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Discussion Forum

chipmunk problem-How to get rid of?

loucarabasi | Posted in General Discussion on November 14, 2007 12:42pm

Everyone, Whats the best way to get rid of these little ba$turds? There are chipmunks all over my property.I’m not taking down my tall oak trees!!!

They are in my shop which is detached from the house. I found there turds on my cast iron tools and they are probably up in the second floor attic.

need advice, Lou 

0h, And thank you

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  1. Hudson Valley Carpenter | Nov 14, 2007 01:55pm | #1

    Whether you have field mice, chipmunks or both, Havahart live traps are usually very effective.  I used them in my cabin whenever I found mouse scat around.  The mice went for any kind of bait, dry oatmeal even. 

    Chipmunks may need a stronger aroma, like peanut butter, when trapping them outside.  Chipmunks dig burrows so they're more often found outside than are field mice.

    I made temporary mouse housing out of a large coffee can by drilling a few air holes in the sides and sticking a small rag in the bottom to keep 'em quiet.  That way I could put the mice in the holding cell and reload the trap, catching several of them before needing to take the can with me in the truck to unload. 

  2. zzzzz | Nov 14, 2007 02:29pm | #2

     I used to have a big chipmunk problem to, I tried trapping them, shooting them poising them, but it seamed that for every one I got rid of two more showed up.

      Then one day about three years ago a cat started to hang around the house, we gave her some water and just a little food. Now I see a chipmunk every month or so, usually it has no head.

  3. User avater
    NickNukeEm | Nov 14, 2007 04:39pm | #3

    Cat.

    My one outdoor cat left chipmonks on my driveway for a number of days straight, until no more chippys were hanging around.  We have stone walls, stacks of firewood, so they're probably still in hiding, but more discreet.

    The chippy is discreet, but the cat is patient.

     

    "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."  Invictus, by Henley.

  4. JMadson | Nov 14, 2007 07:43pm | #4

    Is the picture attached what you're talking about?

    If so, I've never seen one of these up a tree or in a house/garage. You probably have something other than a chipmunk then. How big are the droppings? Do they look like black rice?

    In the attic? Any chance you got rats?

     
    1. User avater
      loucarabasi | Nov 14, 2007 08:57pm | #6

      Thats what they look like, no rats though

      1. User avater
        carloa007 | Nov 14, 2007 09:25pm | #7

        If you find something that works, I'm all ears. I have tons of damn chipmunks and mice on my property. Chew up everything. I had the wire harness on my truck chewed through to the point where 2 cylinders wouldn't fire. Of course the wires didn't fully separate till I was on my way home......Guess thats what I get for buying land on Chipmunk Court. And yes, like I told the mechanic, that is the name of my street....I've tried traps with peanut butter. That only worked on the mice. The dogs pretty good about catching them, but I usually end up with 3 - 4 ft deep holes in the yard. I've thought about getting a cat, but that would be a last resort for me.

      2. JMadson | Nov 14, 2007 09:28pm | #8

        I've never seen a chipmunk anywhere but in the yard.

        Set some old fashioned snap traps anywhere you find droppings. See what you catch. I can't believe that the chipmunks are climbing in your garage and attic.  

  5. User avater
    Jeff_Clarke | Nov 14, 2007 07:51pm | #5

    Bet you have mice not chipmunks.

    Get a trap called the Ketchall - works great.  You can add a little peanut butter on the touchpad.

    http://www.amazon.com/Kness-Mfg-co-Ketchall-Mousetrap/dp/B0002ZUFTO

     

    Jeff

  6. kbd | Nov 14, 2007 09:42pm | #9

           I was overrun with them. The easiest and most nontoxic way is to get 5 gallon bucket, fill half way with water and then float sunflower seeds on the water. Put the bucket next to wood pile or stone wall. Connect wall or wood pile with a gang plank and put a few sunflower  seeds on the gangplank. Then check and empty as needed. Do not bother if rain is due. Sunflower seeds sink with rain. This is the method used by organic farmers.

        Chipmunks hibernate for the winter. Squirrels also like the seeds but they can get out of the bucket.

  7. Sojourner | Nov 14, 2007 10:01pm | #10

    The live traps work well if you bait them with sunflower seeds. Make sure you get the proper size, so that squirrels don't go in, and keep the door open with their tail (and so escape). Or so large that the chipmunks can squeeze out through the mesh.

