There is a good chance gasoline would deter them from a den. They have an incredible sense of smell and use it constantly in everything they do.
They are built to climb, and most people do not know that. Handle one and you'll learn why, their hind feet can turn to grapple. I have been up in a tree with a fully grown one and have photos of this.
I don't particularly like dispatching woodchucks for some reason, yet I cannot stand raccoons, coyotes and some other varmints, and usually will not hesitate anytime I have an opportunity to take one out. They are nasty, dangerous and carry all kinds of diseases compared to other critters.
Your account of dispatching one in a tree, that is something you will live with all of your days, same as I do when it did not go humanely or as humanely as I would like.
This is one of the reasons I try to be fair and consider having the roles reversed. I don't care what anyone thinks about it either. People can do some very inhumane things to critters and varmints. I won't stand for any of that no matter what,it makes me very angry. All kinds of videos out there, slow tortuous painful, terrifying death, say when they let a dog grab one by the hind end. Rats die quicker than a marmot when dogs are used. Even predators know enough to break its neck. Either shoot it in the head or vitals effectively, gas or smoke poison them, or live trap, catch by hand and do what you must, release where it's not going to create a problem for someone else, or put them down in a quick humane manner.
When around ones place, outbuildings and such, you must have a firearm ready to go. As much as I appreciate the ones I have, and like to take good care of them there's always one hidden and ready when I need it.
The story of the one in the tree reminds me of an experience I have shared here many times. I had the same thing happen, but instead of killing this one, we just had a staring contest. That previous fall I had the awful experience of having to put down the best and most unique dog I have ever had and or experienced. He just got old and the health problems were beyond helping him anymore. He had a seizure and I knew what I had to do, but it was one of the absolute worst most rotten things I have ever had to do. This woodchuck was in the tree that "Biggie" used to sit in front of every morning at sunrise and was buried under its canopy. That woodchuck was a welcome friend for 8 years of my life and I would not trade the experience of it for anything. Still reeling from the loss, this guy was incredible. He was a trusted friend like my dog and you could set your watch by his arrivals on a daily basis and particularly on Saturdays. Being a territorial male, he kept all the other woodchucks out and away from the house, and even fought one under the porch losing a finger ! That is how I knew it was him for all those years. He enjoyed the snacks I gave him and you know I did not have a fence up around my garden for most of the time he was around. He would take a tomato once in awhile, but amazingly, just never became a nuisance. It's hard to believe, but then again I have seen them eat more weeds than not. I've got photos and not so good video to remember "Woody" by. He would climb up on your lap, he was something else and I swear my dog came back as a woodchuck LOL ! It helped a lot with dealing with what I had to do. I've never seen one even remotely like this one since and there have been dozens and dozens.
Some places and situations you just cannot have them around, holes and livestock, crops, buildings, so you do what you must, hopefully in the most humane manner you can.
Upload one or more videos to your post. Photo filesizes should be less than 300K and Videos, less than 2MB. Formats allowed are gif, jpg, png, ogg, mp4, mov, and avi. Be sure to use filenames without spaces or special characters, and filetypes of 3 digits lower case.
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today. [ About Us ]
Today's Featured Article - Harvestin Hay: The Early Years (Part 2) - by Pat Browning. The summer of 1950 was the start of a new era in farming for our family. I was thirteen, and Kathy (my oldest sister) was seven. At this age, I believed tractor farming was the only way, hot stuff -- and given a chance I probably would have used the tractor, Dad's first, a 1936 Model "A" John Deere, to go bring in the cows! And I think Dad was ready for some automation too. And so it was that we acquired a good, used J. I. Case, wire tie hay baler. In addition to a person to drive th
... [Read Article]
Latest Ad:
Sell 1958 Hi-Altitude Massey Fergerson tractor, original condition. three point hitch pto engine, Runs well, photos available upon request
[More Ads]
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy
TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
