Best Vole Poisons

Tip for Vole-Trapping

The Nebraska Extension offers some guidance:

• The snap traps should be placed perpendicularly to the surface runways.
• Although bait isn’t necessary, peanut butter with oatmeal can be a great option.
• Cover the trap with a box with a 1-inch hole cut in it to reduce catching birds or squirrels. However, it should be large enough for the trap to snap.

The extension also recommends multiple-catch traps for mouse capture. They allow you to catch more than one vole at a time and are especially effective for meadow voles and prairie voles.

After 24 hours, give them birdseed or grass seed to keep them alive. You should have caught a few by that time. If not, move the traps to new locations.

However, as is the case with many pest control problems, an integrated approach to pest management will prove most beneficial.

Most problems in home lawns can be mitigated with a mix of habitat changes like fencing or exclusion, trapping and repellents.

The best way to control voles in your home is to make sure that they don’t take up residence.

And one “excellent avenue of free vole control,” says the UMass extension office, is an open winter without snow. Vole activity on exposed lawn areas is greatly reduced without the relative protection of snow cover.

How Do You Permanently Get Rid Of Voles Moles?

Five Effective Methods to Remove Voles

1. Remove vegetation. Voles don’t like to feed out in the open. … Protect young trees. Voles love to gnaw on the trunks of young trees. … Use live traps. … Use natural repellants. … Contact a professional pest management company. … Voles. … Moles.

• Remove vegetation. Voles don’t like to feed out in the open. …
• Protect young trees. The trunks of young trees are a favorite target for voles. …
• Use live traps. …
• Use natural repellants. …
• Contact a professional pest management company. …
• Voles. …
• Moles.

What Is A Vole?

A vole is a small, bulky, beady-eyed, mouse-like creature with a long, furry tail and distinct molars. The rodent is alternately known as the field mouse or meadow mouse. When it comes to the question of vole vs mole, the similarities stop with their names.

Voles are a small rodent that can grow up to three inches in length. However, there is one species that can reach twice that height. Other features include long whiskers, small ears, tiny feet and a modest tail. The fur of this dog is smooth and fine — it’s usually gray or brown in color.

Roughly 155 vole species exist worldwide. The most widespread North American species is the meadow vole, which inhabits the Great Plains, the Midwest, the Northeast, and most of Canada and Alaska.

A vole starts along grassland runways and digs burrows under plants, eating roots as it goes. Female voles are fast-breeding creatures that can raise up to 100 children in a single year. Weaned from their mothers within a month of birth, voles reach sexual maturity by their eighth week. Male voles are very loyal to their mates and protective of their offspring, while mother voles are typically territorial towards other females.

As a non-hibernating species, voles are active day and night throughout the year. During full moons, however, they lie low because the light can make them visible to predators, such as foxes, snakes and owls. The vole is an omnivorous animal that can eat everything, from roots, seeds, bulbs and insects to snails, slugs, and even snails. The rodent is even known to eat carcasses, bones and antlers. With so many burrows to dig, the vole devours enough food each day to equal its own bodyweight. Vole infestations are not uncommon due to their fast breeding cycles. They can spread quickly and become a problem within weeks.

What Is A Vole?

The smallest rodents that are related to, and very similar to field mice, is the vole. There are two types of voles most commonly found in North America: the meadow and prairie. However, the prairie vole is most likely to tear up your lawn.

The size and appearance of a mouse’s Meadow vole is similar to that of a mouse. They are sometimes mistakenly called “field mice” and can be confused for mice when they are seen. You can recognize a vole by noting its very small ears, which are sometimes hidden in his dense grey or brown fur. Also, voles have bigger eyes than mice and are more stocky in their build. They also have shorter tails.

These small rodents do not hibernate and are active both day and night, however they have a rather short lifespans of only three months to a year.

In general, voles are considered a pest to many homeowners in the United States. Voles can do a lot of damage to your landscape, both physically and visually. You may also find them reproducing quickly and they can infest your landscaping if you don’t keep it under control.

Despite this, voles are an integral part of our ecosystem. These rodents are beneficial and help to aerate soils and distribute nutrients to lawns. In small numbers, voles can help keep your yard looking fresh and lively. In large numbers, however, they can completely destroy it.

