How to Tell if there is a Groundhog Under Your Porch

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The groundhog is an herbivorous rodent that is also known as woodchuck or whistle pig. It is a lowland creature that is largely scattered across North America and is the largest member of the squirrel family. Groundhogs eat plants and also dig tunnels.



Groundhogs are a major source of headache to farmers as they love to eat plants. Although usually seen on the land, they are very good climbers and would often climb trees to feed on fruits and tree bark.

To know whether the disturbance under your shed or porch is being caused by a groundhog, you must be able to distinguish it from other similar-looking animals like its squirrel cousin. A groundhog resembles a common tree squirrel but may appear bigger atimes. An average groundhog measures 16 to 24 inches from nose to tail. It also weighs up to 10 Ib. The fur coat of a groundhog is usually dark brown in color and its undercoat may appear to be banded vertically as you observe the body from head to toe.

Groundhogs possess a roundish body with a small bushy tail, which is usually shorter and more compact than that of the tree squirrel. Their legs are also strong and short with curved, sharp claws for burrowing. Groundhogs have unusually dense skulls as well as two long ever-growing incisors for which they gnaw at everything in sight. Because of the dense skull, they can withstand a head blow that would easily kill other rodents of similar size. The eyes are small and round with their ears located on the top of their flat head. A groundhog can also be identified by its rounded, curved spine which further differentiates it from a common tree squirrel.

Groundhogs leave wide teeth marks on woods, plantings, trees etc. The presence of any such marking on or around your shed or porch is a strong indication that a groundhog lives under there.

You may also notice mounds of soil outside of a burrow entrance leading under your shed or porch; or discover damaged and hollowed-out crops under your porch. These are all indications that a groundhog is nesting under your shed or porch.

Another sign is the characteristic loud whistle or shrill that groundhogs emit when startled or frightened (thus the nickname – ‘whistle pig’). Otherwise, they make a ‘chuck-chuck’ type of chatter.

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