How to Get Rid of a Woodchuck
- 1). Modify the woodchuck habitat in and around your home and gardens. Eliminate brush
piles and overgrown areas that they like. - 2). Install fencing made of heavy poultry wire or 2-inch mesh woven wire at least 4 feet high. To keep woodchucks from climbing over or digging under fencing, bury the bottom of the fence 10 to 12 feet below ground.
- 3). Use natural predator odor repellent. For example, Cornell University Cooperative Extension found that bobcat urine sprayed on the base of apple trees reduced woodchuck gnawing by 98 percent relative to untreated
trees. - 4). Hang scarecrows and other effigies in your field or yard . They can provide temporary relief from woodchuck damage. Move them regularly and incorporate a high level of human activity in the susceptible area.
- 5). Set live traps as a last resort near burrow entrances with bait of apples, cantaloupe, carrots with tops, lettuce, cabbage or fresh peas. Relocate the trapped animal if possible.
- 6). Treat burrows with gas cartridges of carbon monoxide, also as a last resort, in the spring before the young emerge. Ignite and place in burrow systems after all entrances are sealed with folded up newspapers and packed soil.
