The Monday Garden, Eco-gardening at its best
May 14, 2005, Issue 164
This is my "short story about a woodchuck"; please add your story in the comments section at the end of the article. And, let's keep our small friends safe!
Here’s the mother woodchuck (groundhog)(Marmota monax) who lives under my friend’s back porch in an older residential area of Stamford, CT, that has mostly small lots (and no energy-wasteful McMansions, thank you!). Mama Woodchuck, as she’s known, is taking a break from childcare to munch on some lettuce just put out for her.
picture: nursing mother woodchuck, undisclosed location, Stamford CT, May 2005
If she’s typical of her breed, she is about 16 inches long, weighs up to 10 pounds, sleeps November to February, and has 4 to 6 children annually in late April-early May. The kids are born naked, weighing just grams. They grow quickly, are weaned, and move out by midsummer. Despite her best efforts, up to 75% of her children will die before their first birthday. Some of the young ones will be killed by humans, cars or predators; and some for reasons not fully understood will die during hibernation. “Mama W” herself, having successfully reached adulthood, should live about 6 years.
Do you have a "Short Story About a Woodchuck" to share? If so, please post it in the Comments section at the end of this article.
Mama W generally gets along great with my friend’s outdoor feral cats (all neutered, of course), except when Mama W is tending to her most recent litter. Normally, all the furry critters shelter under the porch, but not when there are baby woodchucks in residence. My friend saw one of the cats try it the other day -- and come flying out again seconds later.
Even the father woodchuck goes back to where ever he has his permanent burrow, once the babies are on their way. He’ll be by to visit the kids when Mama allows him and then back for an extended stay after he wakes up next February.
The caretaker of a feral cat colony in North Stamford, who also has a resident female woodchuck, says that, when the children are grown, the mother woodchuck goes around the neighborhood and helps her children select and dig burrows of their own. The caretaker says that the mother woodchuck then checks on her children daily for their first few weeks of independent living.
This caretaker also related once seeing a band of wild kittens creeping across the lawn to investigate the grazing woodchuck, and the bravest kitten actually touching noses with her. We tend to think of animals in the wild as sticking with their own kind but incidents like this make me wonder whether cross-species friendships might be more the rule than the exception.
picture: One of the four baby woodchucks, watched from indoors by my friend’s cats, explores the porch. Stamford CT May 2005
It seems that woodchucks are heirs to all the best traits and skills of clan rodent. Woodchucks have long claws that help them dig impressively borrows, complete with bathrooms and bedrooms. With the help of their claws, woodchucks can, and will, climb trees. Indeed, my friend has already seen this year’s babies give it a try. Rumor has it that the main reason woodchucks climb trees is due to their love of apples. However, since woodchucks are closely related to squirrels, perhaps woodchucks mostly climb trees for fun.
Woodchucks also swim. The "Texas Pepper Man", featured in Issue 113 for his amazing indoor eco-peppers, reports that his woodchucks swim around "like little beavers" in the pond abutting his property.
At a recent meeting, I heard some gardeners sitting near me talking about how they’d rid their property of woodchucks by, in one case, gassing, and, in another, sealing up the den (with the woodchuck inside?). One of the women said she “had no sympathy” for the woodchucks. Yuk!
In my not-so-humble view, there’s something very, very wrong in the wanton killing of an animal, especially one with equal right to be on the land as the human home owner, just to save a couple of pretty (probably sterile, alien) flowers. If the feral cats and woodchucks can share habitat, why can’t all suburban humans also manage to live and let live?
As the suburban sprawl takes over the woodchucks’ entire habitat, where are the woodchucks going to live except in yards? What can we ever say to people like this to get them to change their behavior? If not for their own sakes, at least for the sake of the animals. Fortunately, for the animals, there are generous people who welcome all comers to their property.
