Ground Squirrel and Prairie Dog Solutions

Everyone is experiencing stress during this COVID-19 Pandemic - even the rodents! No, they aren't freaking out because they have to wear little masks and shelter place. The problem is that we humans are not following our usual routines and they miss us. The ground squirrel's rodent relative and fellow pest, the rat, is on the move during this time of COVID-19. Rodents often rely on human food for survival and with restaurants closed and people staying home, rats and other rodents are challenged with finding new sou rces of food. Their usual dumpster buffets and trash can food carts are empty. It's gotten so bad for with the rats, that the CDC - Center for Disease Control, has issued a warning about aggressive rats seeking out food. For more ravenous rat info, check out the videos below: This video from Inside Edition has their "Rat Patrol" Reporters showing rats out in full force: Like their relative, the rat, ground squirrels haven't been obeying the Shelter ...

Ground Squirrels Do More Than Dig 1.  Ground Squirrels Climb Trees They don't spend as much time in trees as Tree Squirrels do, but they do run up trees to escape predators. Ground Squirrels also strip the bark of of young trees and eat fruit and nuts. 2.  One Acre of Land Can Be Home to 100 Squirrels It's like an over-populated underground squirrel city! Imagine all of the burrows and holes - and rodents! Large populations of ground squirrels lead to disease, erosion, and their holes are a dangerous liability. 3. Ground Squirrels are Cannibals They are not vegans. A small part of their diet is cannibalizing their own kind, and eating road kill. Quail and pheasant eggs are also on their menu. 4. Ground Squirrels Can Fight Snakes - and Win      (Warning - the video below shows an actual fight and it's violent & bloody.) 5. You Can't Trap & Release California Fish and Game Code specifies it is illegal to release ground squirrels elsewh...

Ever feel like you are raising ground squirrels? Like their mouse relatives, ground squirrels seek out farms and act like they own the place. They take over pastures, barns and even the animal pens. Llamas aren't into sharing their space with rodents. Even the calm and peaceful llama can be pushed over the edge by destructive ground squirrels. When the ground squirrel least expects it, the llama will chase after him and may even stomp him to death.  Llamas aren't known as an effective form of ground squirrel control, but with the proper training, this might be a lucrative business opportunity. LOL Ground squirrels also like farms because they can pick their own fresh food in the fields or steal food from the farm animals. Chicken feed is one of the favorites and they probably think of it as squirrel feed. Pay attention to how much food your chickens eat. They may not be the big eaters you think they are. Try putting up a surveillance camera and you may be s...

Chunky California Ground Squirrel - skipping hibernation and stealing food from the chickens. What happened to ground squirrels hibernating? We've all heard and maybe even read that California ground squirrels hibernate in the winter. Lately, it looks like the ground squirrels didn't get the memo to go underground and take a hiatus from their daily digging and destruction. Makes me wonder if those jittery squirrels discovered the magical powers of coffee? In Southern California, caffeine isn't the reason for all of ground squirrel activity - December is the beginning of mating season. That means, unless you do something about all of those ground squirrels, soon you'll have even more of the them to deal with.  Ground squirrels are out in the winter for different reasons. In higher elevations and colder areas, they are more likely to hibernate. In Northern California, the male ground squirrels, hibernate a month earlier than the females and young. The...

For Hay Growers, ground squirrels and prairie dogs impose frustrating, costly, and dangerous situations. Here are 4 reasons that make nice farmers hate ground squirrels: 1 .   A Bumper Crop of Ground Squirrels is Not the Goal Have you ever heard of anyone with a ground squirrel farm? There are too many farms that look like they are raising burrowing rodents. Predators like hawks, snakes and coyotes might think it's a good idea for a restaurant, but farmers don't have a use for them. If the area predators can't keep them under control, over-populations of ground squirrels and prairie dogs mean lots of hungry rodents devouring the hay. Besides eating away profits, these rodents pose a health risk to humans through the spread of disease, such as the plague. 2.  Ground Squirrel Mounds Dull the Cutting Blades When ground squirrels and prairie dogs dig burrows, they bring soil and rock to the surface. The end result is mounds of dirt near the burrow openings. The longe...

