How to Get Rid of Ground Hogs?

Get Rid of the Things that Attract Them

The main reason why a ground hog will choose to burrow in a specific space, is because there’s likely to be something there that has attracted them.

Let’s use a garden or allotment as an example. There are a wealth of things typically found in the garden that would be ultimately appealing to a ground hog, and would cause them to want to burrow on your land.

These include, but aren’t necessarily limited to:

• Beans, peas, and melons. These are some of the typical ground hog’s favourite foods.
• Piles of debris, wood, and rocks. Pretty much anything they can use for shelter.
• Plants which are overgrown are typically used by ground hogs as shelter or to snack on, so trim these back.
• Wood is attractive to ground hogs, as they will gnaw on it and grind their teeth.

If you do happen to find any ready – made animal burrows in your garden or on your outdoor space, then a good way of getting rid of the creature in question is by filling the burrow with gravel.

Castor Oil

It might surprise you to hear that Castor Oil based mixtures make a great repellent, not only for ground hogs, but for moles and other burrowing creatures too.

• It’s a natural repellent, and is listed by some professional organisations as a great repellent for burrowers.
• It’s simple enough to make yourself if you don’t want to purchase a ready – made formula. All it includes is two cups of water, and half a cup of castor oil.
• Then, all you need to do, it put the mixture into a spray bottle or device, and distribute it wherever it is you want to deter the burrowers from visiting.
• This should be applied every two to three weeks, and should always be redistributed after it has rained.
• If you want a stronger mixture, try mixing one cup of castor oil, one and one quarter cups of hot sauce, and two cups of oil soap.

Fill the Space with Smells that They Don’t Like

As with all animals – and people, actually – there are certain smells that a ground hog will not like, and will therefore stay well away from.

The good news is, that the top three of these scents aren’t at all unpleasant to the human nose! They include:

Lavender

If you’re a fan of lavender, you may even already grow it in your garden.

• It’s great for an abundance of things, such as the aiding of sleep and the reducing of anxiety. It’s also great for deterring ground hogs.
• Plant lavender plants around your garden.
• Not only will it smell lovely and be useful for you in other ways, but it’ll also repel the ground hogs without harming them. Win – win – win!

Garlic

The chances of you already having some of this lying around the house, is probably quite high…

• Garlic has a strong smell, there’s no doubt about that. Ground hogs in particular find this to be unbearable.
• We would recommend using two or three garlic cloves, and very simply crushing them.
• Then, it’s as simple as spreading these around the areas which you don’t want the ground hogs to come to.

Cayenne Pepper

Last of all, but by no means least, we come to cayenne pepper.

• Due to the smell and heat of the pepper, ground hogs will stay well away.
• All you need to do is pour this kind of pepper over the holes and burrows the ground hogs are making.
• If you want to deter them from eating your plants, create a mixture which is water with two spoons of cayenne pepper dissolved into it. Simply spray your plants, and it’ll put them off.

Thanks for reading – and best of luck deterring those pesky ground hogs!