Groundhogs can cause massive amounts of damage to your foundation. Groundhogs can excavate over 700 pounds of dirt when digging a single burrow and one single groundhog can have as many as 5 burrows in an area.
Groundhogs will use different burrows at different times depending on weather, predators, and food sources. A burrow can be anywhere from 8 to 40 feet long, have one or more exits, and typically contain one or more underground chambers. With so much potential damage, it’s natural for homeowners to question exactly how one is to keep groundhogs away.
There are certain steps you can take in order to make your property less groundhog friendly and prevent a groundhog problem in the future. Follow the steps below to keep groundhogs away.
Do a monthly visual home inspection of the exterior of your home.
You don’t have to be a home inspector to perform an inspection like this. You are just simply looking for things that look out of place or different than they were before. If you notice that there is a large hole around your porch, deck, or shed then you may have a groundhog living on your property. Typically groundhog burrows will have a large pile of dirt or pea gravel in front of them, however sometimes groundhogs may first crawl under a deck and then burrow next to the foundation. If this happens, it will be harder to see the large pile of dirt that has been excavated from the burrow.
Keep an eye out for groundhogs in the yard.
Groundhogs are active primarily during the daylight hours and can often be seen poking their head out of their burrow or eating at a nearby garden.
Make sure that shrubs are neatly trimmed and at least 2 feet away from the home.
This provides excellent cover for groundhogs and other ground dwelling nuisance wild animals to move around your property undetected.
Make sure that window wells around your foundation are covered.
This is a common place where groundhogs can fall in and may not be able to climb out.
Keep all bird, squirrel and deer feeders at least 20 feet away from home.
People love to watch the birds on their feeders and like to keep the feeders as close to the home as possible. However, this will attract groundhogs and many other nuisance animals that may burrow around your home.
If you feed your domesticated animals outside, always remember to bring their food bowls back in when they are done eating.
Groundhogs are herbivores and will feed primarily on plant matter, however, they will take advantage of an easily acquired pet food bowl.
Be sure to keep garbage picked up and inside the can.
If garbage is left out on the ground or in bags, groundhogs will take advantage of this prime food source.
Keep stacks of firewood at least 20 feet away from your home.
Woodpiles are excellent habitat for groundhogs and they will use these piles as a good backing for a groundhog burrow.
Even with all of the above, groundhogs can still be very persistent and may create burrows on your property. If you have ground hogs living under your porch, deck, or shed call the experts at Animal Remover for fast, effective, and humane groundhog trapping and removal.
For more information please visit our groundhog/woodchuck removal and control page.
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