a good ratter and the solar moler has kept them away.

Haven't had much luck getting rid of the toads though, ugh. Nothing seems to deter them and they keep rooting in the mulch around my azaleas. When I see them out I usually smack 'em with a shovel.

I'll try the fox pee for the groundhog. He seems to know when I've got the .22 handy, the li'l bastid. I'm usually too busy for the lawn chair and ice chest, though that sounds like a lovely afternoon.

[Kali]

27. oh, don't kill toads

they are so good to have around

[RedLetterRev]

28. They're welcome to live anywhere else

but around the roots of my azaleas. They've already burrowed down and killed two of my ever-blooming doubles. Down in the blackberry arbor, yes. In the veggie-garden, yes. But when they kill my azaleas, they go join 'em.

Now about that groundhog under my shed (sigh). I hope the foxpee works.

[Citizen Number 9]

29. Nothing works... ...except...

Traps.

Dogs, cats, flooding, stomping, digging, explosions, smoke, gas bombs, electronic gadgets; none of it works except by luck.

The only thing that works for sure is the little metal traps that you dig into a tunnel, set and wait.

My favorites are the ones made of spring steel with an extension that has two steel prongs curved into half circles that "scissor" together when sprung.

Best to get two in order to cover both sides of the tunnel that you dig into.

Cover your excavation with the set trap inside with an upside down "muck bucket" in order to protect the ambush scene from curious local animals who might want to poke their snoot into the danger area.

It's the only way.

[Mad_Cow_Disease]

30. Bubbleicious Bubblegum - not kidding

Moles cannot digest bubblegum. It will kill them somewhat quickly. Be sure not to touh the actual bubblegum as your scent will deter them. Simply walk around and flag near each hole you find. You'll miss some holes... oh well. Then go around to the holes and drop a piece of unwrapped bubblegum into the hole being sure not to touch the bubblegum with your fingers.

Problem solved.

Another option may be rat poison (an extreme anticoagulant) ... but that might be cost prohibitive and dangerous to pets.

[supernova]

31. You know, this is crazy enough to try.

I like it.

:D

Thanks for the tip.

[plantwomyn]

32. Set traps.

Then use Milky spore to kill the grubs. Reapply over one year and grubs will be gone. With no food source moles will not return.

[Grinchie]

33. Moles are carnivores, Gophers eat roots.

First of all, if you have Moles, keep them. They do a lot of work for you by turning the soil and preparing it for plants that would otherwise not have a chance. Moles tunnel just underneath the surface and will rarely go deep underground.

Gophers on the other have are a real problem. They will eat all your oniond, bulbs and other tasty greens. Gopher runs are very deep normally. Baby Gophers can "Bark".

I used to marvel at watching the gophers pull entire plants under ground while I was sitting around the garden.

When I saw that, I grabbed a big spade and dug it up and smack em down. Replant uprooted veggies after. Simple, effective, and labor intensive. Repeat as needed. Removing one can be the difference between a good crop and devastation.

Gophers are KOS.