It is good to have a sense of humor as we go through life, though I admit as I get older, (or perhaps it is just the state of the world these days), I do find at least one instance daily that makes it difficult to remain unflappable.
This September 13th discovery would haunt me.
After a hot, humid, often rainy Summer, I was ready to welcome Fall, my favorite season, with open arms. But there was one cloud on the horizon as to those highly anticipated long walks, cool days and fabulous colors – Fall was tainted by my September 13th discovery of a huge hole and burrow at the back of the house against the foundation.
I was in the backyard, which still looks like a disaster area, first ravaged by last December’s fire, plus the aftermath of the removal of two medium-sized trees and a slew of burned bushes in late July. The tree cutters stacked up assorted trellises and flower pots onto the back patio having been pulled from that corner of the yard/garden. Since it was too late to plan or plant a garden, disinterested and disgusted, I left it all sitting there, while I instead would dwell on backyard possibilities for 2024.
And then I saw it … a humongous hole in the ground at the foundation. Red lava rock was scattered and dirt and white marble from years ago was pushed aside, obviously by a pair of paws digging fast and furiously …
… to get to their destination, wherever that might be? I bent down close, but not too close, lest some furry critter scurry out and I’d likely keel over with a heart attack. Momentarily I mused that on weekends I travel many miles to walk in the woods at larger parks and get back to nature, see furry or feathered critters, hone my photography skills and bulk up my miles. Well, who knew I needed only to walk mere steps where some big, bold critter decided to take up residence at MY residence?
I looked over at my neighbor’s house, but, since Jeff wasn’t outside I called and reported my “find” and asked if he had seen a large critter ambling about in my backyard; after all, the night of the fire as we stood outside until 2:00 a.m. waiting for the “all clear” to go inside, he pulled out his phone to show me a photo of Mama Raccoon and her offspring rooting around in his garbage can.
Well, Jeff’s answer left me gob smacked: “oh ya, I haven’t seen you, but meant to tell you that I had two burrows at the back of my house, plus a burrow under my A/C unit slab, so I went into your yard to see if you had any burrows and saw yours – I’m sure it’s a groundhog, maybe a skunk.” I know I audibly gasped at this news. Jeff aimed to deter the critter from digging additional burrows, so he bought and buried copious amounts of mothballs in each hole and sprinkled more on top – yep, I had detected a funky smell of late, but didn’t look over at his house or I’d have seen those mothballs.
Jeff offered sympathy and some of his mothballs, but I decided to do more than put a Band-Aid on the problem .
So, I e-mailed my now-retired handyman to whine a bit about my plight and ask for advice. Jim offered to loan me a trap and have his son-in-law Brett bait it for me, but after sleeping on that idea, I decided to hire a pest control service – with colder nights, I didn’t want this beast settling in for the Winter. I wanted it gone NOW!
I was ground off with this groundhog, but there was more to come.
Chad, the pest control guy, arrived bright and early Monday, September 18th and explained how this capture would work. I had already been advised of the fee schedule, i.e. $185.00 for the consult, setting and baiting the trap and $75.00 for each critter trapped, then released humanely within 24 hours into a wooded area five miles from the house. After listening to Chad’s spiel I quipped “well I sure hope there is not a family of groundhogs in the burrow at $75.00 a pop!” Chad just smiled. Later, as I reflected on our initial meeting, I am sure Chad said to himself “wait ‘til she finds out that groundhogs may not be the only critters captured in the trap.”
As to luring the critter into the trap, Chad sprinkled out a special treat suited for groundhogs and chuckled, as he showed me the bait, which looked like pumpkin seeds. He said the pest control guys jokingly refer to the bait as “groundhog cocaine” as it lures them into the trap quickly. You can see the “treat” here in this picture and also if you look closely in the picture of the entire trap.
Here’s a close-up of the trap.
Chad also explained that once the groundhog was captured, I needed to fill the hole right away, layering dirt on the bottom, then lots of pea gravel because “groundhogs don’t like the feel of pea gravel on their paws.” (Hmm – how did you know that – have you asked them or witnessed them shaking their head and muttering to themselves: “nope, pea gravel, not going there” and ambling off?) Nonetheless, I took Chad’s word as gospel. He gave me his card and said “call me on my cell anytime, even on weekends and I’ll come pick up the critter.” I nodded meekly.
