A few weeks ago, there were two neat holes dug around the stump of a tree
we'd just cut down. Last night, there were two holes in the middle of our
grass!! About 4 inches across with a lot of "digging spray" behind them. I
can take pics if necessary.

What on earth is trying to dig my lawn up? I don't mind now as we're about
to scrape it up and rotovate. I will however be seriously peeved if it
happens when the new turf goes down!!! If it's apparent what my pest is,
how do I get rid of it/them?



a

lots of animals dig holes in lawns. Rabbits, badgers (they dig little holes
for worms and things as well as big holes to live in). What sort of animal
is likely to be getting in? How is your garden fenced/hedged etc?
Hayley

I am a mole and I live in a hole

al wrote:
: A few weeks ago, there were two neat holes dug around the stump of a
: tree we'd just cut down. Last night, there were two holes in the
: middle of our grass!! About 4 inches across with a lot of "digging
: spray" behind them. I can take pics if necessary.
:
: What on earth is trying to dig my lawn up? I don't mind now as we're
: about to scrape it up and rotovate. I will however be seriously
: peeved if it happens when the new turf goes down!!! If it's apparent
: what my pest is, how do I get rid of it/them?
:
:
:
: a

On Fri, 9 May 2003 19:51:59 +0100, "hayley"
wrote:

lots of animals dig holes in lawns. Rabbits, badgers (they dig little holes
for worms and things as well as big holes to live in). What sort of animal
is likely to be getting in? How is your garden fenced/hedged etc?
Hayley

We get holes like this in the beds on our allotment sometimes and I
reckon it's badgers (there are known to be setts on the disused
railway embankment that runs alongside the site). It doesn't happen
very often so I'm happy to share.

We also get human footprints, which is *much* more annoying.

Since I'm wibbling: I once found half a rat on the allotment,
fortunately before the dog noticed it. I wonder what the story behind
that was?
--
Stuart Baldwin
news\at/boxatrix\dot/co\dot/uk

"hayley" wrote in message
...
lots of animals dig holes in lawns. Rabbits, badgers (they dig little
holes
for worms and things as well as big holes to live in). What sort of animal
is likely to be getting in? How is your garden fenced/hedged etc?
Hayley


Well this one is definitely nocturnal if that helps! We do have a large
park with a small river running through it behind our property. There's a
brick wall at the end and fences on each side. The fence on one side
doesn't quite reach the ground in places (sloping lawn). Any way of further
identifying it or finding out why it's suddenly attracted here (bar sitting
motionless with a torch in the garden all night!!)?



a

"The Devil's Advocate" wrote in
message ...
I am a mole and I live in a hole


And why you you dig a hole, my little mole??



a

wrote in message
...
We get holes like this in the beds on our allotment sometimes and I
reckon it's badgers (there are known to be setts on the disused
railway embankment that runs alongside the site). It doesn't happen
very often so I'm happy to share.


What do badgers dig for?



a

Stuart wrote in message :

We get holes like this in the beds on our allotment sometimes and I
reckon it's badgers (there are known to be setts on the disused
railway embankment that runs alongside the site). It doesn't happen
very often so I'm happy to share.

We also get human footprints, which is *much* more annoying.

Since I'm wibbling: I once found half a rat on the allotment,
fortunately before the dog noticed it. I wonder what the story behind
that was?

Yes, we once found a rat that had been half buried so that only the head was
above ground. It looked bizarre, as if it had just emerged and was looking
around. We put it down to foxes which we are always digging holes in our
plots, you should see our seed bed, looks like a bomb site.
Then there's the local cats and the squirrels looking for their buried nuts,
and the crows.........

--
Bob

www.pooleygreengrowers.org.uk/ about an Allotment site in
Runnymede fighting for it's existence.

"Sue & Bob Hobden" wrote in message
news:b9hbig$ivk7f$1@ID-
Yes, we once found a rat that had been half buried so that only the head
was
above ground. It looked bizarre, as if it had just emerged and was looking
around. We put it down to foxes which we are always digging holes in our
plots, you should see our seed bed, looks like a bomb site.
Then there's the local cats and the squirrels looking for their buried
nuts,
and the crows.........