Rabbits can be successfully managed in the most beautiful of gardens (e.g the Bartlett Arboretum, the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens). The Bartlett does it by supplying the rabbits with plenty of clover in the grass and keeping the lawn cut short near the plantings. At my mother’s, in addition to lawn clover, I bribe them by planting their favorite leaf vegetable -- common blue violets—in all the borders. My mother often sees one of the rabbits hopping along, biting off a single violet leaf here and there. The rabbit population stays in balance due to natural controls, (including, I suppose, the red-winged hawks and coyotes, who do need to eat, too).
And if the rabbits can be managed in the garden, why not the woodchucks? As a general matter, woodchucks are very clean, tidy animals that don’t pose a health threat. However, like your dog, woodchucks can get rabies, so a woodchuck acting out of character is to be taken seriously.
picture: the half-grown baby woodchuck sniffing at the porch table. Stamford CT May 2005
Woodchucks are generally only noted as pests (from the human point-of-view) in vegetable gardens. So plant enough for everyone and fence off the part you want to keep for yourself.
FEEDING:
Woodchucks, despite their name, do not, under any circumstance, ever, chuck wood. (According to e-nature.com, “woodchuck” comes from the Cree “wuchak”, meaning any small animal of a certain description.) Surprisingly, unlike rabbits, deer, mice, voles, and porcupines, woodchucks don’t care for the woody parts of plants. This might be because the woodchucks are sleeping when most of these other animals get hungry enough to eat the bark off your saplings, but it’s also because the woodchucks are going for the new greens with the highest nutritional value. Woodchucks are said to come out of hibernation weighing about 5 pounds; by November, they need to double that weight by eating as much as they can as efficiently as possible.
To bulk up for winter, adult woodchucks are said to need a pound, to a pound and a half, of fresh greens a day, especially healthful are the carb-rich new growth of grass, alfalfa, and clover. Cut the grass high (3”) and add clover. Woodchucks will help keep your lawn weed-free by munching up the young dandelions and plantain. Some say that woodchucks are naturally vegetarians; others say that, in nature, they eat insects as well as plants.
Mama W and kids have enough grass, clover, leafy vegetables, and treats, such as apples, to eat so that they leave the hosta and other garden plants alone.
Woodchucks do like variety, so it is a good idea to supplement their diet with items of your choosing, rather than theirs. Woodchucks been reported to like everything from dry dog food, hard boiled eggs, rabbit chow, and Science Diet cat food (don’t go over 15-20% of their diet with these non-veggie things) to fresh alfalfa hay, soybeans (the whole plant), corn (the young plants), cucumbers, carrots, squash, apples, pears, berries, dried banana chips, and rice cakes (strawberry and cheese flavors). Of course, all leafy vegetables are welcome. Therefore, it shouldn’t be too hard to find something extra for yours to eat.
FENCING:
Since woodchucks can climb, the above-ground fence should be angled back, away from the garden, and a good 3 feet high. Extending the fence about 18” below ground is said to be enough to keep the woodchucks from tunneling underneath. It is also said that it helps to discourage tunneling if you lay a 2 foot-wide strip of fencing flat against the ground on the outside of the fence, just below the ground surface. Don’t forget to plant some of the good stuff outside the fence so there’s less incentive to find a way through.
Putting in the fence should expend enough calories to allow you at least 3 servings of your favorite dessert, and it is for a good cause. Alternatively, you could skip the fence, plant the veggies strictly for the groundhogs, and go buy yours from the organic food store. Remember, what goes around, comes around.
And here's are my friend's pictures of the babies:
RELOCATION IS WRONG:
If you don’t like sharing with the furry critters, don’t try to salve your conscience by driving them off your land or by having them trapped and relocated. These methods lead to slow starvation and are extremely cruel. Be advised that trapping and releasing at a remote location is illegal in many states, as it should be.
Go to the comments section to read more woodchuck stories; and please post your story.