Let's talk about sex...ground squirrel reproduction that is.  The ground squirrel mating style is officially called: polygynandrous. That means they are promiscuous litter critters that mate with up to 4 others.  In California, breeding season runs from December - April. The further south, the sooner the ground squirrels start breeding. After 25-30 days gestation, the female has a litter of 1-15. Yes, you read it right...up to 15 ground squirrels! Fortunately for us and the female, they usually have 7-8 and only one litter per year. Now is the time to prepare for the new wave of destructive diggers. After 6 weeks of growing up in their burrow, the litters are starting to emerge from their nests.  Young Ground Squirrels begin to burrow as early as 8 weeks. The young look like miniature lighter colored versions of the adults. They stay near the nest until about 6 months of age. Then young ground squirrels will move into old...

People like to share with me their "Do It Yourself" Remedies for Ground Squirrels. Here are a few that I've recently heard. I can't guarantee if they work, but they're at least creative! Home Remedies for Ground Squirrels & Prairie Dogs GUM - Not ordinary gum, but Bazooka Bubble Gum. You know, the hard squares of gum that as a kid almost broke your jaw on the first bite?  Once a week, this guy's neighbor puts 1 square of Bazooka gum in every ground squirrel hole on his property. He has almost 100 holes, so I doubt if he takes the time to read the comics wrapping each gum square. The neighbor says it works well at eliminating the young ones because they can't digest the gum. According to an expert, Jim Knight, a Montana State Extension Wildlife Specialist . "Bubble gum might sometimes clog a ground squirrel's intestines or burst its stomach, but no one has conducted scientific studies on its overall effectiveness. It's hardl...

Ground squirrel holes! They can destroy beautiful landscaping and make athletic fields and pastures hazardous. Ground squirrel holes are much more than an unsightly nuisance, they can cause serious injuries. How do you get rid of ground squirrel holes?  Often people grab a shovel and start pushing the dirt surrounding the hole back in. That's usually not enough dirt on the outside, so they get more dirt and keep shoveling it in until it looks full. Surprise! The next day the hole is back. After trying dirt, rocks are often the next choice. Again, the next day, the hole is often back.  Why doesn't filling in ground squirrel holes using a shovel work? Shoveling in the holes is often unsuccessful, because the ground squirrel is hiding in a lower portion of the tunnel system and they dig their way out. What is the best way to fill ground squirrel holes? The Burrow Blocker machine is a fast, easy, and effective way of filling in ground squirrel holes.The patented ma...

CONGRATULATIONS Garrett,  from Lemoore, CA! WINNER of a  $250 Bass Pro Gift Card  from the World Ag Expo 2015 Burrow Blocker Booth Drawing. Thank you to everyone who stopped by our Burrow Blocker booth last week at the World Ag Expo in Tulare, California! More than 100,000 people attended this year's 3 day event. Mike and I met some of the nicest people. People visited us from Canada, New Mexico, Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, Utah and of course, California. They all work hard and love their animals. One of their big problems is dealing with g round squirrel or prairie dog infestations. The rodents carry disease, eat their crops, and dig dangerous holes throughout their property. Besides the financial loss, they worry about someone getting hurt, their horses or cattle getting injured, or damage to their equipment and irrigation.  Mike and I are happy that we can provide a solution that gets rid of the burrowing rodents and t...

The Burrow Blocker marketing team consists of me. That means I am the crazy person always taking pictures of ground squirrels and holes. Those darn squirrels are everywhere until I click to take a picture. Often, I'll pull over next to a field overrun by ground squirrels. They are busy chasing each other and racing all over the field. As soon as I look through my camera lens, they disappear into their holes!  It's much easier to just take photos of their numerous holes. The problem with that is that it's tough to make a photo of a hole interesting. That's why I often have pictures of dogs, horses or kids next to the holes. They are much more photogenic and usually more cooperative. Speaking of cooperation...in preparation for the World Ag Expo , I needed to design some new posters for our booth. Last Friday, was a lovely clear day at the ranch and my plan was to get some photos of the horses in the pasture. No matter what I did to get their attention, Casino and Wi...

