Ugh, We Have A Mole

Discussion in 'Crops & Gardens' started by Beth Gallagher, Jul 6, 2020.

  1. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    No, not a cloak-and-dagger spy but a furry little nuisance. It's always something. Apparently we have a mole tunneling under the front lawn. :mad: I've been scouring the internet for possible ways to get rid of him (them??) Anyone have any tips?
     
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  2. Shirley Martin

    Shirley Martin Supreme Member
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    Keep him. He eats all those nasty grub worms that are in your lawn including those horrible Japanese beetles.
     
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  3. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I believe that skunks eat moles. They also eat a ton of other pests, including the ground nests of yellow jackets. They'll also eat the grubs Shirley referred to. Skunks are good...except they also eat honeybees.

    When I was a kid we had a fox terrier that would tear up the ground going after moles. He would literally chew away at the tunnels until they were nothing but a vast network of ditches...those things are long and complex.

    Other than the two higher-level predators I cite, I'm not sure what people do to get rid of them.
     
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  4. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    We have already had an armadillo digging up the turf for those pesky grubs. :mad: So we put out enough grub poison to make the lawn glow in the dark. Now we have a tunneling pest. Ugh. I want to pave the front yard.
     
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  5. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    OK, I'm not buying a skunk pet. A fox terrier isn't a bad idea, though. :D

    My husband put a sticky trap out there at what looks like the entrance to the tunnel, so we'll see how this develops. :rolleyes:
     
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  6. Bill Boggs

    Bill Boggs Supreme Member
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    We have them, a few, not many, one or two it appears. The neighbor's cat caught one and laid it at our door. I don't know how you rid yourself of them.
    I am no longer in a position to tackle such a project, neither of us are. So we've got them and had them several years. It doesn't seem to be too much of a deal. I have my lawn done and it looks good, fore and aft, so I don't sped any time worry about the little beast any longer. I have known people who have had their yard treated for them and I don't know what that consist of.
    Just word of mouth from oldsters like myself. So who knows? Several years I read of some remedies but don't remember what I learned. Seems to me though the remedy was worse than the
    problem. I guess I just let it go. That might not look as well in Houston but here in Oklahoma it doesn't seem to be a big deal. Read over what I said here. Might as well have said nothing.
    Good luck on finding a remedy.
     
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  7. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Thank you, Bill. Too bad I'm allergic to cats. :D I appreciate your input!
     
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  8. Shirley Martin

    Shirley Martin Supreme Member
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    Psssst! @Beth Gallagher , catch some grubs and release them in your neighbor's yard. See, problem solved.
     
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  9. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Good thinking, Shirley. The sticky trap has caught a locust and a bunch of blossoms that blew off the neighbor's crepe myrtle so far.
     
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  10. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Mister Rogers respectfully withdraws his invitation.
     
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  11. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Boy, I hesitate to tell you about sticky traps.
    [insert pause here]

    When a rodent is caught on one of those things, they are in such a blind panic to get free they will chew off their feet.

    The aftermath is not pretty. You are much better off using a plain old trap. It's less bloody and much more humane.
     
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  12. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Thanks for reminding me; I need to go remind Mr. Mole Patrol that the lawn crew is coming tomorrow and they probably won't appreciate a sticky trap on their lawn equipment.

    I think we've decided to just let the mole hang out. Apparently they are good for aerating the lawn and they don't eat anything but bugs, so that's good.
     
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  13. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    "Mr. Mole Patrol"
    Great name for a mobile dermatologist.

    I did not know moles were a beneficial aerator. I recall the ground being sunken because of all the tunnels.

    As always, these conversations lead me down meandering paths. I discovered this on Wiki (the fount of all that is true) in relation to mole fur coats being popular at one time:
    Taupe = mole.
    Who knew?
     
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  14. Beth Gallagher

    Beth Gallagher Supreme Member
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    Well, I read it on the internet so it must be true. :D

    Mole fur coats??? That would take a lot of the little critters. And the ones I've seen are dark brown, not "taupe", so what's up with that? Goofy French.

    (Mr. Mole Patrol lives with Ms. Know-it-all. The man is long-suffering, what can I say? :D)
     
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  15. Frank Sanoica

    Frank Sanoica Supreme Member
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    @Beth Gallagher

    Mole

    [​IMG]


    Gopher

    [​IMG]
    Nasty burrowers destroying lawns, grasses. My old cat, a male, often sat quietly and patiently close to one of their burrow openings, tunnels actually, until a curious or foolish gopher ventured close enough to the opening from below allowing the old cat to shoot a front paw into the opening, hooking the offending rodent with one or two claws, sometimes more, pulling the entire burrower out of it's hole, then allowed to run a short distance as the cat set up the game: the pounce disabled the rat-like gopher quickly, it was dispatched, the cat's paws then used to "play" with the limp carcass a bit, and then he walked away. He never ate one.

    Frank


    Ground Hog (Woodchuck)
    [​IMG]
    These guys are BIG, weighing around 14 pounds. They are the worst of burrowers, capable of destroying a vegetable garden overnight. They burrow down in the roots, eating them as the plants above are pulled down under the soil. We lost a bunch of plants to only ONE, which met his demise rather than being trapped and frightened to death. Make no mistake, he was VICIOUS, making Punxatawney Punk look drugged in the guy's arms.

    Frank
     
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