Ground Squirrel and Prairie Dog Solutions

Getting rid of ground squirrel infestations can be challenging. From researching the best control methods to purchasing and implementing - there's room for error. 1 - Rodent Misidentification For example, if you put up an owl box thinking it will eliminate ground squirrel or prairie dog problems, you will be disappointed.  Ground Squirrels & Prairie Dogs are diurnal - most active during the day. Gophers are nocturnal - most active at night. Owl boxes are a good solution for gophers and mice because they attract owls and owls hunt at night when the gophers and mice are out. Owl Box Used to Control Gophers & Mice Over-populations 2.   Didn't Follow Instructions It's the middle of a hot summer day and you correctly identified the rodent pests as ground squirrels. You activated a gas cartridge and tossed it in one of their holes, covered it with dirt, and walked away assuming the problem is solved.  Checked back a few hours later... The R...

The BURROW BLOCKER is in the latest issue of FARM SHOW!  The article, "Burrow Blocker" Fills Gopher Tunnels with Sand, is an excellent summary of the Burrow Blocker machine and how it was developed by my dad, John, and my brother, Mike.   Those of you familiar with the Burrow Blocker, know that the article title is a little misleading. The Burrow Blocker is used to fill Ground Squirrel holes. Gophers tend to back-fill as they dig and often dig just under the surface. The Burrow Blocker is most effective on the holes of deep digging rodents with well defined tunnels.   What makes it all confusing, is that some people call ground squirrels, gophers. In Canada, the Richardson ground squirrel is often referred to as a gopher. The other problem is that sometimes people just don't know what is digging up their property. All they care about is that it stops! To learn the differences between ground squirrels and gophers, read my popular blog...

A magnificent sunrise walk with Daisy. Maintaining a lush and beautiful lawn can be a challenge. Some people are annoyed by the gophers criss crossing their yard with tunnels, and killing their grass along the way. Others are frustrated by the ground squirrels digging so many holes, that they've considered creating their own put-put golf course. I can help you find solutions to your burrowing rodent problems. Unfortunately, I have no idea how to deal with this new lawn destroyer. Who is this invader that is causing problems? Dogs. Actually, not every dog, just the female dogs. Apparently, this is such a serious problem in The Lakes community, in Discovery Bay, California, that in a recent newsletter, they advised residents to not let female dogs urinate on the lawns. I've never noticed it with my dogs, but I guess some people find that urine from female dogs, "stains" the lawn. (For the full article, read the Eye on the East Bay secti...

Do you know the difference between a Gr ound Squirrel and a Gopher ? If you are battling burrowing rodents on your property, after awhile you might just start channeling Carl Spackler, Bill Murray's character in the movie, Caddyshack. Remember when Sandy McFiddish, the head groundskeeper of the golf course told Carl, in his rich Scottish accent, "Carl, I want you to kill all the golfers on the golf course."? Carl replied, " Correct me if I'm wrong Sandy, but if I kill all the golfers they'll lock me up and throw away the key." Sandy yelled, " Not golfers, you great fool! Gophers, rodents! THE LITTLE BROWN, FURRY THINGS!" Carl replied, "We can do that. We don't even need a reason." Remember that destructive dancing gopher in Caddyshack? (Be patient...it has a long intro.)     Most of the people that visit this blog, do have a reason. They want those destructive diggers to just stop destroying ...

Last week, John and Trisha went to the Eco-Farm Conference in Pacific Grove. They came back with lots of useful information and some gopher traps. “The Farm Pest Animal Control Without Poisons” presentation by Thomas Wittman, from Gophers Limited, was a crash course on moles, voles and gophers and how to deal with them in an effectively green way. Check out www.gopherslimited.com for excellent videos on controlling moles, voles and gophers. Since the Burrow Blocker is designed for ground squirrel control, John is always on the lookout for a way to deal with gophers, moles and voles. When John got back from the conference, he went out at the ranch with his grandsons, and set a few cinch traps from Gophers Limited. In less than an hour, they had caught a gopher. Another way to deal with too many rodents, is to encourage natural predators to take care of them. Did you know that an owl family can eat more than 1,000 rodents per year? That’s a lot of gophers, voles and mice. Since...