At 7:00 a.m. the following day, I decided I was not lugging 48-pound bags of pea gravel around from the nursery/car/backyard, so I ordered two bags of pea gravel, a 40-pound bag of potting soil and lava rock to fill the hole once the critter was caught. I had high expectations, so I just wanted the landscape materials here. With the delivery charge, it was $60.00 – sigh. They would deliver the order sometime that day and in special instructions, I put “pile it on the back porch.”
That chore done, grumbling I got my peanuts and sunflower seeds ready for the “acceptable critters” and headed out the door to the Park. I remembered to check out back and poked my head around the corner.
There was a live one in the trap!!
Good going! But one minor detail – it wasn’t a groundhog, just an opossum that looked at me down that long snout, snarled and bared its teeth. By the way, did you know that opossums have 50 teeth? I believe I saw all of them, including four fangs. As I stood there ruminating over the critter capture, I did the math with the concept of $75.00 for each critter removal/relocation sinking in. Yep, I swore softly, just as the Lowe’s delivery person saw the gate was open and startled me when he said “Ma’am – where did you want your landscape materials?” I pointed where to place the bags, then pointed at the opossum, which I dubbed “Oscar” (after calling it a few choice names which I won’t mention in this forum.)
I returned from walking and decided to photograph the opossum as a post was already bubbling around in my brain. He/she wasn’t keen on posing, but I got this profile shot, this time minus the toothy snarl.
I left Chad a voicemail. He arrived later that day, having alerted me to his ETA, so I met him in the yard, holding the check and I watched as he spoke to the critter. Was Chad an opossum whisperer? After all, the critter didn’t snarl at him like it did me. He told me it was just a baby. “And it’s that big? Surely it’s not still dependent on its mother for food, right?” After my rapid-fire questions, Chad said “nope, it’s fine to be on its own – no worries, opossums grow up quickly – it’ll be fine.”
So off my little friend went to the big red truck bearing the logo “All Seasons Pest Control” to the forest five miles away. However, Chad was out of traps so had to return the following day. I figured the groundhog would feast on the groundhog cocaine, then slip into its burrow, blissfully sated at my expense.
Chad returned the next day with a new trap and some cantaloupe chunks which he placed in the burrow …
… and in the trap.
As you can see, Chad placed the trap close to the burrow and used two, tipped-over, broken flower pots as a barricade. There was no way this groundhog was hopping out of the burrow without ending up in the trap or tripping over the pots.
Even the groundhog’s cousin “did me wrong” …
It was a bad week … I came home from walking and errands the following day and the garage door wouldn’t close due to an errant cable, so I had to have a service call and emergency repair. My former good intentions for doing errands, decluttering and much-needed yard work that weekend went up in flames as Sunday I rewarded myself with a trip to Lake Erie Metropark where I met up with a groundhog.
That beast greeted me with a sneer, then saw the camera and closed its eyes …
… before turning its back on me.
Nothing like being disrespected by a groundhog!
Elvis has left the building.
Two weeks went by with no visitors – the cantaloupe shriveled up and the groundhog cocaine went untouched in the trap and in the burrow. I faithfully checked the trap three times a day and my neighbor Jeff checked at least once a day. One day he noticed the trap was tripped, but the critter was small enough to back out and escape and didn’t disturb the flower pots, so he reset the trap and cut up an apple to entice the groundhog into the trap.
Another week went by – nothing. I figured “Elvis has left the building” as the saying goes, or who knows … maybe he left before we even started on this costly and ridiculous venture?
A groundhog and an opossum walked into a …
… bar, er … yard.
Obviously the groundhog, if it was still lurking about, was savvy and, though a glutton for goodies, was not about to tread into the trap, so he/she kept on waddling.
But the morning of October 12th, I rounded the corner to check the trap before going on my walk. A big furry bum was all I saw. I knew it wasn’t a groundhog, but another *&^% opossum! I watched its measured breathing – it was dead to the world.
I took a picture of Sleeping Beauty …
… then left on my walk. It was a gorgeous morning, so I would call Chad when I returned from walking.
Ninety minutes later I checked on the critter, which I nicknamed “Ollie” and it was still sleeping. I took another picture…
… then I woke it up. It was still sleepy and did not bare its teeth at me, despite the fact that I was looming large but I spoke softly.
