Do groundhogs kill chickens?

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Folly's place said:
PLEASE don't relocate critters that you trap! Nobody else wants them either, and they'll never go in a live trap again. And it's illegal most places to relocate, unless it's on your own property, in the same county. Just don't do it. Don't bother trapping, unless you will also shoot. mary
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Well.... I relocate my trapped animals on state property adjacent to a landfill that is no where near anyone's home. If I cannot shoot the animals because the neighbor in the back of our 10 acre property will call the police, and you are telling me not to trap them and "make them someone elses problem" then what are we supposed to do with them? I refuse to allow them to stay on our property to cause damage to my home and cause hours of labor better spent doing other things than fixing what damage that they did. What do you suggest? I'm open for suggestions.
 
critterkeeper25 said:
The man that farms part of our 10 acres shoots them when ever he can.
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critterkeeper25 said:
Well.... I relocate my trapped animals on state property adjacent to a landfill that is no where near anyone's home. If I cannot shoot the animals because the neighbor in the back of our 10 acre property will call the police, and you are telling me not to trap them and "make them someone elses problem" then what are we supposed to do with them? I refuse to allow them to stay on our property to cause damage to my home and cause hours of labor better spent doing other things than fixing what damage that they did. What do you suggest? I'm open for suggestions.
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Get that guy to kill them for you if you can't do it yourself. Relocating an animal puts it in unfamiliar territory where it doesn't know where to find food or water, and in some other animal's territory. It can also spread disease. If the animal you trapped has rabies, distemper or something else communicable, you may be spreading it to an area where such things haven't yet been introduced.
 
proud-armywife said:
i just witnessed a very large groundhog crawl under our 6 foot fence.. I had two of my chickens free ranging. I frantically ran out and brought them inside... I have them in a dog crate while I finish the coop. I have never seen a groundhog in our yard... Ever. I'm scared! I don't want my chickens to get hurt or eaten... I thought groundhogs were vegetarian... Am I wrong?
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If the question is do groundhogs eat chickens the answer is no, because they are vegetarians. However, they absolutely do kill them! I just lost three chickens last night from a well-known groundhog that lives underneath my barn. Two were just killed and one decapitated. There was some nibbling around one of the thighs but nothing that a possum, Fox, raccoon, or cat would do. I found this to be quite strange that just the head was missing and a lot of feathers. I did my head count and was missing two that I have not seen all day. So upon searching underneath parts of the barn on the inside, I found two more birds. One looked
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like it was about halfway covered up with dirt and straw, then I found the third bird who was pulled halfway through one of the tunnels where the groundhogs travel. I hope the photos help.
proud-armywife said:
i just witnessed a very large groundhog crawl under our 6 foot fence.. I had two of my chickens free ranging. I frantically ran out and brought them inside... I have them in a dog crate while I finish the coop. I have never seen a groundhog in our yard... Ever. I'm scared! I don't want my chickens to get hurt or eaten... I thought groundhogs were vegetarian... Am I wrong?
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princedj01 said:
If the question is do groundhogs eat chickens the answer is no, because they are vegetarians. However, they absolutely do kill them! I just lost three chickens last night from a well-known groundhog that lives underneath my barn. Two were just killed and one decapitated. There was some nibbling around one of the thighs but nothing that a possum, Fox, raccoon, or cat would do. I found this to be quite strange that just the head was missing and a lot of feathers. I did my head count and was missing two that I have not seen all day. So upon searching underneath parts of the barn on the inside, I found two more birds. One lookedView attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938168 View attachment 1938166 View attachment 1938170 View attachment 1938175 View attachment 1938170 like it was about halfway covered up with dirt and straw, then I found the third bird who was pulled halfway through one of the tunnels where the groundhogs travel. I hope the photos help.
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Other critters will use groundhog tunnels, including coons, mink, weasels, fishers, skunks, possums and so on. A groundhog did not kill your birds.
 
Ground hogs are omnivores. I've caught and dispatched mammy of them with leftover chicken carcasses from Sam's Club.
I used to catch and release them far away, until I spray painted 2 of them pink, because they kept coming back. This time I released the now pink varmints about 20 miles away and across the James River. 2 weeks later, 2 pink ground hogs showed up back in my area. No more catch and release.
I've killed several other species of varmints this year in and around my girls and our garden, then yesterday evening something attacked, but didn't kill the girls. Lots of comb damage to 2 of them. Then today I saw the ground hog in the chicken run. After reading up, they will eat small animals. I believe they can and do attack easy prey..... chickens included.
Game cameras are gong up to provide the final analysis.
 
TBirdsTheWord33 said:
That is correct. Groundhogs are vegetarians, so your chickens are safe. Unfortunately, however, the foundation of your home and outbuildings is another story. Last year, my husband removed at least 14 of them from our property, and THIS year, a big fat one has already taken up residence underneath our deck.
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I worry more about my foundation, most insurances don't cover foundation problems or house destruction when caused by a groundhog.
 
Wally the radon guy said:
Ground hogs are omnivores. I've caught and dispatched mammy of them with leftover chicken carcasses from Sam's Club.
I used to catch and release them far away, until I spray painted 2 of them pink, because they kept coming back. This time I released the now pink varmints about 20 miles away and across the James River. 2 weeks later, 2 pink ground hogs showed up back in my area. No more catch and release.
I've killed several other species of varmints this year in and around my girls and our garden, then yesterday evening something attacked, but didn't kill the girls. Lots of comb damage to 2 of them. Then today I saw the ground hog in the chicken run. After reading up, they will eat small animals. I believe they can and do attack easy prey..... chickens included.
Game cameras are gong up to provide the final analysis.
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Let me know if you come up with anything, I have one I have seen in my chicken run twice, in trying to shoot it with my bow for a challenge but if it will attack chickens I'm going to trap it and dispatch it.
 
Once you have it trapped just dunk the entire trap in a barrel of water or tie a chain to the trap and toss it in a pond. Just wait ten or fifteen minutes to be sure.
 
I eat very little meat, very little, as I hate the idea of killing animals. I don’t even kill spiders.

However, groundhogs are the exception (killing, not eating.). They can totally destroy a building. At my previous home I offered $25, $50, then $100 per body and had NO takers. They can take hours of waiting to kill. If I had them on my current property, I would learn to shoot a rifle. They are the mammal equivalent of flys. They almost destroyed my barn.

Horrible, horrible critters. Dreadful critters. Check out YouTube for ways to get rid of them. The best we ever came up with was truck exhaust down their tunnels.

Oh and by the way. Used kitty litter does NOT work. And they are classified as pests so you can shoot them.

IMHO, the ending of Caddyshack had the right idea.
 
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