Gopher/ Mole

[Big Dog]

I am not sure which one I have but it or they are destroying my lawn.

How do I get rid of there things. [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img]

[Ifishsum]

12 gauge early in the morning.... :grin: won't make any friends in the neighborhood though.

[WaterDog]

Mole pushes up a mound.

Gopher pushes dirt in a fan shape then plugs the hole.

I get them with a lawn mower. Hook a hose the the exhaust and let the mower idle for tank of gas. Works everytime for me. Farm stores have traps. .22 works on gophers if your patient. Shotgun for moles as mentioned. :grin: (not in town) The gas bombs are worthless. They have never worked for me.

[Big Dog]

Must be a mole then. I have mounds all over the yard.

I just bought this house and if I go runnin around the yard with the shootgun I don't think I will be impressing the new neighbors.

How long do they stay in the area of a new mound?
Do I have to be right there to gas them when they come up?

[Gus Orviston]

I have had luck doing all the above. The great thing with a mole is that they tend to live alone, not in colonies. One mole will extend its tunnel over 80+ feet. The good part is, once you get him,,, there aren't a bunch more.

gus

[Spotted Owl]

Only two ways to go traps or baits. For me the flares,exhaust, these only seemed to serve the purpose of one hell of an aphrodeseac (sp). after that we had them little buggers every were in the lawn. At the farm stores the should have scissor type traps these have worked the best for me. put your hand in the hole to find out witch way it travels. Then move along the tunnel about 3 feet, dig a hole just big enough for the trap. Put a small chunk or ball of dirt in the hole, then set the trap and lower it in gently with the small piece of dirt in the middle. Make sure that you dug enough so the trap jaws don't interfear with the tunnel. The piece of dirt is so they have to push it out of the way, this causes them to release the trap and from either direction you will get them. The space in the middle between the jaws is about as wide as your fist. As far as bait goes shad,bullhead or pieces of any garbage fish work well, every time you see a new hole jam some fish in and close the hole bach up but not to tight or they will come back and push it out they use the holes for air circulation that is why the dirt is so loose. Hope this helps and good luck may take a while so stick with it.

[WaterDog]

No you don’t need to be right there.That is why I use the lawn mower. If you have a lot hills then there are lots of runs and it takes time for the fumes to get into all the nooks and crannies. Sometimes it takes a couple of “applications”. The longer the mower runs the better. Those gas bombs just don’t burn long enough IMO.

Dig into a fresh hill and get it where the hole is free of dirt. Stick the hose down the run and cover it up. You might need to get creative as to how to hook a hose to a mower exhaust.

I’m not claiming to be an expert but it has work for me the past. Good luck.

[Fshklr]

uncover and place Dog Poo into the hole and recover...It has done the job for me everytime!

[Pete]

Where's "Moleman" when you need him?

[lost_sailor]

I got one with a pitchfork once. I sold my house, should have listed "molarium" as a feature but decided not to.

Traps didn't work, gas bombs didn't work.

Dogs, cats are effective.

Here's one suggestion I got that sounded OK:
"Lawn chair, half case of beer, and a .22"

moleman

[ 06-18-2003, 04:58 PM: Message edited by: lost_sailor ]

[Barviewrocks]

I use traps like sled. The only other thing I can add is to cover the trap and water the area to make the ground soft. When you get one, it is kind of like hooking a fish ;-). I guess I am not catching enough recently....

[Fshklr]

Send in the big guns!!!!

Sounds like a job for SUPER SQUIREL!

[Dipnet]

Waterdog is right about the exhaust trick. My Dad lives on a farm and he hooks up a hose to the exhaust of his Bobcat and gasses them. It does work!!

Dipnet :grin:

[Birdnest]

Fshklr--

I thought I was the only one that did that. My wife just shook her head in disgust. :grin:

BTW, I have a big lab if anyone needs some "molebegone", you pay the shipping. :tongue:

Birdnest

[chummer]

I REALLY like lost sailors idea [img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img] An old guy told us to clear the mound, re-open the hole and wait nearby. He said moles don't like a breeze in their tunnel so they will come back and re-seal the opening and thats when you nail em.