Ollie looked at me, a tad bleary-eyed, a woeful expression on its white furry face.
I told Ollie that I’d call Chad as you see/hear by clicking here.
But I got Chad’s voicemail and I reported that to Ollie (click here).
Neither of us were happy. Ollie went back to sleep and I went into the house and wrote another check for $75.00 for Chad’s arrival.
Chad picked up Ollie later that day and said he’d feed him before he was released into the woods. We decided together it was time to close up the hole/burrow. The groundhog had likely moved on.
The photo in the header image is from this groundhog encounter I had at Elizabeth Park on the Boardwalk back in 2020.
After crunching the numbers, this groundhog fiasco cost me almost $400.00.
I am not amused and all I got out of the ordeal was this post and a chance to participate in Terri Webster Schrandt’s “Sunday Stills Photo Challenge: PHOTOS FROM THE FUNNY PAGES”.
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Possums are such cute little critters. Oscar the Grouch and Ollie. Great names Linda!
This is the time of the year when all sorts of critters try to find new digs.
Take the “For Rent” sign down.
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You are right Wayne – the first possum certainly was Oscar the Grouch. I liked Ollie. Since the hole/burrow was being closed up, I suppose I could have left Ollie here with his kin and buddies, but best it got to a woodsy area and out of the ‘hood. Thankfully the hole/burrow is now closed up and smoothed over so the “For Rent” sign is gone for good (hopefully)!
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Pingback: Sunday Stills: Real Life from the #Funny Pages – Second Wind Leisure Perspectives
I wonder if Ollie was the mama of the juvenile opossum? At least you got them out and back into nature. Good idea to set the traps and have it professionally done. We had a lot of possums and squirrels running through our huge pine trees and fences in our Sacramento backyard, and we mostly ignored them until we discovered roof rats living in our space over the garage. Hans trapped them with rat traps with delicious peanut butter. In any case, what a great story and I’m sure Oscar is having the last laugh somewhere under another unsuspecting neighbor’s home! A fun, humorous post for the funny pages this week, Linda!
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I wondered the same thing Terri. My neighborhood is not rural in the least and I hate to think we have THAT many critters in the back yard … and it’s a small backyard at that. My neighbor has a large backyard and after his groundhog issues, he has cut down every bush at the back fence to have it more open. It was very dense back there before. Jeff has encouraged me to do the same with my yard, especially not planting anything where it is all bare from the downed wire fire and tree removal. I am considering just putting grass there. My grandmother had squirrels in her attic many years ago – a whole family of them and before they got trapped, they chewed wood and made a mess up there. I am glad this post fit the funny pages theme – that groundhog at the park made me mad, but that was the day I got photos of the egrets, fox and some ducks, so it was not a totally photo blooper day!
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Glad you got this situation sorted out! Even though it cost money. We had a raccoon living under our back deck but we haven’t seen any signs or him/her for a while now so hopefully he’s gone! That’s always the way, cost money for one thing and then 2 or 3 other things happen at the same time. Possums are neat creatures but not living under your house!
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I am glad it is over Susan and the more I think about it, I truly think it had moved on before I called the pest control service … but the hole/burrow was so deep, I wanted to catch it before it dug deeper. I thought they might have some type of scope with a light to see down there, but they did not. The first time catching a possum was bad enough, but the second time – time to close it up! Yes, the garage door in the same week – stuck in mid air and I just got a new garage door a few years ago after one large spring broke and bounced up into the ceiling and barely missed my car. The repairman said to get a new door as the spring-style doors were obsolete. So, I decided not to get an automatic garage opener and just open it manually – grrr. My grandmother, who lived in Toronto where the two-story houses were all attached, lived in fear that a neighbor would get bugs and then she got squirrels in her attic. They chewed wood and did a lot of damage! The squirrels here chew the telephone wire and my landline will go out as the wire is exposed and gets wet … it’s happened three or so times already. The service tech for ATT said squirrels keep him employed!
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We have had squirrels in our house and mice but maybe because we live in the country. Or maybe not lol, I think they are all over. We used to have our little dog and she would sit on the chair and watch as a squirrel ran around our house. Some watch dog lol. We came in the front door one evening and that’s what we saw. We did get the squirrel out but we had to use a trap to get him outside.