There's lots happening at Burrow Blocker ! This morning, Mike woke up to an adorable little surprise at the ranch. We didn't know the Mama Llama was expecting. This cute cria turned out to be a special New Year's gift. Now the big questions is, what to name her? Please send me your name ideas. The other big news is that Burrow Blocker will have a booth this year at the World Ag Expo in Tulare, CA. Mike has attended the Expo for many years, but this will be the Burrow Blocker's and my first time there. We are excited to introduce the "world" to the Burrow Blocker machine.  Please stop by and visit Mike and me at Booth #5017 in Pavilion E. The ground squirrels have sure enjoyed the December rains. They've been out on the sunny days and eating away. We've started getting lots of calls from Southern California people frustrated by the ground squirrels and their dangerous holes. Their breeding season has begun and they are on ...

Squirrel Busters Organic Squirrel Abatement consists of the dynamic duo of Mark and Wyatt Trost. They are a father and son team that won the ground squirrel battle on their own land in Chowchilla, California. Their almonds and grapes are safer and are they are out saving others from those dastardly diggers! Read about Wyatt's ground squirrel experiences: Wyatt Trost checking the sand level in the Burrow Blocker hopper. "When I first heard about the Burrow Blocker machine, squirrels were already a major problem in our field. My dad and I had tried a variety of things from stuffing a flare down the hole to different poisons. I remember the last method we tried before finding the Burrow Blocker. When we found a hole in the ground and we stuck a pellet in it. This pellet had some fancy scientific name that I can never seem to remember. When it came in contact with moisture it would turn into a gas. I found it fascinating, but the gas was just as deadly to us as to the s...

Ground Squirrel Control Never Takes a Holiday   Rocky, the Ground Squirrel Hunter, working in the Burrow Blocker office. Did you notice that ground squirrels are still busy destroying crops, landscaping, and causing other costly problems?  At Burrow Blocker, we have been inundated with calls and emails from people struggling to eradicate the ground squirrels on their property. It's December already! Don't these devouring, diggers ever sleep?   Someone needs to let the California Ground Squirrels know that the nature books and websites say that they hibernate for several months of the year. Some ground squirrels, like the Piute, in Idaho and Wyoming, hibernate for around 8 months. Actually, they often go from summer estivation, straight to hibernation. Why can't it be like that here? On second thought, I've talked to people in Idaho with ground squirrel problems. For only being awake 4 months a year, they create...

Do you have nightmares from spending too much of your time and thoughts dealing your ground squirrel problems? In honor of Halloween, the next time you hear the chirping of a squirrel in the distance, here's a little something to haunt you even more. Surprise! Squirrels aren't the gentle little vegans we like to think they are. Actually, most of this blog's readers don't think of them as gentle because they have witnessed how destructive ground squirrels have been to their crops, landscaping and irrigation hoses. Some of us have also heard that they are known to spread the bubonic plague, but we never imagined them eating... MEAT! Yes - Meat! At first, I heard of squirrels eating worms, which really didn't bother me that much. Then I heard about them munching on mice. That might make the feral cats at my ranch mad, but they'll get over it. Hearing about them eating lizards was a little troublesome, but they pushed me over the edge when I ...

   What do you think of my friends? Gizmo, Charlie, Hannah and Godiva, graze and guard our pasture. Chances are, if something is happening at the ranch, they are in the middle of it. They play with their big red ball, chase the sheep, and they are very vocal when we they think they aren't getting enough attention. Those little donkeys get away with a lot because they are so darn cute!   Ground squirrel holes can literally be a pain or much worse for equines. When we choose to have animals in our lives, it is our great responsibility to make sure they are healthy and safe. That includes regular vet visits, worming, checking their fencing and preventing injuries. The last thing we want is for one of our horses or little donkeys to get hurt.   Fall is officially here! Out here in Northern California, the fall colors are not as brilliant as they are east of us. Actually, where we live, if the area isn't irrigated, it's pretty much just dry ...