With that in mind, it’s time to talk about how to recognize the damage voles cause and how to get rid of voles for good.

Non-Anticoagulant Rodenticides

The US EPA has registered non-anticoagulant pesticides such as bromethalin and cholecalciferol with the US EPA. They are frequently used to control rodent populations. These rodenticides have a variable potency. Rodent deaths can occur within hours or days after ingesting a fatal dose. These rodenticides belong to three different chemical classes that differ from one another as well as the anticoagulants in their mode of action, or anatomical change leading to rodent death.

Bromethalin is a neurotoxicant and can poison the central nervous system. It may also cause respiratory distress if taken in large quantities. Cholecalciferol, the biologically active form of vitamin D, is completely nontoxic in small amounts, but massive single doses or prolonged low level exposure can prove toxic. Ingestion of excessive amounts of cholecalciferol induces hypercalcemia (elevated blood calcium levels), which ultimately results in heart problems and kidney failure. Zinc phosphide is a toxic gas that releases toxic phosphine gas when it interacts with stomach acid. It can cause rodent death within hours. Zinc phosphide is also known to poison birds such as hawks or owls if it’s eaten with treated baits.

Barrier Methods

A fence won’t stop digging animals. To create a fence around your garden or lawn, dig at least 30″ deep. Next, cover it with hardware cloth, or another mesh that is similar to netting. You will need it to be at least 5-6 inches from the ground. Of course, you may only find this method practical for smaller spaces.

Hardware cloth can protect tree trunks from moles nibbling their bark. Just wrap the trunk up to 18 to 20 inches high. You can also protect bulbs by surrounding them with a mesh cage before planting, but you might find this impractical if working with many bulbs at once.

Rodenticide Safety

Use all possible management methods to solve any rodent problem. Don’t rely on only rodenticides when dealing with rodents. Set realistic goals such as minimizing the rodent number on your property by using exclusion methods, eliminating desirable habitat or food sources (you’ll never eliminate all voles). To reduce the target, always follow all instructions and labelling when using rodenticides. raptors, dogs, and cats) poisoning. Rodenticides are meant to kill rodent species but will also kill other species if improperly used.

• Positively identify the pest and determine all techniques that can be used to deter the pest such as habitat modification and exclusion
• Determine your threshold limit. You should set realistic goals, such as keeping rodent populations down. Do not expect to totally eliminate them
• Select the best and most toxic rodenticide
• Follow the instructions on the label.
• Accept any restriction of use, i.e. use only between Nov. 1 and March 30) and other label restrictions
• Wear proper protective clothing and equipment
• Don’t smoke or eat while mixing, applying a rodenticide, and wash thoroughly after application
• Only mix and use the amount you require
• Reference: EPA Citizen’s Guide to Pesticide Safety http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/Publications/Cit_Guide/citguide.pdf
• Keep rodenticides out of reach from children, pets and other wildlife
• Rodenticides should always be located so that the target species can’t access them. children, pets, wildlife). If you use enclosed bait boxes to trap rodenticide, ensure that it is placed deep enough inside the tunnel.
• Never store rodenticides near food items (human, pet or livestock)
• Follow the label instructions on carcass surveillance

Tips For Repelling Moles & Voles

If you’ve ever witnessed your lawn or garden overtaken with moles, voles, or both, you know the devastation they can cause. Raised tunnels tearing apart your lawn and demolished plants can lead any gardener to despair. However, armed with the right tools, techniques, and knowledge of the “enemy” – and a healthy dose of determination – you can outwit those little critters and regain control.

Your Mole Repellent saved my garden from being destroyed by moles. I found your site very helpful in understanding moles. Your repellent worked well. Will buy again.”

Having evolved into highly efficient diggers, they have large paddle-like front feet with prominent claws for digging. Their elongated heads and short necks give their body a streamlined shape to more easily push through the soil in search of food. They are insectivores, or insects-eaters. The majority of their diet consists of grubs and snails as well as earthworms.

Moles are solitary creatures that only breed one time per year, in the late winter or early spring. They usually have 4-4 weeks of gestation and give birth to 4-6 young. The young leave their nests about 4 weeks after birth.