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Wow – inside the house – yikes! You’re lucky it didn’t do any damage. Watchdog – LOL. My two neighbors and I fed a squirrel for years and Sammy would run from house to house to get treats in the morning. He was funny to watch, but then he got to a point that you couldn’t open the door without him trying to sneak in, or trying to sneak into the garage, so we had to stop. You couldn’t even just give him a peanut or two then try to leave … he would continue to pester you.
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Golly! How frustrating!
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Anne – After I found the hole/burrow and researched a little, I learned that groundhogs can dig a burrow so deep and large it can cause foundation issues – people told of sheds collapsing thanks to a groundhog burrow and houses needing to be shored up. You can bet I will check all around the house on a regular basis now!
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There is always something to worry about.
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Yes – September was not a good month and I had an issue with the kitchen light as well, had to get new rear tire tire monitors, so I told the guy to put on all four new – he said “no, you don’t need them” … 10 days later I was back with more tire monitor issues.
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Your problems seem to multiply in the dark!
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The old “things happen in three” syndrome!
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Yikes!!! $400!!! That was an expensive groundhog. And you didn’t even catch him. I wonder if it could have been the opossums that made the hole?
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Yes, it was expensive Laurie and when we didn’t catch the groundhog but I paid $150.00 for two possums, I was glad Chad agreed we could take the trap away. After we caught the first possum, I asked if it might be it that caused the hole, but he said possums won’t dig holes, although they will take over an abandoned hole/burrow, so that’s why as soon as the trap was removed, I had to cover it over ASAP. After I saw the hole/burrow, I did a little research and people were saying they had sheds collapse from deep groundhog burrows and others’ house foundations had issues where the burrow extended deep down. I had no idea they could do that much damage, but when I looked at the groundhog’s up-close photo from an old post that I used for my header image, I could see its long claws … no wonder it dug such a large hole. Raccoons, possums – this is what is in a suburban neighborhood now? A person posted a pic of a full-sized buck in their driveway in the City’s Resident Facebook Forum last week and it was nowhere near Council Point Park. We don’t have deer there, although a few have run through in the early morning. The Park has trees but it is not dense.
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Oh man, that’s expensive! I think I would have bought my own live trap. We don’t have groundhogs here, but we do get an occasional opossum. They are supposed to be good for keeping the creepy crawler population down so I’m always happy to see them.
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Yes – it was terrible Janis! I was glad the pest control guy agreed with me that one month with no groundhog meant he was not there. That groundhog couldn’t get out of the hole/burrow without moving something. Opossums are supposed to be great for keeping the mosquito and tick population down. Too bad two of them wandered into the trap – a bad experience for both of us!
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Perhaps you could have let the possum out yourself and saved some money? Groundhogs are a wily bunch!
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Kate, I thought about that for the second one as it was pretty sedate (of course I had just woken it up) or maybe ask my neighbor. He is a hunter, so he probably would have been okay with it. And he knew how to reset the trap after whatever small critter got into it. I have never used a trap and was not keen on touching it … I read up on possums after the first one was caught. As good as they are at catching ticks and mosquitoes, they carry lots of diseases. I had to clean up lots of possum poop – that was bad enough.
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Possums are cute in an ugly sort of way. And they will eat anything. We had a ball of fun cleaning out the folks’ freezer given that nothing was stored properly and most of it was several years old. The possums even ate the broccoli and yogurt. Raccoons and skunks are much pickier. I never saw the groundhog up on the deck. I think he mostly decimated Dad’s fruit trees.
I hope that is the end of the intruders!
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The second one was cute Zazzy – I think it was because it just woke up and was pretty calm, unlike its predecessor that bared its teeth and snarled. The handyman had researched for baiting and learned that groundhogs loved veggies and fruit, especially cantaloupe. No wonder they mostly decimated your dad’s fruit trees. I hope it is the end of the intruders too – I did not put out a welcome mat for groundhogs, nor possums! P.S. – still waiting to hear about the metal art structure at Humbug Marsh. My guess is they don’t know the answer, which is strange as it is a prominent part of the venue.
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I just spent a little more time on the Humbug Marsh site – and the problem, it seems to me, is it’s virtually unsearchable. They need a better IT group and someone who can code in things that people might want to find.