Reader-contributed pictures (email pictures to me at ssweeney44@yahoo.com):
Photo credits: Sue Sweeney
© Sue Sweeney 2005
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Comments (23)
hey i found a woodchuck today and i saw it and it scared the crap out of me i just wanted to comment on your site its great
Posted by danny | June 16, 2005 10:57 AM
Posted on June 16, 2005 10:57
I love woodchucks! When I used to commute on the Merritt Parkway I often saw them sitting by the side of the road munching on grass & wild flowers. I always thought they looked beautiful with the early-morning or late-afternoon sun shining on their fur. Once there was a mother with 3 babies running along in a line behind her.
A couple of months ago my husband & I saw a big one on our back terrace in Cos Cob - he did a nice job of trimming the grass but we haven't seen him again, unfortunately. (We seem to have a lot of transients, like the deer that walked through one night, and the sharp-shinned hawks that drop by in early spring, usually dining on a small bird or two.)
When in Colorado several years ago we saw marmots, which are larger cousins of woodchucks. They used to hang around the condo we'd rented,& weren't afraid of us at all - I have a snapshot of my cousin feeding them dry cereal (which I hope didn't give them a stomachache!).
I definitely agree that we need to learn to live with the local wildlife. We were horrified when our next-door neighbor told us they'd killed a flying squirrel that got into the house. We've had several critters come inside - including a squirrel that came down the chimney - and have always managed to get them out without hurting them.
Your web site is very interesting and has helped me identify a lot of plants in my semi-wild garden!
Posted by Anne Burns | July 6, 2005 3:26 PM
Posted on July 6, 2005 15:26
We Have just discovered we have a Woodchuck in our back yard. We are not far from the Rock River and we are surrounded by farms. We have a small ramp that leads to our tool shed, this it seems is the perfect place for a woodchuck to take up residence. We are not bothered by him/her, in fact we try to get a look at him when we can. We also have no animals that would scare him off. I would actually like to feed it but I'm not sure what a woodchuck eats? The next time he is taking a stroll in the yard I will try to get a picture. He likes to lay flat in the grass and sun bath. We have no plans to harm or relocate him, though I was wondering if hawks would bother something that big? There is a few in the area and they have grabbed rabbits from our yard.
Posted by Carrie | August 22, 2005 9:44 PM
Posted on August 22, 2005 21:44
Congratulations on the new addition to your life. How wonderful have this gentle and interesting neighbor.
There's a list of food on my site (toward the end of the article) that I've gleaned from various reports and articles.
To get started, the woodchuck would probably adore some fresh leaf lettuce, a carrot and a cut-up apple. Be patient as it may take the critter a while to figure out the new things are food. I don't know if woodchucks need water beyond what they get from their food but in these late summer drought times, a water bowl, changed frequently or a hose left to drip just a bit would be appreciated by all your four-footed friends and the birds.
At first spread the food out a bit. Once the woodchuck has eaten something, you'll know he/she considers that location safe for eating. If you always put your offering in the same place, he/she will be quicker to get the idea that other new things are food.
I don't know if the hawk will try for a full grown woodchuck unless there's nothing else to eat or the woodchuck is ailing. The hawk's likely, though, to try for a baby or two next spring if you're luck enough to be hosting a female woodchuck.
Good luck!
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | August 23, 2005 7:36 AM
Posted on August 23, 2005 07:36
I have seen 2 woodchucks in my back yard for the first time this year I love them. I had a medium one and a great big one. The big on ewent into my shed. I want to feed them. So when I saw the great big one I threw out some peanut butter bread for him. I hope they come back.
Posted by Margaret | August 27, 2005 11:13 PM
Posted on August 27, 2005 23:13
Hi, i live in derry NH and today on my walk back from my daughters school, i passed a pond... and in the pond i thought i saw 2 otters. But i looked them up and found them to be woodchucks. They were playing and swimming it was so cute. And this after noon i brought my daughter to see them and we saw one of them, but he got scared and went under the water then to what i think a underground home. at first i thought they were beavers, but they dont have much of a tail, thats why i thought they were otters, but i didnt think otters lived around here. but now i have realized that they are woodchucks. I just didnt know they lived in ponds. but i guess they can live anywhere. i got a cople pictures, but i dont know how to post them.
