GROUNDHOGS

Common Concerns & Safety Issues

Damage to crops and foundations. Holes can break ankles of horses and cattle.      
Eliminate damage as a result of digging habits  
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Customers & Locations

Parks
Athletic Fields
Golf Courses
Lake Front Properties
Private Communities
Industrial Sites
Business Parks
Townships
County Governments
Boroughs
Schools
Municipalities

Professional Solutions

  • Program design
  • Remove housing 
  • Maintain yards to prevent nesting  
  • Pesticides used for other animals  

Understanding the
GROUNDHOG

Grouping Herbivore
Nicknames Wood Chuck, Whistle Pig, Gopher, @#$%^&*!, Pasture Poodle 
Best Known For Proficient at excavation, burrow entrances can be as large as a basketball. Burrows can have multiple enterances. Groundhogs are also well known for their prediction of the arrival of spring.
Life Span 1 to 5 years
Mating Season March and April.
Reproductive Details After a gestation period of 32 days 3 to 5 pups are born and one litter per year. Young emerge in late May and are often seen close to mom.
Dispersal Dispersal takes place in July/August. Young move out and seek new homes when mom kicks them out!
Habitat Groundhogs are edge animals and like open areas adjacent to cover. They choose places similiar to utility sheds, decks, and shrub lines for underground den sites. Life in the suburbs is good!
Activity Cycle Active during daylight hours. True hibernators (November through mid-March).
Food Foods include fruits, vegetables and soft plant materials. Your garden plants, favorite flowers, and just ripe tomatoes. However, mulberries are a favorite.
Damage Signs Plant materials nipped off or missing and large excavations due to digging.  
Treatment Trapping, remove housing (including areas under decks, sheds, sun porches, etc.). Inspect areas hidden by shrubs or dense foliage and under low buildings or decks through the summer months. Ask your neighbor to get rid of the groundhog living under their shed!
Distinguishing Features Groundhogs have heavy claws used for digging and are able to stand upright. They provide dens for many other animal species and will signal danger using a distinctive whistle. Can and do climb, especially mulberry trees. Their fur is light to dark brown in color and have a black tail.  
Risk They are not looking for a fight but will stand their ground if needed. Defensive posture includes teeth clicking and false charges.
Den Sites Depth of dens range from 3 to 4 feet. Can dig through heavy shale and rocks. Dens range in length from 20 to 50 feet and can have multiple dead ends and exits. Dead ends are often grass lined and act as nesting and birthing locations. It is a house with many rooms.

Integrated Wildlife Management is our comprehensive and effective one-stop solution. This approach brings together the six necessary elements to successfully resolve wildlife / human conflicts and when possible, safely relocate wildlife to a more suitable habitat.

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