How to Get Rid of Groundhogs

Groundhogs or woodchucks (Marmota monax) can turn months of hard work in your garden into a mess of half-eaten vegetables. This article will teach you how to get rid of these unhelpful garden intruders but be sure to check local wildlife regulations before doing anything.

Ammonia-in-the-hole method

1. 1
   Choose a sunny day to perform your groundhog ridding operation. Sunshine will allow the groundhogs to come out of their holes/burrows.
   
   
   
2. 2
   Take about two and a half cups of Sudsy Ammonia. Sudsy Ammonia is also called cloudy ammonia.
   
   
   
3. 3
   If Sudsy Ammonia is not available, you can make your own for this task.
   
   
   
   • Take a glass container. Add about quarter cup of water.
   • Add about 2 tablespoons of detergent (or soap) to the water and stir.
   • Take two cups of regular ammonia (available in pharmacies, etc.), and add this to the solution of detergent/soap. This is now a very very close substitute for Sudsy Ammonia.
4. 4
   Pour the mixture in the hole or burrow where the groundhog lives. Pour it so that much of the liquid can flow deep into the hole.
   
   
   
   • It is recommended to wear gloves when pouring the substance.
5. 5
   Leave the area alone. Sometimes the groundhogs will start leaving if they were inside. If there are young ones present, then the process takes longer, as the mother groundhog will first find a new home and then take the young ones along.
   
   
   
6. 6
   Observe occasionally to be reassured that the home has been abandoned.
   
   
   
7. 7
   If, on the next day, you still see some activity, repeat the process.
   
   
   
8. 8
   Continue the process as long as you see activity but do give a minimum of a few hours or a maybe a day's gap between repeat pourings. Again, only do so on sunny days, to give the groundhogs a fair chance to re-home without problem.
   
   
   

Have-a-heart trap method

Trapping and relocation may be an option in some areas but check local laws first as doing this is illegal in some US states.

1. 1
   Buy or hire a humane "have-a-heart" trap. Check stores such as Lowes or Home Depot. These traps are low cost.
   
   
   
2. 2
   Set the trap about 50 feet away from the groundhog hole.
   
   
   
3. 3
   Put lettuce leaves, apples, bananas, or other fruits in the back of the trap.
   
   
   
4. 4
   Check morning and early evening. When you catch a groundhog, put gloves on and place the cage on a piece of cardboard in the back of your car.
   
   
   
5. 5
   Release the groundhog in woods that are a few miles from your house.
   
   
   
6. 6
   It takes a week or two to catch all of them, but you get the peace of mind that they were not injured in the process.
   
   
   

Tips

• Epsom salts can be strewn around and in holes to deter groundhogs. This is an easy method but it requires reapplication after rain or water-sprinkling.
• Remove all cover, such as tall grass, piles of junk, tall weeds, etc. Groundhogs like cover, so when you remove it, you provide a deterrent against them using your garden space.
• Use motion to scare away groundhogs. Place moving objects around the garden space you'd like to protect, such as CDs hanging from a branch, windmills that turn in the breeze, flapping small scarecrows, etc.
• Plant some alfalfa to lure them away from your crops. They'd rather eat that than anything except maybe apples.

• Fence off the garden area. This is another approach to protecting a garden space but the fence will need to go under the ground as well as be reasonable high, as groundhogs can both climb and tunnel.[1] Fencing can be a humane and useful option for living in harmony with your local wildlife.

Warnings

• Chemicals may be illegal for use on wildlife, read the product label. Also check your local wildlife and pest control regulations before trying to remove wildlife.
• Ammonia is to be handled carefully. Read the instructions on the container.
• Do not try any of these actions in winter as the animals cannot find a new home to quickly move to.
• Poisonous gas cartridges can be used but this will kill the groundhog and they also need very careful handling. Since these contain carbon monoxide, they should never be used near human dwellings or buildings.

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