Posted by melissa | October 7, 2005 1:15 PM
Posted on October 7, 2005 13:15
This article was very informative about woodchucks. I am a fan of woodchucks and am known around the radio station at SCSU to watch woodchucks eat. We had a mama woodchuck and 2 babies that lived under some bushes near the student center. I watched them and the babies were curious and got closer to me than mama woodchuck liked and she came out and made some noises which brought them back into the bush. We also have one that lives near a resident hall (as well as a skunk that lives near a dorm) and we had one that lived near some brush near the bridge that people walk on. Its a really great thing to have woodchucks on our campus. I love them.
Posted by gina | January 1, 2006 11:15 PM
Posted on January 1, 2006 23:15
Gina -- thanks for posting the comment. It's wonderful to hear stories about humans appreciating our furry neighbors and sharing what we have with them. You certainly made my day.
If you have a chance, this Spring, please post a comment reporting on your Mama woodchuck and her 2006 brood.
The one featured in my story has been seen since late last spring and my friend who watches after her is worried that something happened.
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | January 2, 2006 6:13 PM
Posted on January 2, 2006 18:13
Great site on woodchucks!!
Will woodchucks kill my cat if they fight? I'm very worried about this and wondering what the best solution is.
Any comments are appreciated.
Posted by Dana | April 16, 2006 12:49 AM
Posted on April 16, 2006 00:49
Dana -- The woodchuck which was featured in "Short Stories" lived under a patio-deck along with several outdoor feral cats, except during the spring when MaMa woodchuck had her babies. Then the cat, and Mr Woodchuck, got evicted. I've seen a cat trying to sneak under the deck and come flying out seconds later.
Woodchucks are vegetarians, not predators. They only fight to defend themselves and their kids. Even then, they aren't trying to hurt or kill the other animal, just drive it away.
Mostly the woodchucks and cats seem to be able to work out their differences without hurting each other. They'll posture and even shove, push, scratch and nip, but I've never seen a cat actually hurt by a woodchuck. Generally, the cats know to back down because the other animal is bigger and better armed.
So, unless you cat is unusually large, territorial and aggressive, and a bit fool-hardy, this shouldn't be a problem.
I hope this helps
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | April 16, 2006 8:37 AM
Posted on April 16, 2006 08:37
Lovely article! My daughter has had 'Chuckie' chomping the grass for a few months, s/he has been delightful entertainment for my grandchildren and their 3 cats - who have become very friendly toward 'Chuckie' - and this week we were delighted to see 4 babies [Charlotte, Clover,Bert & Ernie.] The burrow is behind a rock ledge at the back of the garden where it's overgrown. I love watching them when I babysit. We did find another chuck a few yards off who had been killed by larger animal - - if this was the Father, will the mama take another mate next year?
Thanks. Maine Nana 6/11/06
Posted by Sylvia | June 11, 2006 11:34 AM
Posted on June 11, 2006 11:34
Sylvia --thanks so much for posting your comment. Any photos you'd like to share?
I'm sorry that you've lost your father woodchuck. Woodchucks don't seem to mate for life, so the mother will take another mate next spring, if she can find one -- a problem for the urban animal cut off from others of her kind by roads, parking lots, and fences. If all else fails, she may be able to mate with one of her sons if her species' rules allow it.
BTW: The mother woodchuck featured in the article disappeared last summer -- fate unknown. Could have been a coyote, car or poison. None of the kids or the father have been seen either. Sadly, to date, no new woodchuck has moved into the empty borrow.
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | June 11, 2006 12:28 PM
Posted on June 11, 2006 12:28
HI!