It makes me grumpy.
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I really don’t understand it either Zazzy. They post all the time on their Facebook site, some interesting little tidbits, like the other day they showed a photo where some raptor dropped its fish and the skeleton was hanging from a tree – something I never noticed. Apparently it was awhile ago and people had commented on it. They post info about the trees, vernal pond, snakes, lichen, but never anything about this artwork – I still have the e-mail that I could send back to them, but why bother? Maybe I should write the City of Trenton to find out.
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didn’t know groundhogs left their burrows during the day. I never seen groundhog.
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Raj, over here groundhogs are a novelty on February 2nd for Groundhog Day. If the groundhog pops its head out of its burrow and sees its shadow because it is sunny, it means six more weeks of wintry weather; if it is a gray day, no shadow and Spring is on the way. See what you are missing! But don’t feel bad for missing a groundhog, woodchuck or whistle pig as they sometimes called – they are not the cutest nor friendliest critters. The one in the picture up top posed for me because he begs for food on the boardwalk, something I didn’t know until that day. People feed it cookies and treats. He probably thought I had treats.
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Thank you so much, Bridgette you share me the Groundhog details. I am so happy.
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You’re welcome Raj … I didn’t know if you were familiar with the hoopla over the groundhog in your country.
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What an experience!
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And I hope to never repeat it Anne! Do you have groundhogs in your country?
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No we don’t 🙂
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Thank goodness for that, but you likely have other pests that wreak havoc similar to this. P.S. Speaking of pests … I have not forgotten to point out the moth webworms photos to you when I get to that post. I am behind in posting pics of walks since I normally only post twice weekly, but I wanted to share this ordeal so I pushed it ahead as a fellow blogger had a challenge on funny images/stories and encouraged me to join her challenge.
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Oh no Linda, you had much more from this post than you imagined. You had me spell bound at every turn which in turn often turned to mirth. Now you know what to do, it would be cheaper to buy a trap and take whatever for a ride.
I do it here a lot with Brush-tailed Possums. At one stage they were thundering across the roof at all times of the nights, squealing and fighting (Possum sex is also noisy 😂)
I would trap them and take them with me on the way to town and drop them off in the forest a long way from my place. They will travel up to 6km to go back to where their family is.
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Hi Bushboy – your comments made me smile … I thought my ordeal was bad! If I hear loud thumps on the roof, I just assume it is fat squirrels chasing one another, not possums making mischief or having sex! When I suggested to Chad that when we trapped the groundhog he could take it to the park where I walk daily, just a mile away, he said “oh no, we can’t do that as it will find its way back to your house!” I thought he was exaggerating and now you confirm it is so! While I am always appreciative of unexpected blog fodder, this incident I could do without! Too bad Chad didn’t give me the recipe for the groundhog cocaine, I’ve have shared it with you. 🙂
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I am lucky that most animals around here love the bait of peanut butter, oats and pumpkin seeds, the Australian cocaine 😁
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That sounds like appetizing bait to me too – no wonder they go for it!
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So.awesome ! Loved reading that
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Glad you liked it Michael … yes, it gave me something to write about, but I could have lived without the experience. I really wonder what creatures lurk in the backyard and it’s not even Halloween yet!
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What a wonderful story you told of this encounter Linda. I told you that you have a knack for writing, this blog like so many others of your writings is like reading a nature book and the adventures nature holds. 🙂
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Thank you Sandra – it was a fun post to put together, even if the story came with a $400.00 price tag. Your compliment is appreciated – blogging for me has become such a total package, from the writing about walking and my little adventures, to taking more pictures and interacting with other bloggers about those experiences. As to this possum, who knew I could have this nature experience just steps away? I’ve never seen a possum on my nature walks!
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I agree with Sandra J, Linda! You are a gifted storyteller and I enjoyed reading this thorough account of your groundhog troubles. Let’s hope you filled in that hole well enough so that it won’t get dug up again! Nature is always trying to reclaim its spaces. 😉
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Thank you Barbara – when Sandra first discovered my blog, she went back and started reading it from the beginning. She is an avid birder and nature lover. I’m glad you enjoyed reading the recap of my groundhog troubles. The hole is now covered and you can bet your boots I still go and check that area and other areas around the house to ensure no other critters get any ideas as the colder weather settles in. I had researched possums after finding the first one and learned that they prefer to sleep in trees, but if an abandoned burrow is available, they will move in.
