Finally something I hate worse than moles

VOLES! Thought I had lazy moles, no huge mounds, stayed mostly around the fence and house. Then plant stalks started falling over. I found 1 to 2 inch holes near where I could see the(mole) had been. Moles are solitary, not voles. Voles like bulbs and vegetation and are much more destructive than moles. There is an apple test. Put slice of apple under can weight it down, if it's gone the next day, you have voles. Haven't done it yet, I will, but already see the results in my less than beautiful garden this year. I blamed our late season. Now how to get rid of them??????????
Does it ever end
Vicki

get a cat that likes to hunt. Better yet, get 2.

Or a terrier . . .

Since my old dog is long past his effective rodent hunting days, I now set traps baited with peanut butter and an apple chunk stuck in it. Mouse traps catch the smaller voles, but you will need rat traps for the grown ones (who have of course gotten very large on our garden produce). This does not eliminate the problem though it does reduce the population if you keep at it. The best trapping locations for me are near the compost , in brush piles or high vegetation where they have made runs, and in sheltered locations under the porch and steps. I agree, they are TERRIBLE.

Thank goodness I have 4 cats that love to catch things, mostly the little ones. But still have a problem ID'ing who is who (not the cats) LOL
I see the mounds so I know I have Moles, but I have found just holes, will have to try the apple test only problem is most likely the dogs will get it. I wonder if that is why some of my Stargazer Lily's did not return this year. Another battle to fight, O' Boy all ready fighting a Beetle/weevil can figure out which one, plants are doing fine just get tiny bites around the leaves to make them look ugly.(but not all plants just a chosen few) Then the almighty SLUGS.
And no Vicky I think we will always have a fight in one form or the other and its a neverending battle, for us gardeners.
Tils

Tilly,
At least the slugs are no longer a problem. I use "Sluggo". Safe for kids and all animals, and they crawl off to die.
I couldn't figure out why my garden was doing so poorly this season. I read that since you don't see big mounds of dirt with Voles,often it is your bulbs not coming up or your plant stalks falling over, and plants dying before you realize thees a big problem. A beautiful plant that has always produced a lot of healthy looking flowers can start looking sickly and just die. The holes are the thing I noticed. My butterfly bush which started out great with almost 1 foot long flowers is now looking very sickly with yellow leaves and I am lucky if the new flowers coming out are the length of my finger. I looked and the biggest hole I have found so far is leading right up to it. I bought the Giant Destroyer, a type of flare. Supposed to kill moles, voles (also called ground squirrels) woodchucks, rats, skunks and gopher. The only thing I have is Voles so the rest of the creatures are safe, but if they do the kind of damage these voles do, then they can go too.I wish I had a resident opposum. I had no trouble with anything last year till my opposum that lived under my house moved on. If I could figure out how to make one stay I would find a way to get one. I will let you know how the flares work.
Vicki

Voles look sort of like large mice with a short tail. Mine are fatter than mice, but that might be because they have such an abundance of food with my squash, root vegetables, and fallen apples.

Jessie my killer dog has been getting quite plump. I watch what she eats try to keep her from eating all my compost in the flower beds. Tonight she caught a huge vole had it swallowed in 2 seconds. I wonder how many of those things she has been eating a day. One year I planted tons of orange and purple tulips they all came up and just before they were about to open they all nodded down and the vole knawed them all off under ground. Heidi

Opossums are herbivores, so I doubt if they were keeping voles away.

My girl, Honey, does get a vole every now and then, but lately has been after the birds. I have vole holes everywhere - my dogs and cat probably get 5 voles for every mouse they get.

Katie,
I found a oppossum in my garage shortly after I moved into my duplex. I found out she had been here 1st and lived under my house. I don't sleep well at night and would go outside and she would be making her rounds, through my garden. They will eat fruits and veggies, and snakes and mice, worms, snails and slugs and just about anything else you don't want in your garden. They are not big on flower gardens. I never had a problem with any kind of critter or bug until she moved on. They don't stay in one place very long. After getting used to the way she looked, yuck, I decided if I could find a way to get one here and make it stay I would do it in a heartbeat. I have a couple of cats but they are indoor, several strays around though and it doesn't seem to help. I also read that voles carry parasites, they even recommend using gloves to get rid of them if you use traps. If your pet are eating them, be careful. I used a smoke flare, I don't know if it works yet but until I can get me a nice ugly oppossum it will have to do.
Vicki

One thing good about that, is my cats will play with them until they are dead, but will not eat them nor will they eat the rats they catch, they will eat the field mice. And I have very heathly cats none has ever been sick.

Hmmmm - everything I have read and seen indicates that opossums are herbivores. Have you seen them hunting? I can't image them being quick enough to catch anything. I haven't ever, and I had never heard that they ate rodents and snakes, but this site says that they do. Interesting.

If you do have one around, keep your grass trimmed so the dogs don't eat it. Opossum urine can make your dogs pretty sick.

http://www.opossum.org/facts.htm

Opossum opee? oyum.
Opossum diet - maybe the Voles are on their fast-food list...or maybe they don't want the word getting out...

Yup, I'm going for the terrier suggestion. Ours catches them quite regularly - and stalks past me doing his lion walk and carrying his vole. It is definately "you can look, but don't touch" - no idea what he does with them, probably licks them - seems to be just fine.

Boy has it been blowing today - just exhausting to work in - so noisy!

well Jessie girl has been catching field mice nightly . I guess this is part of her weight gain. Yesterday I caught her on top of a bench of plants after the chipmunk while turtle and boo were under the bench. they trashed the place and the chipmunk is on my hit list. Then tonight I was up in back and heard major commotion and I thought they had a bear up a tree, The I thought they had a big raccoon . I could see them all around thinking who is going to go in for the kill shot. It was Jessie. I ran down the hill yelling at them and they had a huge hawk. The bird was laying on its back and talons out ready to nail who ever came in. I ran and thew my sweatshirt over the bird and threw the dogs in the truck and let the bird catch its breath and it flew off. My guess is that it was sitting on the ground eating something and she snuck up on it and when it flew it flew into the tree too low and they jumped and got it. Never a dull moment. Heidi

Whooo!! That got my adrenaline going just thinking about it. Wonder how many bird claw injuries in dogs the vets see every year.

Thats to cool you saved, MMMM BOTH good job Heidi.

Tillys latest catch, at least one I got a pic of.

Close up, A Mouse But it got away, she looked for it for hours, poor kitty.

MY WORD! Heidi - you do live in an exciting place! Sheesh