Two weeks ago during the very rainy days, we noticed a mother woodchuck carrying babies (1 at a time) in her mouth from what we believe was her burrow down by our stream-which was turned into a raging river in the heavy rains-across our yard and up into our barn - a total distance of about 100 yards. We think her home was flooded by the overflowing stream and she was relocating the family to higher & drier ground. She dropped one of her babies when my son got too close trying to catch a glimpse of her. We saw the baby running around and then go under a large bush. She then moved her second baby across the yard and into the barn. A few hours later, we went to the barn to have a look around and found that first baby cold and soaked from the rain on it's back under the bush. We believed it was dead, but when my husband picked it up, he noticed the slightest movement. We brought it inside and warmed and dried him. We tried to reintroduce him to his mother and sibling, but he was not welcomed in. We have since been feeding him animal formula 3-4 times per day and giving him many greens to eat. He also goes outside with my 4 children to run around in the grass and fields on our large 10 acre farmlike property many times a day and to eat the native vegetation. He stays warm from hugs and the towels and water bottle that we keep in his pen. He is a VERY gentle creature and the CUTEST little animal I have ever seen. We are hoping to continue to care for him until he hibernates in the fall (in a makeshift burrow of hay in our barn). When he awakens in the spring, he will be able to release himself back out into the yard to live his life and mate. We are getting good advice from some rehab & release experts and we are giving our chldren some of the best lessons of love and animal care that we could ever imagine. I love your page! Thanks for the great stories, I hope you enjoy ours!
Krystyn & family in Thomaston, CT
Posted by Krystyn | June 12, 2006 9:33 PM
Posted on June 12, 2006 21:33
Krystyn & family -- thanks very much for posting this wonderful "Short Story About a Woodchuck". My regards also to your very lucky woodchuck "son". I wish him, and your family, all the best.
Sue
PS If you have any pictures that you'd like to post, please forward.
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | June 12, 2006 10:19 PM
Posted on June 12, 2006 22:19
To all of you who think of woodchucks as strictly herbivores,please read on.
One evening,around dusk,I was on my back porch in Orange County New York.Nothing out of the ordinary was happening,birds were singing,the family of woodchucks(mom and two young ones)were grazing fairly close to their hole. All of a sudden a red tail hawk takes a bird mid flight,when he lands to the ground to adjust his catch one of the young woodchucks attacks the hawk,steals his bird,and proceeds to eat the entire bird.The only thing left was three feathers and an eyeball!!!
We have some great still photos and really unbelievable video,the woodchuck sat there and let us film him while he dined on fresh songbird.
Everything I can find says woodchucks are strictly
herbivores,so what gives?? I wonder.
Dave M.
O.C.N.Y
Posted by Dave M. | July 8, 2006 1:43 PM
Posted on July 8, 2006 13:43
I've had a wood chuck in my backyard for a couple of years now. Learned on website that they live 6 years and have babies in April and early May.
I saw a baby one walk across my deck this weekend. Got scared at first thinking it was a rat as it was the size of a largish rat!
Posted by carol | July 11, 2006 2:37 PM
Posted on July 11, 2006 14:37
We have a woodchuck burrow in our yard and we have been watching the woodchuck since Spring. Today the strangest thing happened, he went up to my neighbors house and started bringing down a plastic bucket with garbage it it.
As I watched him/her it took a paper bag of some sort and tore it up and brought it into its den.
It is definitely a woodchuck in there cause as we were watching it kept sticking its head out.
Any ideas on this one.
Posted by judy | July 20, 2006 3:59 PM
Posted on July 20, 2006 15:59
Dave -- thanks very much for sharing this short story about a woodchuck. They say woodchucks will eat dog food but animal protein should never be more than 30%of the diet. I'm sure that the calcium in the bird's bones is good to help make strong baby woodchuck bones and teeth.
I'm amazed, though, that a young woodchuck would take on a red-tailed hawk -- and win - feisty little critters!
BTW: It's wonderful that you are sheltering woodchucks-- they are so desperate for habitat.