    Chipmunk "habitat" includes tunneling under woodland rocks; and sidewalks, patios, and porches will do just fine, too. They have a fondness for my parents' garage, too. :^) As colder weather comes in, they will become torpid, so you shouldn't see them around then. Their droppings are larger than those of mice, but as another poster said, you could have both.

    Good luck,

    soj

    1. byhammerandhand | Nov 15, 2007 03:22am | #11

      My neighbor insists on feeding all the squirrels in the neighborhood (dozens), deer, raccoons, and attractive birds like flocks of starlings and the occasional blue jay. She does this about every 45 minutes all day long. So yes, I have chipmunks. They can do tremendous damage by tunneling under patios and porch foundations.I resorted to http://www.backyardstyle.com/shop/index.php?page=shop-flypage-5220 and caught one or two a day for over a week. The word is that as long as there's food on the ground the chipmunks will not leave on their own volition.I do not believe in catch and release because:
      * It just transfers your problem to someone else.
      * It is a great way to transmit disease.
      * For territorial animals or those with food stores, it can guarantee a slow death by starvation.

      1. sarison | Nov 15, 2007 06:48am | #12

        Last year, the coyotes eliminated all the cats and fox that used to run behind my house.  This year, there any predators for the squirrells and I'm over run.  The Havahart thing is too much like work.  When I have an hour or two, I just paste some peanut butter and bird seed on the side of a tree and wait from an upstairs window.  A pellet gun doesn't take them out right away but I know they go down.

  8. formula1 | Nov 15, 2007 06:42pm | #13

    This is a 'squirrel relocator', but it should work with chipmunks.

    http://s69.photobucket.com/albums/i46/uptowndallasdave/?action=view&current=Squirrelrelocater.flv

    If it ain't broke, don't fix it, just open it up to see how it works!

    1. kbd | Nov 15, 2007 07:40pm | #14

      That is a great solution if you have a neighbor contributing to the problem!

    2. User avater
      aimless | Nov 15, 2007 10:57pm | #16

      I sure hope that was staged - that was awful.

      1. TonySD | Nov 15, 2007 11:02pm | #17

        you could always use those old records to round them up like the Pied Piper....

        ALVINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

        sorry, I couldn't resist.

        And get rid of the neighbors that feed those little ####

      2. DonCanDo | Nov 16, 2007 12:57am | #18

        Yes, awful... and funny!

        But I bet the squirrels don't even get hurt.  I saw a squirrel fall from a tree and hit the road with all 4 legs spread eagle (I assume it does that to slow its fall).  It actually made a loud slap when it hit.  It got up and ran away.

        1. Sancho | Nov 16, 2007 05:03am | #19

          why not take advantage of the situation. make some money off them. I saw a show the other day where a guy had 3 chipmunks gave them some clothes and taught the to sing.
          My favorite is a song about a Japanese banana>>Isn't anyone going to say what all best be thinking?-Hank Hill

    3. Waters | Nov 17, 2007 06:50pm | #21

      Was that a flying squirrel?

  9. User avater
    user-246028 | Nov 15, 2007 09:26pm | #15

    Ever seen what a shot gun will do to a chipmunk. Leaves no evidence.

     

  10. Hudson Valley Carpenter | Nov 17, 2007 05:07pm | #20

    http://www.victorpest.com   I made the mistake of leaving a screen door ajar overnight, a couple of weeks ago.   That led to the first rat I can remember, making his home in the kitchen.   I caught glimpses of him, scurring away, so I knew that he was a fair sized rat.

    As I'm currently living in a city, the only good way to deal with rodents is to kill them, as swiftly as possible.  Relocate them to the garbage can. 

    I don't want to use poison because it may get into some other animal's foodchain. 

    So I went to HD and found Victor's Power Kill Rat Trap.  It's an impressive re-design of the old standard spring loaded wood based traps.  Made mostly of plastic it's far easier to bait and set than the older model.  It has a stronger spring mechanism and a much larger trigger pad, yet it's not nearly as likely to go off in your hand.

    Nailed it's first and perhaps last victim within hours, using peanut butter.

     

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