Moles make their dens under trees, buildings, and sidewalks. They consist of many chambers connected with deeply dug runways, which protect them against predators such as foxes, coyotes, dogs, snakes, skunks, badgers, weasels, hawks, and owls. Moles hunt in the shallower tunnels close to the surface. They are often only used once.

Moles are not able to do many things.

Moles can be difficult to remove

I can tell you right off that gimmicks like vibrating stakes, poison gummy worms (children might well consume a “gummy worm” they find in the yard, so there’s another reason not to buy that worthless product) and Juicy Fruit gum in the hole do not work. Moles only eat live, warm, wriggling food — like earthworms and beetle grubs. Moles won’t consume a gummyworm or chew gum, and studies have suggested that vibrating sounds might attract them.

You can try castor oil repellents and treating the lawn with milky spore, a natural, nontoxic organism that will eliminate beetle grubs (one of their biggest food sources), but rescuing another big dog has a higher chance of success.

After that, it’s down to traps — and not Hav-a-Hart “live traps.”

What is a Shrew?

A shrew is a small mammal that is often described as looking like a mouse with a longer nose. However, its sharp, spiky teeth are quite different to the larger incisors found in rodents.

With 385 species, the shrew is found throughout the world — with the exception of Oceania. Its presence in South America, however, is only due to migration and is limited to the northern half of the Andes. Mole-like in terms of manner and habitat, the shrew discussed here is not to be confused with the otter or elephant shrews of Africa, the tree shrew of Southeast Asia or the extinct West Indies shrew.

The typical shrew is a small animal. It grows smaller than the average mouse. However, sizes vary depending on species. It is the world’s smallest land mammal at 3.5 cm and 2 grams. The Asian house shrew, which is native to Southeast Asia and the Indian Subcontinent, has introduced populations in the Philippines and Madagascar. The largest shrew species is this one, measuring up to 15 cm in length and weighing 100g.

A terrestrial animal that haunts trees, burrows and snow, the shrew feeds on everything from nuts and seeds to insects and worms. Although the creature has limited vision, it is well-equipped with sharp hearing and an acute sense of smell. The shrew can consume up to 90% of its bodyweight in one day. This makes it among the fastest-metabolizing smaller mammals. While the shrew doesn’t hibernate, it does go into torpor during winter months. It can lose up to half of its body weight during this period and transforms, shrinking its internal organs and bones.

The shrew’s main disadvantage is its teeth, which wear down over time. This contrasts with rodent incisors which last throughout life.

A territorial creature, the shrew spends most of its time alone. However, mating is possible year round in areas where the weather allows — breeding stops for winter in colder regions. A female can have up to ten children per year and the gestations may last from 17 days to a month. After giving birth to a baby, a mother shrew may become pregnant again. Most shrews live between one and two and a half years.

Certain species of shrews are considered venomous. This is rare among mammals. The venom, which is extracted from the grooves of the sharp teeth of the shrews’ teeth, can be used as a defense weapon against predators. A gland full of poisonous venom from American short-tailed Shrews can be fatal to mice and kill as many as 200 rodents.

Shrew venom is beneficial for humans, however. Some conditions, such as hypertension and migraines or diseases that affect the neuromuscular junction could be managed with chemicals in the venom. Scientists have also studied the benefits of peptide soricidin. Produced in the salivary glands of northern short-tailed shrews, it contains remedial properties in the treatment of ovarian cancer.

Echolocation — a rarity among terrestrial mammals — is characteristic of three species of shrew: the Eurasian shrew that spans England to northern Mongolia, the vagrant shrew local to the Pacific Northwest and the northern short-tailed shrew that’s found throughout the U.S. and Canada. Echolocation is a technique that allows shrews to locate their environment using frequencies.

You might be wondering: What is a shrew in terms of its threat to lawn and garden owners?

Biology, Reproduction And Behavior

Voles are active day and night throughout the year and do not hibernate. They usually live between two and six months. They live in a small area, usually less than one-fourth of an acre. Their habitats can vary depending on the season and food availability. Many surface runways are constructed by vultures, as well as underground tunnels that have many burrow entrances. One burrow could contain many adults or young.

