Vole & Mole Removal

Moles and voles can cause major lawn damage. Not only is the landscaping unattractive with moles and voles digging their way across the yard, but damage to livestock can also occur when an animal trips over the rodent-made mounds. Additionally, the moles may carry disease and the mounds can cause lawn mowers' blades to break. Removal of these pests can be done by many methods, including poisons, baits, traps and live removal.

While moles and voles are both rodents that can cause significant damage to the landscape, they are also significantly different from one another. The first step for pest removal is determining whether it is a vole or a mole. To do this, pay close attention at the landscaping difficulties the creatures leave behind. If your pest is a mole, it will leave behind either a ridge running across the lawn or tiny mounds that resemble volcanoes. If your pest is a vole, there will be no tiny mounds, but you will find runways close to the surface of the yard that measure approximately 2 inches across.

You can kill voles by two methods: traps and poison baits. Use simple mouse traps to kill voles. If you use poisons, make sure they are rodent specific. Many are available on the market, and most of them contain warfarin, a substance that causes the animal to bleed to death through internal hemorrhaging.

Place the poison or the trap directly into the vole burrow opening, to reduce the chance of harming pets or children. When determining where to place the trap, look for the vole runway that has the greatest amount of urine and feces or find the longest runway.

Apply repellent that contains the chemical thiram or use predator-urine-based repellents. These repellents are made for other animals, such as rabbits, but can be used on voles as well. Reapply often, particularly after rain. Beware that frequent reapplication will cause the voles to become resistant to the smell of the repellent.

Place fencing around tree bark and garden plants to prevent voles from snacking on them, and make sure to dig the fencing in at least several inches. Live traps can be purchased to remove the voles, but be sure to check with your local wildlife department, because removal of the animal to another location may be against the law.

Many commercial repellents are made specifically for moles. Typically mole repellents are made from castor oil and therefore are quite safe for other pets or small children. Mole poisons and mole traps are as dangerous as the vole poisons and should be applied with the same cautious manner. Make sure to water the soil before and after applying the poison or repellent. Most of the flowering bulb plants, along with the Mexican marigold, have been reported to repel moles naturally through their scent.

The important part of applying a mole trap is hiding the trap from the mole's sensitive feet. Dig a small space at the beginning of a mole tunnel to place the trap into it. Cover the trap entryway with dirt. The mole will walk into the trap because it sees with its feet instead of its eyes. Mole traps are more commonly found than vole traps and can be either live traps or lethal traps. If purchasing a live trap, it is again important to make sure relocation of the animal is legal in your area.

Although a popular pest removal method, fumigants do not work for either moles or voles. The problem is that their tunnels are too long and the gas will not reach them. Additionally, pest controls that depend upon ultrasonic waves will not work either, for the same reason. The most effective mole or vole repellents or traps will either repel the rodent entirely or entice the rodent to come to the trap.