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San Diego

Alright, I got a gopher problem. A little history, been growing since 2001 and gotten pretty good at killing gophers. I have met my match. lol I have only one gopher, but he is the smartest I have ever met in all my years. Too many tunnels now to flood out and kill, tried it a bunch of times, tension set metal traps which always work have been used and failed. The gopher pushed the trap out of his tunnel and buried it. Staked trap down in tunnel, he buried trap and dug new tunnel around it. Tried poison, wouldn't touch it, tried different kind of trap from a friend, buried it, wouldn't touch it. Tried bait, etc, does not touch it.

He is a digging fool all over my patch lol. I am in the city in southern california, so no extreme ideas can be put forth or I go to jail. Ideas please? I don't have all day to sit out and wait for him, looking for any help on what can be done cheaply and legally to get this guy. He is quite amazing:) Thanks for the ideas. Jim

2/10/2018 8:14:58 PM

under ground exterminater

exaust hook up for vehicle to garden hose

2/10/2018 8:33:48 PM

Wixom MI.

I have always used live traps and i catch about 15 groundhogs a year.i never clean the crap out because they are drawn to each others stench like its honey !!! Also i try to find a hole they use in a fence to get into my garden or even their own tunnel that he uses and i try to funnel it to the cage opening by putting the cage to the opening as close as i can and then blocking the two side and maybe even the top if necessary. I find that when one breaks through my fence that the other ones will follow their sent through the same hole.good luck i have had some smart ones like you have that wont fall for anything but fortunately for me its alway the end of the season when i have gotten the super smart ones.

2/10/2018 8:55:57 PM

Wixom MI.

I have always used live traps and i catch about 15 groundhogs a year.i never clean the crap out because they are drawn to each others stench like its honey !!! Also i try to find a hole they use in a fence to get into my garden or even their own tunnel that he uses and i try to funnel it to the cage opening by putting the cage to the opening as close as i can and then blocking the two side and maybe even the top if necessary. I find that when one breaks through my fence that the other ones will follow their sent through the same hole.good luck i have had some smart ones like you have that wont fall for anything but fortunately for me its alway the end of the season when i have gotten the super smart ones.

2/10/2018 8:56:00 PM

Central NY

Set up a tent on top of his house....camp for a few weeks...go to the bathroom right down his front door...he'll move....

2/10/2018 9:11:25 PM

50 Acres

There are inlet holes and outlet holes for air. At the inlet hole pour gasoline. let the air current carry the fumes inside, a couple of minutes. not much gasoline. Stand back and lite with long torch. Whump, They will leave they hate the smell of burnt flesh.

2/10/2018 9:35:32 PM

50 Acres

Maybe this is too extreme, but it works.

2/10/2018 9:38:34 PM

Wixom MI.

Watch caddy shack good addvice their !!! :-)

2/10/2018 10:49:32 PM

Pittsburgh, PA

Luckily for me, I just send lead their way. Does the job every time. Good luck.

2/10/2018 11:39:52 PM

Colorado

Comfy chair,cold beer and pellet gun

2/10/2018 11:43:34 PM

Mill Bay, British Columbia

Find an exterminator that uses one of these:

http://www.rodentblaster.com/

2/10/2018 11:53:25 PM

Grittyville, WA

Have you tried a sonic/sound repeller? I also think they might be sensitive to very bad (to them) smells. Fill in tunnels with barbed wire or something. Kinda just annoy it away. Remove whatever it likes to eat/water source. If it’s smart... it will be smart enough to move. But... I’m no expert in being a nuisance, of course.

2/11/2018 12:31:26 AM

Lebanon, Oregon

I put made a large bird box for owls and put it 50 feet up in a tree. Sure enough barn owls moved in...for years. We had a mole problem and they pretty much exterminated them. Inspecting the owl pellets the bones were moles, voles and mice.

