backyard wildlife

[woodnymph12]

A groundhog has moved in to our yard! It dug a big burrow less than 10 feet from our house and we have been watching it wandering the backyard and eating a huge quantity of plants for 2 days now. (If I can get a photo that isn't blurry from the window screens, I'll post it). It's probably a young one born this year-- it's about a foot tall when

Comments

[theshapeshifter]

The other thing with skunks is that apparently they don't like to climb ANYTHING, like not even one stair-step, so once we started putting our trap on the patio (about 6-8 inches up from the lawn) instead of right on the grass, we stopped getting the accidental skunks. But I guess groundhogs are more diurnal, aren't they? In which case morning and evening should do the trick.

If worst comes to worst and you DO wind up with a skunk, these were the instructions we followed, which thankfully worked fine (twice):
- Get a large piece of cloth (tablecloth, blanket) that you don't mind sacrificing if things go bad.
- Hold the cloth at chest level so that it hits the ground and conceals your feet from the skunk's view. (Apparently it's seeing feet coming that freak them out. They have to be REALLY scared/angry to actually spray.)
- Slowly and quietly approach the cage, keeping your feet hidden. Drop the cloth over the cage to completely cover it.
- Wait a few minutes for the skunk to calm down (the cloth apparently makes them feel like they're in a safe burrow), then carefully transport the cage to wherever you're taking it.

[woodnymph12]

Hey, thanks for all the tips! The groundhog likes to sit on some raised beds, so we could put the trap up there, maybe. We have a friend with a pet skunk who is also giving us advice on what to do just in case, but hopefully we won't need to put any of it into practice. Our yard is waaaay too small to withstand any skunk-related accidents. :)