The population densities for voles vary depending on the species. Large population fluctuations that range from 14 to 500 voles per acre are common. Their numbers generally peak every three to five years. Population is influenced by dispersal, food quality, climate, predation, physiological stress, and genetics.

Three to six voles litter each litter, and up to twelve litters per annum. They can gestate for 20-23 days, and reproduce almost all year, though most of their reproduction takes place in the spring, summer, and fall. Females may become pregnant at three weeks of age.

Toxicants

Zinc phosphide and anticoagulant baits are registered for use on voles. These toxicants are restricted-use pesticides. These pesticides can only be used by certified pesticide applicators.

Toxicants are the best and fastest way to control large vole populations on large areas such as Christmas tree orchards. The most selective and effective method involves placing the toxicant directly into vole runways or underground burrows.

Zinc phosphide, the most common toxicant used for vole control is zinc phosphide. You can buy it in single dose pellets or as a concentrated form. Zinc phosphide baits generally are placed directly into runways and burrow openings at rates of 2 pounds per acre. Prebaiting, which is the application of non-treated bait before applying poison bait, is not usually necessary to achieve good control. However, in certain situations such as when bait shyness develops or a population has been repeatedly baited, prebaiting may be needed. Zinc phosphide baits are potentially hazardous to ground-feeding birds, especially waterfowl. Minimize risks to nontarget wildlife by placing bait directly in burrow openings or in runways and tunnels under cover boards.

Vole control is also possible with the help of anticoagulant baits. Anticoagulants are slow-acting toxicants in pellet form that take effect in 5 to 15 days. Most anticoagulants require multiple feedings to work. Recommended application rates for anticoagulant toxicants are 10 pounds per acre when placing pellets directly into runways. If vole problems persist, reapply the anticoagulants 30 to 60 days later.

Because of the hazard to nontarget wildlife, it is recommended that baits be placed in bait containers. Disposable bait containers can be made from water repellent paper tubes, with bait adhered to its inside. The tube size should measure approximately 5 1/2 inches in length and 1 1/2 inches wide. Bait containers protect bait from moisture and reduce the likelihood that nontarget animals and small children will consume the bait. Bait stations also can be made from discarded beverage cans. Enlarge the opening in the end of the can so that it is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter and place a dent in the side of the can. Place the bait into the can. Mark the bait containers with flags or stakes so they can be relocated. An automobile tire that is split longitudinally can be used to make a bait station. The tire is placed flat on its side and then the bait is placed under it in a cup. The tire halves are then distributed throughout the area at a rate of one per tree or one every 10 yards. Discontinue use if nontarget animals are coming into contact with bait.

The activity of woodland voles above ground is less than that below. To target them, you can place your bait in runways or burrow openings in infested trees in two to four places. To encourage wood voles to create tunnels or nests beneath trees or runways, you can place roofing boards, roofing shingles or other items on the ground. Once the shelters have been used by woodland voles, bait can be put under them.

Timing also influences the success of control programs. The effectiveness of toxicants is reduced by wet weather. Therefore, try to place the bait when the weather is likely to be fair and dry for at least three days. Baits are most effective when naturally occurring foods are limited. Late fall is an important time to place bait for voles because this practice helps reduce populations before the onset of winter, when vole damage is most severe and snow cover precludes the use of toxicants. When the vole population is high during early spring, baits should be applied before the breeding season and before the renewed growth of ground cover reduces the chance that voles will accept bait.

Toxicants are poisonous to all forms of animal life. Toxicants can cause injury or death to nontarget animals if they are eaten directly, or by eating poisonous voles. Therefore, do not place bait in piles or on bare soil. Do not use baits where there is a chance of harming humans, domestic animals, or desirable wildlife. Pesticides should not be used in ways that are inconsistent with the labeling.

Beware of Traps

The best way to catch a vole is by setting up a live cage vole trap where you can see high activity in your yard. The tunnels, AKA “runways”, are well defined and close to the surface and typically around two inches wide. The larger the runway indicates a spot of constant traffic, which is would be a prime location to set a trap.

Voles typically don’t stray too far from their burrows. Since voles breed so frequently as well, having 5-10 litters per year that yield 3-6 babies. Since those numbers add up quick it’s best to set up between 12-24 traps to even begin making a dent on the population.