[Chrome Bumper]

Step on the hill. Next morning some will change. These are active mounds.
Use a scissor type trap or two.
They need to be on the runs, which you can find by digging around the hills. Disturb as little soils as possible.
Don't get human scent all over. sprinckle dirt around the trap in the hole and cover with a pot or bucket. Move the traps evry couple days if no strikes. Might take a week but you will get them.

PS don't leave the varmit outside in the trap to show off to the cat. Raccoons love moles and will carry off your trap with it. (Happened twice)

[ampersat]

when i bought my house two some odd years ago, the neighbor had a big problem with moles. now, his lawn looks fine and i have the mole problem. if those gas bombs aren't working, then he's probably stoned out of his gourd somewhere deep in his tunnels because i don't see fresh digs for a few weeks after i gas him. one stick isn't enough. i usually set off at least two or three at a time.

i never got anywhere using the bait and constantly had to worry about the dogs getting to it and getting sick.

for those of you using traps, how long after a kill do you start getting fresh digs again?

[ 06-21-2003, 06:03 AM: Message edited by: ampersat ]

[justdave]

I've got quite a few around the property. I'll get some with traps, if you happen to be there when they're pushing up dirt, you can use a shovel to pop them out of the hole and flatten em out a bit on the rebound. They're feeding on worms and grubs. I've heard of using the topo pesticides to kill Crane fly larva. No food source, they move on. Cover your traps to keep pets out, whether yours or the neighbors. Their pelts would make a nice coat if you could get enough of them. Might be able to tie up a few flies.

[OneLastCast]

We seem to have an annual problem and run a 6 scissor trap trap line. Seems to work. You just have to keep on top of it.

I always like the old story about the guy who filled the tunnels with gasoline figureing the fumes would kill them. Then decided to touch of the gas to end it quicker. As it was the tunnels honeycombed his septic drainfield. When the gas was touched off the methane was touched off in the septic tank. The loud crashing noise he heard was his toilet lifting off from the floor in the bathroom.

Don't know if that is possible but does set a humerous picture in your mind.

[Big Dog]

The gasoline one is the one that my freind does. He puts about a pint of fuel down the hole, gets the leaf blower out, runs the blower for 15-20 seconds then puts a lighter to it. He says you hear this woof woof woof woof when it flames through all the tunnels.

Do you think that this kills them or just stuns them?

[ampersat]

hey, that gas trick sounds like a lot more fun than just setting off the smoke bombs. i'll have to try that sometime (as long as the wife isn't watching).

the gas/explosion itself probably doesn't kill them but it does rid the tunnels of oxygen so they'll asphyxiate.

[The Fishing Geek]

Just a word of warning about gassing: my folks tried one of those smoke bombs when I was a kid and apparently the mole had come up under the house once or twice, through the gravel. The house quickly filled up with some very nasty fumes. Seriously.

[dampainter]

stick your garden hose in a hole, drown the little....guys.

[Miss B Haven]

When it comes to Moles I just can't get no satisfaction....unless I can view there furry dead little bodies with my own eyes. :shocked:
So... it's the gun, lawn chair and six pack or the scissor traps for me!

I use a high grade farm cat. She's a rodent killing wonder.

[Old Coot]

Road flares. Gotta love 'em. Work for me every time, AND you get to play with fire! Pop two or three at once in different entrances. The carbon monoxide settles in the low points of the tunnel systems. You'll get new moles after awhile, especially in late spring, as roaming moles looking for their own territories encounter your vacant tunnel systems and set up housekeeping.

Don't forget to enter them on your mole tag.

[Big Dog]

Man I just moved away from the cats that were peeing all over my new boat cover. The last thing that I want to do is get a CAT. :grin: