Armadillos are nocturnal insectivores that are most active in the early morning hours. Like most animals, they are drawn to food sources. If you have an environment filled with shrubs, berries, or flowers, your yard can become the perfect environment for armadillos. As burrowers, they also look for fertile and soft soil, which lets them keep themselves comfortable for most day and evening hours. Let’s look at how to stop armadillo digging up your yard.
Know Your Enemy
Prevention is almost always the best way to stop an armadillo from digging up your yard. Knowing their habits and the dangers they can pose is crucial to eliminating the threat. Not only do armadillos pose a costly threat by destroying underground pipes and irrigation, but they will also tear up flower beds and gardens.
Holes in the flower beds and garden are not only unsightly, but they are also possibly dangerous.
Armadillos can also carry leprosy. Here’s a look at a few ways to prevent an armadillo infestation and mitigate the effects of an ongoing issue.
“Sniff” Them Out
Although armadillos have terrible eyesight, their sense of smell is keen. Whether you are trying to keep them at bay or rid the yard of them, try placing mothballs in styrofoam cups and soil. Ammonia, vinegar, and pine cleaner are also effective armadillo prevention measures when placed in cups and spread around the garden and flower beds.
Garlic and cayenne pepper can also be used as a deterrent, as armadillos don’t like the scent of spicy things.
Destroying Food Sources
You can use castor oil to destroy food sources. Not only does castor oil smell, but it will also make the insects that armadillos enjoy taste bad. The castor oil will give the armadillo burrow area a foul odor, making it uninhabitable.
If you have an armadillo problem, take a deeper look at your yard- there’s a reason you attracted the pests in the first place. Keep a strict eye on fruit trees, as the rotten or overripe fruit that falls onto the lawn is a significant source of food for armadillos, not to mention the insects that also eat the fallen fruit.
Construct a Fence
Armadillos will not jump over a high fence, so it is far more important to ensure your fence is 18 inches to 2 feet deep in the ground. These pests are notorious for their ability to dig and burrow.
Positioning the above-ground fence at a 45-degree angle will help ensure armadillos won’t climb it from the top. While their digging can damage underground cables and hoses, the root systems for your fruits, vegetables, and flowers are also at risk.
For smaller areas, enclosing your space with chicken wire is also an option to keep opportunistic armadillos from flower beds, insect larvae, and grubs.
Re-Fill Garden Holes
Any potential for burrowing is made possible with the presence of existing garden holes. The solution calls for filling them with more soil and mothballs. If you choose this method, you should also place mothballs and ammonia around the perimeter of your yard to help create a wall of odor to discourage armadillos. Experts also recommend placing wood chips around flower beds to stop initial digging.
If you have any family pets that have access to your yard, it’s best to make sure they stay away from the garden and any potential chemicals you’re using to deter the armadillos.
Trapping
The final, dreaded option is trapping. Successful trapping involves strategically placing traps close to where the armadillos are burrowing or even above where they burrow. Place several traps in your garden. The more traps you have, the more surface area they will cover, and the more likely you are to catch one of your pesky armadillos.
Occasionally, you can bait traps using fruits and insects. More often than not, all you need is a sturdy trap, as armadillos can be surprisingly strong. Wearing long pants and gloves when handling the animal is also a good idea.
Be sure to look into the laws associated with trapping, as there are some states where trapping is illegal without a license. Make sure you release your armadillo into a safe wilderness area or call your local animal control for further instructions.
Vinegar can also be used to get rid of armadillos.