Blackhole traps are also very useful in that they go in a pre-existing vole hole in the ground and go undetected by the vole. They will be trapped if they return to their home.

Chase Them With Castor (Oil, That Is)

Castor oil is a common deterrent for both voles and moles. But it has to be “old school” castor oil, like your grandmother made you take a spoon of when you were sick — or maybe to make you sick because you broke that nice lamp.

Castor oil sold for “medicinal” use today is deodorized, which is the opposite of what you want to repel moles and voles. You will need super-stinky, odorless castor oil to accomplish this task. It is found in almost every gardening supply store.

Look for products with the highest levels of castor oil as the active ingredient and apply them at the maximum rate. Water them well if they are in granular forms. If they’re liquid, don’t dilute them more than the label says and don’t apply right before a heavy rain.

Can Voles Damage My Lawn And Yard?

Voles can be very damaging to a lawn and yard. They love to chew the vulnerable stems of young trees and woody ornamental plants, causing severe damage and dieback.

Voles also cause considerable turf damage, which most homeowners discover in the spring.

All winter long, snow cover protects voles from predators and provides shelter for feeding. In the spring, when the snow melts, homeowners often find the telltale “runways” of a vole infestation.

These runways look like raised tunnels in the grass surface and are formed when voles feed within the turf canopy.

These “runways” are where voles can be found eating plants. They chew down the ground to prevent them from growing later.

They also leave layers of excrement along the runways and wear down the grass surface with their foot traffic.

Molemax Repellent Granules

Molemax is another granule-repellent that can be used to repel voles and moles as well as skunks and rabbits. Molemax is limited to treating 5,000 feet of land, however it can be used to repel digging pests using castor oil.

This product is safe and effective, and is fine to use around children and pets. That said, it needs to be applied carefully and correctly in order for it to work.

Vole Control

The next step is to deploy our vole control methods.

Our vole control techniques include ground-tamper-resistant no-kill traps, bait holes and bait stations, and carbon monoxide injection methods, all of which are effective, quick ways to get rid of voles.

You can cultivate volte-deterrent and -proof plants

There are specific plants known as vole-proof plants, as they scare voles away and prevent them from nesting in your garden.

Some plants also actively deter voles from habiting your garden.

Plants like castor bean, crown imperial and Hellebore are vole-proof.

Daffodil and Ornamental onions are effective in deterring voles, as is Grape hyacinth. Any of these vole-deterrents can be used as live traps for them.

How To Get Rid Of Moles And Voles In Your Yard?

Mole and vole removal. If you are like Jeff, and have voles living in your perennial roots and spring bulbs, then a castor oil-based repellent and mole is your first option. Both pests should be sent packing if the concentration is high enough.

Mouse traps

The simplest and best way we’ve found to get rid of voles is by using mouse-traps. We carry a few different kinds of mouse-traps, but your standard old-fashioned snapping mousetrap does the trick just fine. The paths of voles are the same, so place your trap along the path that the voles have taken. We also carry humane mouse-traps that don’t kill the vole.

Kitty Litter for Sale

One theory is that kitty litter can repel voles and moles if it’s rubbed every three feet. It is not clear if it works, so finding the correct places to apply could prove difficult. Also, you may decide it isn’t worth handling used kitty litter for doubtful results. Used kitty litter can carry both the Toxoplasmosis parasite and E. coli bacteria, and you absolutely should not apply it to a vegetable garden.

Protect Young Trees

Voles love to gnaw on the trunks of young trees. Wrap the trunks of young trees in a protective cover, such as wire mesh or plastic tubing, to discourage them from eating a food source. Ask your arborist for help.

What Will Kill Voles Fast?

If you’re wondering how to kill voles instantly, mouse traps such as the Snap Traps by Victor(r) will do the trick. For maximum effectiveness, bait the traps with peanut butter or oatmeal. Place them next to any holes in your garden.

Live Trapping

Voles may be live trapped using mouse-sized box traps in areas of vole activity. Bait the traps with a peanut butter-oatmeal mixture or apple slices. Voles should be released more than a half mile from the capture site into overgrown fields or other grassy areas where they will not pose a problem for other landowners.

