Groundhog trapping question

K

Kentucky Fisherman

New member
I'm trying to help out a widow lady in her 90s who let a groundhog "family" go just a little too far in burrowing under her garage. It's a fairly populated neighborhood, so the most I can do with a gun is one or two shots with a .22LR every week or so. I want to take a two-pronged, 24-hour approach by adding a live trap to the mix.

My question is whether any of you guys have bona fide firsthand experience live trapping groundhogs. If so, what bait worked and are there any tricks that may help? I'd prefer only firsthand experience because I've already had a couple of guys tell me things that are 180 degrees opposed, all the way from "No groundhog will enter a live trap" to "They're trapped pretty easy, just like a coon or a rabbit."

Thanks in advance, guys.
 
Make sure she doesn't have any small pets before you use conibers or snares.. I've made this mistake before and did not have a very happy person with her cat caught in a snare. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif Good luck. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif RR
 
Try using a leg hold trap in the mouth of the hole.
Groundhogs hate human odor so you need to set the
trap first then smoke the trap. Meaning put the trap
on a stick holding it over a burning paper box ,bag
etc.(hold it in the smoke only don't get the trap hot) Stake the traps chain down securly and place
trap in the hole.Hope this helps.
 
You can easly catch a groundhog with a cage trap,just be sure the trap hasn't had a Coon in it, Coon eat groundhogs, for Bait try sliced apples, strawberrys, brocilla,excuse my spelling, this was told to me by a person that has an ADC business says the apples are the best, Good luck
 
I use a scent I bought from Keshel's just for groundhogs and it really does get them in the cage, though lots of things will work. Good luck!
 
I have been running a adc business for 25 years and this time of year they will be got easy. you can use a eye apeal in the back of the trap like apple or pear. use a piece that they can see I use half a apple or what ever. then I put quarter size pieces at the front of the trap and space them in the trap to the trudle like laying down a trail with bait the rest that is left I smash on the top of the trap and let it sit there. I also use some lure that I make but you don't have to. also sprinkle alittle salt on the peices adds alittle. Place the trap front right at the den so the front is the first part of the trap it comes to then bait it in. Or if the den only has one entrance take a squirrel trap and stick it down in the den when the hog is in there mid day is best time or at night after dark some time they won't come out for a day or so. Oh and they will blow the back of the trap out somtimes.
 
Apples are by far the best. I grew up box trapping them and doing eerything possible to keep them out of the garden.

A sure fire way to drive them off by far the fastest and most productive is to take a garden hose and let it run. Depending on the depth and soil will dictate how long they will flush out. Be ready if you do not want them taking up residence nearby. Some screen the hole over to drown them others like myself in my childhood shot them between the eyes with a .22 pellet at point blank range. They always stop at the edge of the hole giving enough time for a shot just have the gun up otherwise they will see you move and you will have a running shot across the yard. 22 shorts would work great if I was to do this today. If they have two or more exits block them with large rocks and lots of dirt.

Last time I did this was when made it down its hole with a junk expandable broadhead the was fused half open so I figured it would do in the woodchuck in an area I can not shot a gun. So I hit it good in the shoulder but it made it down the hole and never did it penetrate thru the shoulder. So the garden hose came out to resue my carbon express arow and sure enough it came out the escape hole and I got it back as exited.

PS this works great on rats. I still do it in my bird pens. The rats are harder as they come flying out and do not stop so rat shot in the 22 is a must or just block and drown.

An alternative to drowning is smoke bombs sold in most agricultural stores. They market them for this use. Draw back is the smoke rarely fills the entire chamber. SO most farmers my way rig up an extension to the exhaust and run it down the hole and block up all exits. This is free except for the gas.
 


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