Crows digging holes ...!?

Anyway, this hole is in the middle of tough, well-established grass that
you'd be doing well to get a shovel through. Some serious claws to do that.
Seems a bit too small and round to be dog/cat/fox, but that's just
conjecture. Plus they normally only do that for covering waste/finding
bones don't they? Half a foot deep too - do squirrels dig that deep and
aren't they daytime animals?


a

Any way of further
identifying it or finding out why it's suddenly attracted here (bar
sitting
motionless with a torch in the garden all night!!)?

try looking closely at the bottom of the fence. Animals (esp. badgers) often
leave bits of fur where they've squeezed through. If it is coarse,
grey/black/white it's probably a badger. Rabbits are more soft and
fluffy/brown. Foxes trends to smell strongly. Rabbits also eat plants, lots,
so you'd probably notice plant damage if it were rabbits. Don't know why it
would suddenly happen though.
Hayley

What do badgers dig for?

slugs, worms, beetles etc. This is what they eat.
Hayley

"al" wrote in message
...
"Sue & Bob Hobden" wrote in message
news:b9hbig$ivk7f$1@ID-
Yes, we once found a rat that had been half buried so that only the head
was
above ground. It looked bizarre, as if it had just emerged and was
looking
around. We put it down to foxes which we are always digging holes in our
plots, you should see our seed bed, looks like a bomb site.
Then there's the local cats and the squirrels looking for their buried
nuts,
and the crows.........


Crows digging holes ...!?

Anyway, this hole is in the middle of tough, well-established grass that
you'd be doing well to get a shovel through. Some serious claws to do
that.
Seems a bit too small and round to be dog/cat/fox, but that's just
conjecture. Plus they normally only do that for covering waste/finding
bones don't they? Half a foot deep too - do squirrels dig that deep and
aren't they daytime animals?


a

It could be shrews they dig holes to mate at this time of the year.

In article , hayley
writes
Any way of further
identifying it or finding out why it's suddenly attracted here (bar
sitting
motionless with a torch in the garden all night!!)?

try looking closely at the bottom of the fence. Animals (esp. badgers) often
leave bits of fur where they've squeezed through. If it is coarse,
grey/black/white it's probably a badger.

Also, if it's badger, if you run your fingers along the hair one way it
feels smooth and the other way distinctly coarse.

Personally, I think it is a rabbit.
We are being overrun by the blighters and little holes like you have
described are appearing all over the place (
At this time of year, you can often see them early in the morning, say
just after dawn, just before they bed down for the day!

--
Jane Ransom in Lancaster.
I won't respond to private emails that are on topic for urg
but if you need to email me for any other reason,
put jandg dot demon dot co dot uk where you see deadspam.com

And some roots, ask veggie gardeners in the rurals
Neil

"hayley" wrote in message
...
What do badgers dig for?

slugs, worms, beetles etc. This is what they eat.
Hayley

In message , al
writes
Anyway, this hole is in the middle of tough, well-established grass that
you'd be doing well to get a shovel through. Some serious claws to do that.
Seems a bit too small and round to be dog/cat/fox, but that's just
conjecture. Plus they normally only do that for covering waste/finding
bones don't they? Half a foot deep too - do squirrels dig that deep and
aren't they daytime animals?

From our observations of lawn excavations during the last five years -
If the holes were about 50/60mm in diameter and 60/90mm deep with no
evidence of the earth being scraped out I would suggest woodpeckers
after ants. Holes in lawns made by badgers are usually 70/100mm
diameter and 100/150mmm deep with very obvious signs of the earth being
scraped out to one side and they are often in small groups. If you can
get a shovel into the ground a badger will have no difficulty digging in
it - they only have problems if the turf is exceptionally dry and hard
after a prolonged drought. Foxes excavations tend to be larger with the
spoil scattered over a wider area than badger creations and they
normally choose softer ground. Squirrels tend to make quite small,
shallow scrapes in lawns to bury food and then fill them in again. On
the odd occasion we have found very deep holes about 50mm across which
we assume are made by small rodents. We have no experience of rabbit
depredations - the foxes see to that.
--
Robert