Beware of Traps

Vole traps kill voles instantly and can be an effective way to eliminate large vole populations in your yard.

These traps work best when they’re positioned in front of vole holes and baited with peanut butter or oatmeal.

Pros: Fast, effective, poison-free

Cons: You will need to regularly check traps and replace them as needed.

Best Vole Poisons

What’s the best vole poison in November 2021 – Buyer’S Guide

Having voles in your yard or garden is devastating since they’ll always attenuate your desire to have a well-maintained and aesthetically appealing lawn. The voles’ herbivorous nature means they can kill plants and trees from your yard by eating bark and roots. Your efforts to eliminate these stubborn rodents are neutralized by their complex habitat since they live in underground burrows. Their tunneling abilities make it possible for them not only to destroy plants but also create ugly surfaces in your yard. This article was written to ease your concerns about eliminating voles. This article contains crucial information that will ensure the complete elimination of rodents.

To get rid of voles, there are many options. Before you settle on the most effective product, however, be sure to evaluate many aspects. One of the most important factors to consider is the safety levels of the family and pets. Warfarin-based Rodenticides are recommended because they offer greater safety to pets as well as being highly effective against voles.

After extensive research, it is clear that there are some products that stand apart more than others. Kaput Rat & Mouse Bait won the contest.

The Conscientious Way To Control Voles: Poison rodent baits

A few natural predators of voles live on our property. Our cats and a family of screech owls that nest in the barrel of the old windmill pictured here above our favorite cat, Gus. As they are natural predators, we don’t want to kill non-poisonous and harmless snakes. These two are good for keeping rodents under control. But sometimes, they can be too many for natural predators. This could lead to an infestation. If voles are invading your yard and destroying valuable plants, what can you do? These are important environmental concerns that more people are becoming aware of. California passed a bill last year that would have banned second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs). It also placed heavier restrictions on first generation ARs. SGARs are less toxic and require only one ingestion. They were created because some rodent populations seemed to be more resistant to first-generation poisons. In order to protect pets and wildlife, and to ensure the safety of rodents like voles, we must look closely at what is in the bait. Let’s take a look at why we think Kaput Rat, Mouse and Vole Bait is the most conscientious choice on the market, and especially the best choice for the control of voles when used responsibly with the Vole Control Bait Station System Kaput is the least toxic rodenticide on the market with an active ingredient of Warfarin. I was surprised to find a bait competitor being highly promoted for controlling voles in an internet search. The active ingredient in this particular bait is Bromadiolone, a second-generation poison. Here are some examples:

A University of Nebraska study found that a 50-pound dog could be killed by Bromadiolone. Bromadiolone is only 4.1 ounces required for a dog to be killed. Warfarin, at 113.50-ounces would require a 200% increase in dog’s consumption. Source: Prevention and Control of Wildlife Damage University of Nebraska and MSDS Card, University of Nebraska Merck Veterinary Manuals.

Warfarin is also quickly metabolized in rodents. This means that it does not build-up in the liver, like other second-generation drugs. The amount of Warfarin that voles consume is not sufficient to cause death. It’s very unlikely that any other animals will ingest it.

Warfarin has vitamin k-1 which can be used as an antidote. Pet owners can take comfort in knowing that this antidote is available. Again, for the safest application of bait station materials for voles, we recommend using specially-designed stations.

You can learn more about the active ingredient in Kaput Rat, Mouse and Vole bait here:

Many articles on controlling voles are available online that recommend the use of second-generation, more toxic baits. The homeowner does not need these toxic baits to control the voles. It is important to be alert and follow the correct application system in order to have complete control.

Our Vole Control Bait Station System is recommended for safest, most effective, and efficient application of Kaput Vole Bait. Bait stations allow for you to not only protect non-target animals from the bait but also to schedule replenishments to preserve bait. The system will enable you to reduce the amount of bait required and make the bait more effective to all nest/colonies. Kaput voles will naturally take food from the nest to eat, thanks to this system’s design and Kaput vole bait’s granular seed formulation. This type of activity is not allowed by block-style baits, which are more likely to kill the whole colony.

Do Standard Rodenticides Kill More Voles Than Vole Poison Does?

