Removing a Groundhog Under My Shed, Deck, or House

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Groundhogs may find the area under the deck or shed hospitable enough to burrow and make a home. You may resort to using a simple solution to get rid of them, but be warned – this could be short term. Trapping and removing the animal is one of the options that you have, but after this another animal could move in in the future. There are so many kinds of animals that love to live within a burrow and if they find a vacant one under the deck or shed, they will definitely take advantage of it.



What you should do is install a barrier for exclusion. You need a fence made of steel mesh and it needs to go around the perimeter of the deck or the shed. This mesh also has to go around 18 inches beneath the ground and the bottom should curve outward. This is the only way in which you can ensure that groundhogs will not be able to dig beneath it. Installing such a fence in the correct way and immediately removing the animal can be really helpful in making sure no other animals make a home there. You can also set up the fence with the animal still living in the burrow, but install a one way device to make sure that it leaves. This device will allow the animal to leave but it cannot make its way back in.

Even though they seem like cute animals, groundhogs can pose a great problem when living under your deck or shed. The damage can be witnessed all over your property, and it is best if you avoid it all costs. Burrowing under the deck or shed possess a big issue to the entire structure. This is because they will create a very extensive tunnel network underneath and this can cause the structure to give way because of instability.

Don’t damage the burrow by trying to dig into it or even trying to seal the exits, because these options aren’t effective. The animals can also be quite defensive when it comes to the burrows and you may aggravate the animal to the point where it attacks if you try to destroy its home. You could end up with a very nasty bite. Even if you seal the exits, the animal will still dig itself out without any trouble at all.

You need to get the groundhog removed as soon as possible to make sure that the structure of your deck or shed isn’t compromised. Read more about groundhog trapping here.



Will repellents get a groundhog out of the shed or porch? What will?

There are simple solutions when finding ways to get the groundhog out of your shed or porch. But there are also some problems like having them come back in the future. Critters like skunks and groundhogs love your shed or porch. They could stay and inhabit the place as if it is their home.

Will repellents ward them off? Sometimes it is not that easy to get rid of these animals using repellents. The smell of a spray, like a perfume, will wear out and you will be left with nothing but the groundhogs’ continued presence. They like to burrow to create their home, and installing a barrier will be more effective than using a repellent.



You need to build a fence, a physical barrier, rather than just use a repellent you purchase in the store. However, the problem with a fence is that these animals could dig deep. Yes! They could likely enter your yard from the ground below the fence. Thus, you have to make sure that your fence is also deep enough. At least give it a 15 inch depth so that a groundhog will not able to dig through it.

There are also lethal solutions like poisoning the groundhog, but this is highly discouraged because it will cause more harm than not. Try not to infiltrate the burrow in case you detect that these groundhogs live there. Their instinct would be to attack your presence and they could actually bite you with their sharp teeth. Furthermore, groundhogs may also damage your porch, so you really need to be careful when dealing with these animals.

When you use live traps, you need to find a solution that will enable them to stay alive while waiting for their relocation away from your property. Also, when you find it difficult to capture or repel the animals, make sure that you contact an expert that can do the job for you.

It is best to prevent their presence than to have to repair your burrow or porch. Thus, setting traps and building a fence will be a great idea before they actually inhabit your area. Always keep an eye out for groundhogs and make sure you contact a wildlife removal service when you think you are not able to handle it by yourself. Keep in mind that there are many more effective and safe solutions other than using repellents.

Read an article about Why do groundhogs hibernate? or go back to the main how to get rid of groundhogs page.

Groundhogs are often opportunists when it comes to choosing a nesting spot, and while their dens do have an extensive range of tunnels and escape routes, they will often use a cavity that is already present as the base for this den. This is why many such animals cause problems beneath a shed or porch, where a cavity will already have been dug beneath these parts of the domestic property. When it comes to removal of the groundhog, there are several options that you can try to use, with some having greater success than others in solving your groundhog problem.



Live Trapping And Removal Of The Groundhog

Using a cage trap is one of the most common ways of actually catching the groundhog, but it is important to be considerate about the location of the trap, as if you put it directly over the entrance to the tunnel it will often prove ineffective. What you will need to do is to place the trap just a short distance outside the groundhog's main tunnel entrance, but not so close that it arouses suspicion in the animal. There are many foods that can be used as bait for the trap, and once captured you may be able to relocate the groundhog depending on the local regulations.

Using Lethal Traps To Kill Groundhogs

This option can prove to be an effective one, and in some areas you will find that local government has restrictions about relocation or transport of pest animals, which make lethal traps a more attractive option. These traps can be placed over the entrance of the animal's tunnel, although it is worth practicing setting the trap before you install it, as this can be difficult to get right.

Can You Use Poison To Get Rid Of Groundhogs?

There are many people whose first instinct when they are dealing with a pest animal is to lay out poison to try and kill the animals that are causing the problem. While common animal poisons will often work in terms of killing the groundhog, using this approach is not only cruel and unnecessary, it is also going to cause more problems. Because the groundhog will have an extensive tunnel system it will be very difficult to locate the carcass, and in many cases the smell of this decaying will attract more pest animals that can cause further problems.