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | July 24, 2006 3:13 PM
Posted on July 24, 2006 15:13
Judy -- thanks for sharing this interesting "short story about a woodchuck".
I know squirrels often shredded heavy paper, like that used to make bags, to line their winter nests. Is it possible that that's what your woodchuck was up to?
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | July 24, 2006 3:14 PM
Posted on July 24, 2006 15:14
I'm curious as to why you seem so certain that relocation is always the wrong option. I love woodchcuks and have no problem sharing my environment with them but I have live trapped them and relocated them when they were in danger of being killed by some neighbors. Certainly they must be capable of adapting to a new location if it is close to their original burrow (same type vegatation)
Posted by ck | July 29, 2006 5:49 PM
Posted on July 29, 2006 17:49
CK -
Why trap and relocate doesn't work is explained in detail in "Growing Up Squirrel" http://www.inmygarden.org/archives/2005/12/growing_up_squi.html. Animals have lives just like us. The difference is, though, for those that go out on their own like woodchucks, and squirrels, research shows that 75% of the young ones die finding a place to live to with adequate food and shelter, where they are accepted by the current inhabitants and exposed to minimum risks (e.g. mean humans, cars, hawks, coyotes, poisons, dogs, etc). This 75% death rate is with the young ones moving out of the family digs at the most optimum time of the year. When forcibly removed to a new location, the odds go back to a 75% or higher death rate which is why relocation is illegal in many states and considered by professionals to be extremely cruel.
With woodchucks, the woodchuck's original home was picked and dug with the help of an older, experienced woodchuck, his mother. His need to store up calories to get through winter hibernation is so high, that being relocated and having to search for a good space for a new burrow, dig it, etc., can leave him too drained to get through the winter-- he can die in their sleep. Further, he may very well die long before that due to unfamiliar dangers in the new area.
Too bad you couldn't relocate the neighboring humans.
Hope this helps.
Sue
Posted by S. W. Sweeney | July 31, 2006 8:20 AM
Posted on July 31, 2006 08:20
Sue,
Thanks for your comments. I am your soul mate in wishing that the humans in question could be more understanding. I have no sympathy for the human animals involved or their need to maintain their gardens and properties. However, when faced with a choice to relocate one of these groundhogs and provide at least the chance for a new life or stand aside and allow them to be killed I choose the former (virtually 100% in the cases I'm referring too). You should know also that not all wildlife experts agree with you. I contacted a licensed rehabilitator yesterday who has years of experience with groundhogs and gives relocated adults a good chance of surviving given a suitable environment with adequate food supply. Maybe we're not giving them enough credit ? I pray that I have done more good than harm. Thank you for your comments and God bless you for the kindness you have shown to your fellow creatures. cork
Posted by Susan Sweeney | August 10, 2006 9:34 AM
Posted on August 10, 2006 09:34
Cork - I've been pondering your comments for sometime now.
What rehabilitator says and what I'm saying aren't that different -- remember the rehabilitator is assuming that transfer is made at the most ideal time of year, properly managed as to site selection, supplemental food, etc., etc., to give the animal the best chance. But note that even then, the rehabilitator only says a "good" chance. What's that 50%-50%? I say 25% -75% under ordinary conditions and much less if, for example, is too late in the season.
The choice you had involves a very difficult moral decision as to whether to interfere with the animal's karma. My articles are designed to persuade landowners to let the animals stay on their land and to make sure that they know that they can't, in good conscience, have the animals trapped and dumped somewhere.
Your situation was different; you weren't in control and if there was nothing you could do to get the humans involved to leave the animal alone, it is hard to choose between a quick death and the unknowable future. I don't know what I would do in a similar circumstance, especially if I couldn't get a trained rehabilitator to help.
Your suggestion as to a prayer for guidance is a good one.
Sue
Posted by Susan Sweeney | August 10, 2006 9:34 AM
Posted on August 10, 2006 09:34