There are many types of rodenticides. The National Pesticide Information Center’s page regarding rodenticides explains why it’s impossible to go through all of them individually in one article. Most rodenticides are anticoagulants, which means that they can cause blood clotting in the victim. The majority of rodenticides are anticoagulants. Difethialone bromadiolone Brodifacoum warfarin and other non-anticoagulants are some examples. Other non-anticoagulant Rodenticides include bromethalin (bromethalin), cholecalciferol, strychnine, and zinc phosphide.

These types aren’t the only ones that can cause vole poisons. It is their design that sets vole poisons apart from many other rodenticides. Since indoor and outdoor rodent diets differ, vole poisons have been designed to be baited out of mice and rats rather than voles or moles. Due to the changing weather, vole bait must be waterproof. Last, but certainly not least, vole-poison is designed to be as safe as it can for the soil and vegetation around your property.

JR AK/Shutterstock.com Even the best vole killers will still have side-effects and drawbacks, however, so let’s go over all of them.

Mole Control

Molehills can ruin a gorgeous lawn. Moles will be more active at night and on cloudy mornings in the spring and fall. Moles can be removed using a variety of methods, including chewing gum or vibration and ultrasonic device. These methods often prove to be ineffective. Also, mothballs don’t work and are illegal because they can be misused as a pesticide.

Poisons are usually the first method that a homeowner thinks of but is not necessarily the most effective or best choice. An active tunnel may contain poisoned gummyworms and pellets containing bromethalin. However, they can pose a danger to pets and humans as well as the wildlife food chain. Left in place poison baits can get washed into the water supply. Always read the labels before using poisonous chemicals.

An active mole tunnel may include a harpoon-style mole trap.

Barbara H. Smith. Clemson Extension Trapping is one way to remove moles. There are several different types of mole traps, such as harpoon, impaling, choker, pitfall, or scissor-jawed available on the market. In the winter and autumn, traps work well when placed over tunnels that are active. Snap traps that are baited using peanut butter or mousetraps will not catch moles. A few moles, or even one, can be a significant problem.

Reducing or eliminating food availability for moles has been used as a control technique. While grub treatment of a lawn can be a popular practice, it does not promote ecological sustainability as it reduces other wildlife’s access to food. Moles will just switch to other food sources, such as insects or earthworms. The lawn can be treated with systemic, grub-based treatments that have imidacloprid in the active ingredient. Available in ready to spray, hose ends sprayers, and granular formulations. Granular products are easier to apply but be sure to irrigate with at least 1/2 inch of water immediately after application. They are systemic and will remain in your turfgrass for all of their growing seasons. Granular grub killers that contain trichlorfon or carbaryl are contact insecticides that should be applied in early July and are spread over the lawn and watered in well. These grubs have a small size and are close to the lawn surface. The contact insecticide is very effective at eradicating them. The contact insecticide will stay in place for around two weeks. Applications in the fall and late summer are not as efficient as they will kill older grubs deeper in the ground. Both methods aren’t 100% effective as the moles could switch to more suitable prey. There are many products made from castor oils that can repel moles or voles. These products are not effective because of the short-term residual nature castor oils have for repelling moles or voles.

Voles, a voracious pest that loves to eat roots from trees and other beneficial plants, are incredibly destructive. As seen in this photo, 1/4 inch grooves will be left by the vole’s front teeth in wood.

What’s the Best Product to Kill Voles

Tomcat All Weather Bait Chunx kill voles and other rodents just like their name suggests. Tomcat All Weather Bait Chunx has been made using human food grade ingredients in order to attract rodents.

How can you kill voles with poison?

Motomco Tomcat All-Weather Bait Chunx.JT Eaton Bait Block.Sweeney’s Mole and Gopher Poison Peanuts.

How can you kill vultures quickly?

Mouse traps, such as Snap Traps (r), are an effective way to instantly kill voles. Use peanut butter or oatmeal to bait your traps. This will ensure maximum effectiveness. Then, place them in front of any holes you can spot around your garden.

How do professionals kill voles?

The possibility of vole eradication is an option for landscaping that has been damaged already by voles. The live traps used for removing voles in a yard can be humanely removed. Or, they can also be killed with poisonous bait and trap traps.

.Best Vole Poisons