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I also read that possums are good at keeping the tick population down.
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I have heard that too Barbara and with all the tick worries these days it would not have been so bad to have it around, just not wandering into the trap constantly. I would love to have your critters hanging around … having Bambi and mom visit would put me on Cloud Nine … no, I get groundhogs and possums.
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If it’s not one critter it’s another! Great story, but my oh my, WHY your yard? There are lots of other yards in your neighborhood.
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I agree with you Ally and, had my neighbor pointed out his/my burrows, I’d have been on this a lot sooner. It was bad enough dealing with this groundhog problem, without having other wildlife wandering into the trap and getting caught. Believe that I am diligent about inspecting around the house now. I read horror stories online where people had burrowing groundhogs push sheds over and houses have structural problems as groundhogs had burrowed deep into the foundation area. The look on my face must have been priceless when I first laid eyes on this hole/burrow.
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I love opossums. They get a bad rap, but they’re like Jessica Rabbit – they’re not bad, they’re just drawn that way. Opossums rarely (if ever) have rabies, they eat ticks, and are immune to rattle snake poison. During our road trip, I bought a pair of possum socks; they’re my new favorite.
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I like your analogy to Jessica Rabbit Linda – yes, they are rather odd-looking creatures with that pointy snout, pink nose and black floppy ears, but in Googling around to find out about them, I found some really funny videos of opossums that are people’s pets and they are as loving as a dog (or cat, depending on the cat’s mood that day). 🙂
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You are a great journalist and wonderful storyteller, Linda. You had me snickering, giggling, laughing, and cursing along with you! Though my heart aches with you on all levels here, I m glad that this episode has come to an end!
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Thank you for the nice compliment TD – I really appreciate it. I am glad you enjoyed this post. It allowed me to stray from my usual trek posts and give everyone a laugh. I am sure you cursed at the same places I did! It was an ordeal and you best believe I am doing a walkaround the entire house daily to check for infiltrations at ground level!
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Expensive Linda !!! Not critters we have in the UK – glad you appear sorted.
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Yes – horrible Andy. I check the perimeter of the house daily now … the old “shutting the barn door after the horse gets out” adage. You’re lucky you don’t have these critters – the hole and burrow was huge and groundhogs can dig deep enough to cause structural damage to the foundation of your home.
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Oh, dear, Linda, I’m so glad this tale of tails you never want to encounter again has come to an end. And that the hole is covered up and your yard is free of them for this year! Maybe getting a cage and setting it out there would be a nice warning to any future home shoppers? While it was a miserable time, and expensive for you, your recounting and photos made for a fun story to read. I love how you give even the rascals that make your life miserable personalities and names! You made it a “No critters were harmed in this story” too! Congratulations for surviving the, albeit, expensive, ordeal!
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Shelley – that was my 2023 ordeal of the year and I’m glad it is over. You best believe I now walk around the entire perimeter daily to ensure no critter is digging again as there are mulched beds and river rock beds so it’s possible. I like the idea of a critter trap placed there as a deterrent – I hopped onto Amazon and they run about $65.00 for a medium-sized trap for scare purposes – slightly less than a possum trapping fee. 🙂 Yes, no critters harmed – I wish I had thought of that line!
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Your due diligence will pay off, Linda! If you feel like trimming your own hair, sprinkle that around the yard too. 😂 That’s a reasonable price for a trap. We may need to look into one someday too.
😊
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Well now, don’t we have similar challenges, Linda? Pick your state. In Colorado (where we’re still trying to sell our old place), we have a few prairie dogs who discovered a quiet property is a nice place to live. Here in South Carolina, we have a pesky (determined) squirrel who has found a way into our roof and is probably intending to hibernate there. We have a trapper coming out in a couple of days who will take the same approach yours did with the opossums. Relocate, please.
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Dave – we keep having these coincidences don’t we? I’ve seen prairie dogs photos in the past and just Googled to see them again – boy do they look similar to groundhogs. Well, just what you need when you’re not there to closely monitor the situation. Remember about the pea gravel if they are digging near a structure in case using that medium would deter them like the groundhogs. I read some horror stories of groundhogs burrowing so deep into foundations that structural damage was done, so that prompted me to call the pest removal service to expedite matters. My grandmother had squirrels in her attic many years ago. Several of them chewed and made a mess before the trapper could contain them. The squirrels in my neighborhood chew the telephone cable covers thus exposing the bare cable to the elements and my land line will go out. I use it for work as I work from home. It has happened three times already. Critters with too much time on their paws.
