ground hog rant

[nightshade]

Well I have shot three ground hogs in 2 days at the new farm. I have some apple trees still in their burlap and the BIG one keeps knocking them over and eating the leaves and chewing through the burlap and chewing on the root balls. I have been trying to get him for weeks while we are working over there. But it seems every time I see him I am either gunless or he is lined up with our animals. So the past 2 days when it has gotten to hot in the afternoon to put fence posts in, I have been sitting on my little bench by my goats hunting ground hogs. I have gotten 3 small ones but not the Big one and seen but not gotten a shot at another 4. The make me so mad not only do I not want them digging holes in my horse pasture but I want them to leave my trees alone til I can get the fence line in and them planted along the drive way.

 

[ams3651]

do you know the path he travels? We had a huge one under the shed behind the coop last year. We could see where he slid under after gorging himself on apples, so my son put a leg trap right there with apples around it, sure enough the next day we got him. He had to go about 20 pounds. Knock on wood, since he got him I havent seen any this year. In the winter when they were hibernating we threw a rodent bomb down the hole, maybe you could try that some night.

 

[Rosalind]

I put up wire "rabbit fence" real quick, and then staked it down with tent stakes every 2 feet. That seemed to work pretty well for both groundhogs and rabbits, although now both are eating my herb beds. Fortunately, they seem to prefer marjoram and mint! Think I got lucky there.