# I caught a groundhog! Now what? (Need answer fast) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 29, 2009, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012 "2009-09-29T18:02:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JerseyFrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@JerseyFrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyFrank)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/1 "2009-09-29T18:02:01Z")
I gave up for a while, but I finally got him. He’s in a Hav-a-hart trap at home right now. I live in a suburban neighborhood where discharging firearms would be frowned upon, if not downright illegal. Plus, I don’t have any firearms. So what do I do with him? Do I kill him? Relocate? Relocation is technically illegal, and possibly cruel. If there’s a humane way to kill him, I’m not squeamish about doing it. However, if I do kill him, I’d like to use him in some efficient way. Eating, making a hat, anything really. Got some suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/2 "2009-09-29T18:17:24Z")
You’re just going to execute him? Can’t you at least waterboard him until he gives up his terrorist-friends’s locations and intentions? ---
**Author:** ![JerseyFrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@JerseyFrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyFrank)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/3 "2009-09-29T18:19:30Z")
FTR, I’m not in favor of executing him. I’d like to live and let live… but he’s jeopardizing the safety of my kids and the structure of my porch. He’s gotta go in a way that ensures he’s not coming back to my yard. ---
**Author:** ![nivlac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3bc359/32.png) [@nivlac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nivlac)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/4 "2009-09-29T18:20:04Z")
I’m so impressed you actually caught one! I have one or more of them digging up holes in my backyard and I wish I have your problem of how to dispose. So Havahart traps work, huh? Well, if I ever catch one in such a trap I’d probably release it somewhere in the wild far from my house. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/5 "2009-09-29T18:21:04Z")
Hmmm. In that case, waterboard him until he tells you the best ways to make him leave. Seriously though, shouldn’t you call some kind of animal control for their suggestion? ---
**Author:** ![lokij](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/5e9695/32.png) [@lokij](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lokij)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/6 "2009-09-29T18:22:11Z")
> [@JerseyFrank](#): > > I gave up for a while, but I finally got him. He’s in a Hav-a-hart trap at home right now. I live in a suburban neighborhood where discharging firearms would be frowned upon, if not downright illegal. Plus, I don’t have any firearms. > > So what do I do with him? Do I kill him? Relocate? Relocation is technically illegal, and possibly cruel. > > If there’s a humane way to kill him, I’m not squeamish about doing it. However, if I do kill him, I’d like to use him in some efficient way. Eating, making a hat, anything really. Got some suggestions? Groundhog is edible and actually pretty decent. There are some challenges, however. It’s usually very fatty in my experience, though depending on your cooking method this may be a good thing. There are also scent glands to contend with and they can be tricky to find. Though I have no experience doing it I’ve heard that they benefit from being hung for a few days to age. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/7 "2009-09-29T18:29:03Z")
Just call the Humane Society. They’ll figure out what to do with him. ---
**Author:** ![JerseyFrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@JerseyFrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyFrank)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/8 "2009-09-29T18:30:29Z")
> [@nivlac](#): > > I’m so impressed you actually caught one! I have one or more of them digging up holes in my backyard and I wish I have your problem of how to dispose. So Havahart traps work, huh? Well, if I ever catch one in such a trap I’d probably release it somewhere in the wild far from my house. I gave up after 2 weeks. I caught an opposum and the groundhog burrow entrance had seemed to collapse on itself. I assumed they had moved out since I don’t have a garden. But then the burrow entrance re-appeared and he’s been spotted a few times. I laid the trap again and decided that maybe the problem was that he was leaving his burrow in the other direction (under the porch). It made sense considering that whenever we spotted him, it was always on the opposite side. And, of course, I caught another possum. I moved the trap again and I just got the phone call today that we got him. FWIW, I baited the thing with carrots, celery, apples, Kouza Dogwood fruits, and finally a cucumber. I’m not convinced I had a problem with the bait. I think it was more location and that the trap may not have been level, causing the hog to avoid it and back out or spring it before he was contained. ---
**Author:** ![JerseyFrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@JerseyFrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyFrank)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/9 "2009-09-29T18:32:52Z")
> [@Covered\_In\_Bees](#): > > Seriously though, shouldn’t you call some kind of animal control for their suggestion? I called and left a message. It’ll probably be too late by the time they call me back next month. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/10 "2009-09-29T18:40:53Z")
I hate them. Cut its head off and mount it on a pike in your garden as a warning to the others. Might not work, though. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/11 "2009-09-29T18:48:05Z")
Thank heavens you didn’t catch a woodchuck! ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/12 "2009-09-29T18:51:27Z")
Send it to my neighborhood, apparently. We had a cute fat groundhog around, that wasn’t bothering me at all - my garden was enclosed, so he couldn’t get to it, and I don’t really care what he does to the lawn. Until one day I found his bloated dead body next to the shed. Yuck. ☹ :eek: So send him over here - whatever killed mine will probably kill yours, too. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/13 "2009-09-29T18:56:13Z")
Why bother to do anything? You’ll just have to do it again the next day, and the next, and so on. ---
**Author:** ![Hirundo82](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/919ad9/32.png) [@Hirundo82](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hirundo82)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/14 "2009-09-29T19:16:19Z")
Do you have any friends with firearms and some land? A .22 to the head is probably the fastest and most humane way to do it. Otherwise, I’d just stick the trap in a trash can with a bunch of dry ice–CO2 euthanasia is humane and relatively quick. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/15 "2009-09-29T19:19:05Z")
Ask him how many weeks of fall we’re due for. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/16 "2009-09-29T19:21:09Z")
My beagles kill them. My garden does not get groundhogged more than once. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/17 "2009-09-29T19:25:13Z")
> [@JerseyFrank](#): > > I caught a groundhog! Now what? (Need answer fast) Do you have any neighbors you don’t like? Jersey, huh? Do you have any neighbors you don’t like who aren’t connected? ---
**Author:** ![JerseyFrank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bcef8e/32.png) [@JerseyFrank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyFrank)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/18 "2009-09-29T19:29:35Z")
> [@Hirundo82](#): > > Do you have any friends with firearms and some land? A .22 to the head is probably the fastest and most humane way to do it. Not that I know of. > [@](#): > > Otherwise, I’d just stick the trap in a trash can with a bunch of dry ice–CO2 euthanasia is humane and relatively quick. That’s a good idea. Does it make for good eating, or does the meat get too fizzy? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/19 "2009-09-29T19:38:58Z")
> [@JerseyFrank](#): > > Not that I know of. > > That’s a good idea. Does it make for good eating, or does the meat get too fizzy? Don’t shake the can before opening. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2009, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012/20 "2009-09-29T19:46:11Z")
I caught a junior rabbit that was messing around in my yard, using one of those traps. WV being fairly rural, though, it was easy enough to relocate the beast. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-caught-a-groundhog-now-what-need-answer-fast/512012.md?page=2)