How to Get Rid of Chipmunks

Summary: Some of the toughest rodents to get rid of in your yard are chipmunks. Although they may seem cute, they can terrorize your award-winning garden or perfectly landscaped lawn. This article has some tips on eliminating chipmunks from your yard.  You can learn more about chipmunk control products or purchase them here.

Though it may be hard to believe, chipmunks can become little terrors to your garden or lawn. The people that know this best are those whose yards have been taken over by chipmunks. If you spend many hours each week perfecting your backyard and chipmunks eat all your handiwork, you may want to figure out ways to get rid of the critters. Here are some ideas that we have put together for the most effective way to get rid of these pesky little animals. (Note: If you ever have to handle dead chipmunks, make sure you do so safely. Wear proper gloves and make sure to wash your hands after disposing of them. Chipmunks may carry a myriad of diseases, so it is better to be safe than sorry.)

Sunflower Bucket Method

Take a large bucket, fill it halfway with water, and set it outside. Find a small piece of wood that you can use as a plank leading up to the bucket. Spread sunflower seeds in the grass, on the piece of wood, and in the water. The chipmunk will walk up to the grass, up the plank, and fall into the water, unable to get out.

Walk the plank

You may want to set up a few buckets in your yard. Also, if you find that squirrels are eating all the seeds and scurrying away, try putting a screen on top of the bucket. Make sure there is enough room for chipmunks to get in, but not enough that bigger squirrels would be able to eat up all the bait.

Outdoor Pets

Keeping your pet outdoors is a great way to scare off chipmunks. If you already have a doghouse outside, you are set. However, you may consider getting a cat for the outdoors. Both of these larger animals will intimidate the chipmunks. This technique is not recommended, though, if there are hawks, foxes, or other predatory animals living in your neighborhood. Your cats and small dogs are on the food chart for these larger animals.

Live Trap

A live trap is a very easy way to get rid of chipmunks and it does not require much effort. Purchase a trap at a hardware store and set it out in your yard. Throw nuts, sunflower seeds, or other munchies around and inside the trap. The chipmunks will eventually get fooled into walking into the trap and setting it off. This is the hard part. State laws do not allow for the release of captured wild animals. So, don't count on taking them to a park or your mother-in-law's yard to set free. You will have to dispose of the captured animal which my not agree with the tree-hugger part of your personality.

Plant Spray

If none of the above options work, try spraying your plants with something that will not harm the chipmunks, but will be distasteful to them. Try hot sauce or pepper solution, as chipmunks tend to resist these flavors.

Bait

JT Eaton company makes a chipmunk bait product called Answer that can be placed in outdoor rodent stations or stuffed down chipmunk burrows. Some states have laws on their books that prohibit the use of poisons to kill chipmunks, but they are not enforced, for the most part. If you have questions you can call you State Department of Natural Resources.

Mousetrap

Live Trap

If you want a way to get rid of the chipmunks without putting them through too much pain, try setting out a mousetrap. Because chipmunks are such small animals the trap should do the job quickly and cleanly. Put a dab of peanut butter/oatmeal mix on the trap trigger. There are the traditional spring traps and there are traps powered by batteries that give a fatal jolt as the chipmunk enters.

Mothball Trick

Setting mothballs around your yard will deter chipmunks, but will not eliminate them. The advantage to this is that mothballs may also deter pests such as bugs and other rodents. Try placing mothballs around the foundation of your home (one every few feet will do the trick). Also, if you have holes in your yard from the chipmunks, place about a half dozen mothballs in each hole. This technique will keep the chipmunks away from your house and farther back in your yard. Then, try setting up the sunflower bucket trap or mousetraps to get rid of Chip and Dale completely.

Watch this short video on trapping animals.