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I can’t stand people that take advantage of other people. That cage has paid for itself probably 100 times over and all he had invested was his time and leftovers from his house. I could maybe see the $75 but not the initial fee. I hope he gets his someday! I read that opossum do not dig in the ground but will take up residence in one that another animal has dug and abandoned. I wonder if they had moved in and that’s why you had two? Are you sure the word isn’t out about what an animal lover you are and how you feed the squirrels? Lol
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Diane, at first, I researched about groundhogs so I knew all about them, only to turn around and need to research about ‘possums. I worried if we covered the hole too quickly, something might die in there and the smell would go into the house, or they’d dig deeper under the foundation to escape. I felt badly for the second one captured as he/she was pretty quiet and had such a woeful face. I thought it was a steep price too and in the end since it went one day shy of a month, only to never trap the groundhog, I should have just taken my handyman up on his offer to set the trap and bait it and I’d call when something was trapped. It was frustrating. I have been checking the perimeter of the house daily in case it found another place to dig. Meanwhile, my neighbor has removed bushes from his entire back fence and both sides – it is looking a bit bare there, but he told me he doesn’t want any critters hiding in the bushes at the fence line and recommended I get rid of my bushes too. I don’t think they will mess with the rosebushes, but the garden I was thinking of planting may not happen now and I may just do grass. I don’t want to roll out any welcome mat … like you said I hope they didn’t see that I was feeding the squirrels and birds and thought “I’ll make myself at home here!”
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Linda, what a costly and frustrating experience!! I would’ve felt so conflicted to want to catch the critters but to also not have to fork out that much money per critter. Well, at least they are out of your yard and you can breathe a sigh of relief. And you didn’t have to touch Ollie and Oscar. Not sure how it’d be to handle an opossum.
That was quick thinking on your part and now you are rid of this problem. Pea gravel, you must have!!
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It sure was frustrating Esther! Had it been earlier in the year, I may have gone with the handyman’s trap, but as we head toward colder weather, I worried this critter would “bed down” for the Winter – couldn’t have that happen, plus I read horror stories of people who had groundhogs knock over a shed as they burrowed so deep into the foundation and also caused house structural damage – yikes! So I decided to hire a “pro” to get it done quicker. Also I was not keen on handling anything they had touched as they carry diseases, as do the possums. So an expensive proposition – it was a debacle as I think the groundhog had already left before the trapping process began. I actually thought the pest control service may have some type of light or scope that could peer into this deep hole to verify if it was in/out – I didn’t want it to die in there (smell the house up) or dig deeper (cause bigtime damage). I check all around the house every single day now … yes, pea gravel is not their favorite “to dig in” – no words!
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You made a smart decision!! Ack, to think of handling a wild possums and what do you do with it once it’s caught in the cage?! Have a staring contest?
Expensive but smart move where you don’t have to worry about furry creatures getting too comfortable in your yard burrows.
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Thank you Esther – yes, I was not going to risk dealing with it. Possums are good for eating ticks and mosquitoes, even mice, so not bad to have around the yard, but my yard is small and the idea they were that close and digging where they shouldn’t have been digging, at the foundation, threw me for a loop.
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I think the closest I have (knowingly) come to a groundhog was on television when one is pulled from a cage to forecast the length of winter. Opossums – that is another matter, as I have seen them scurrying across the street at night, heading for a wooded ditch in the neighborhood.
My personal nemesis is the mole – but at least they burrow in the lawn and not under my house.
I still wonder why “groundhog” is not another word for sausage.
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I’ve previously only seen groundhogs in the Park or otherwise in the wild. This was not great seeing the size of the hole/burrow and knowing a critter that large was lurking around in the backyard and right after those recent raccoon sightings. I didn’t like knowing opossums were out there either. I’ve never had moles – hope they are not next. Now that the hole is filled in, they have had other places to dig, so I have to check the perimeter of the house daily. I like your last sentence JP – it would work perfectly! 🙂
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