Trapping Gophers: Why It’s So Effective
Trapping addresses the weaknesses of other methods. Here’s why trapping is often the most effective way to control gophers:Immediate and Certain Results:
- When you set a trap and catch a gopher, you have immediate confirmation of success – you can see the gopher. There’s no guessing whether a gopher ate poison and crawled off to die elsewhere. This immediacy is crucial because each gopher removed is less reproduce and cause damage. You can stop the damage sooner with a trap, rather than waiting days or weeks, hoping poison might work while plants are still being eaten.
- When properly placed, a trap will only catch the target pest (the gopher). There’s little to no danger of harming non-target wildlife or pets underground. Contrast this with poison baits that could be ingested by birds or dogs, or a gopher that dies aboveground and becomes a poisoned meal for a hawk. Trapping is a species-specific control method – the trap in a gopher tunnel is very unlikely to harm anything except a gopher or mole. This makes it a safer choice for environmentally conscious pest control.
- Trapping uses no chemicals, so your soil and groundwater remain clean. You don’t introduce toxins into your yard. Also, you won’t have to deal with the foul odor of a poisoned gopher decomposing in its tunnel (a common issue when using poison). The gopher is removed from the tunnel when trapped, so there’s no hidden carcass to contaminate or stink up the area.
Highly Effective for Small Areas:
- In a backyard, garden, or any relatively small infested zone, trapping can eliminate gophers completely if you persist. Extension experts note that on small plots or when only a few gophers are present, trapping is the most practical and efficient control method. You can methodically catch all the gophers one by one. Gophers are territorial and solitary in their burrows, so usually you catch them individual by individually. For the best results, we recommend using American-made pest control traps that are built to withstand heavy field use.
- Quality gopher traps can be used over and over for years. While there’s an upfront cost to buy traps, they don’t get “used up” like baits do. One set of traps could catch dozens of gophers over its lifetime, making it a smart investment for anyone living in gopher-prone areas. (CINCH traps, for example, are made of durable steel built to last decades.) In contrast, poison bait must be replenished and repurchased, and exclusion requires costly installation. Trapping often ends up being the cheapest long-term solution.
- Because of all the above reasons, wildlife and pest experts frequently recommend trapping first. For instance, the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension flatly states: “Trapping is the most effective method of gopher control.” Many professional pest control companies also emphasize trapping due to its success rate and safety. It’s a time-tested method that’s been refined over the years
Introducing CINCH Gopher Traps
When gophers are destroying your land, you need a setup that is built to last. For a complete setup, we highly recommend using the Cinch Gopher Trap Kit, which includes our specialized Tunnel Clearing Tool to ensure your runways are completely clear and ready for the perfect set.