2/11/2018 12:51:09 AM

NILES , CALIF

Team Faith;
I had a couple of those caddy shack gophers; For me I got
2 of those black hole traps and placed them back to back
stuck a little piece of carrot in the hole, Got um

2/11/2018 8:33:38 AM

Ontario, Canada

The ground hog likely knows your scent & is avoiding everything that smells like it. That is why trappers boil their traps & only handle them with gloves on.

I like Jim's idea. Gas & ground hogs. Use lots for a great show.

2/11/2018 9:12:22 AM

Princeville, IL

Im with Jay on this one. I carry my 22 pistol with bird shot bullets ( like a mini shotgun) with me when I mow. If a see a gopher it usually runs into its hole and then sticks it head back out to see whats going on. Big mistake on his part. I know this would be difficult if not impossible in the city. Growing up on the farm I used to trap gophers ( ground squirrels for 4th of July money). I don't think you probably have access to the but I used #0 or #1 foothold traps. I would see a gopher hole and turn the trap upside down so when it poked it head out it hit the trap pan. no more gopher. Safe in town because the trap is upside down so nothing else can set it off. Caught a lot of gophers that way but they probably weren't as educated as yours is. Good luck.

2/11/2018 10:05:50 AM

Mn

I find the last tunnel and put some pool shock in it with a little water. Only need about a tablespoon. Cover with plastic then with a board. He will leave. Then take off the cover and plastic and leave open to air out for a couple of days. Never had a gopher in the yard when I had a pool.

2/11/2018 10:57:59 AM

San Diego

great ideas guys. I think I will try the exhaust from the car first! If I could shoot him, he would be dead already, he poked out one day but my .22 is a no go unless I want to have the police get called on me. lol Pellet gun will get the police called too these days where I live. I will let you know how things go. Jim

2/11/2018 1:27:54 PM

Wixom MI.

Find a car that is a good smoker ! Lol....

2/11/2018 2:22:19 PM

Partlow,Va

Another idea. Locate both holes. soak some toilet paper rolls with gas. Put them in the holes and push them in as far as you can with a long stick or something. seal both holes very good with plywood and dirt the edges.

2/11/2018 2:37:35 PM

Napa Ca.

Don youngs idea actually works the best for me also. I took an old pressure washer engine and converted the exhaust to a flexible metal hose. Let it run for about 20 minutes. A rodenator works pretty good also but does have its issues. One being it makes so much noise and that the neighbors want to beat the crap out of me. But the main problem with it is that it starts fires. Again, the neighbors weren't to happy with me when I burnt their fields.

2/11/2018 10:51:28 PM

Billerica,Massachusetts

get a break barrel pellet gun

2/12/2018 7:05:31 AM

Ontario

Get yourself a toy fox terrier / terrorist

2/12/2018 9:56:27 AM

San Diego

You guys think a gopher snake would work too? Get one and release it into hole? :)

2/13/2018 1:43:07 AM

Upa Creek, MO

Team Faith, your description brings me back to one of my favorite books as a kid and reminds me of the Ghost Coon.

What brand\type metal traps are you using? I've had Havahrt fail, but they eventually get the job done if you set them everynight and switch bait types. Sometimes the trap trigger plates get gunked up, so clean them out and make sure fully functional and setting with little weight... lil WD-40 won't hurt nothing. I even caught a sly Fox on a McDonalds cheeseburger once and he wasn't my target. Let him go immediately and he's back catching rodents to this day.

2/13/2018 8:23:59 AM

Partlow,Va

I like Don and Tim's solution with putting exhaust into the hole. Should work great this time of year when they are sleeping. Keep em sleeping for good.

2/13/2018 7:18:55 PM

Wixom MI.

I like the exhaust with the hose idea, but you better make sure you can find a hose that can take the heat of an exhaust pipe ??? It may just melt down or catch fire and you don't want a car fire ??? Sounds good but think it through !!!

2/14/2018 8:23:31 AM