How Much Does Armadillo Removal Cost? [2024 Data]
Normal range: $175 - $500
If you want to remove an armadillo from your property, expect to pay an average of $275, but the price may vary depending on the severity of the infestation and if it is in a difficult-to-access area.
Although some folks think they're cute, armadillos pose all kinds of problems if they infest your yard. For safe and successful armadillo removal, expect to pay around $275, on average. While it's possible to remove them or at least attempt to repel them yourself, remember they’re wild creatures with large claws that potentially carry diseases and will defend themselves if threatened. So, before you start trying to handle armadillos yourself, take a look at the costs, options, and risks.
- Average
- $275
- Low end
- $50
- high end
- $600
Armadillo Removal Cost Factors
Professional wildlife removal usually includes relocation (where it’s permitted), which is important for armadillo control since they have a homing instinct. This means they'll return to their burrows unless you take them far away. While recommendations for relocation distance vary, transferring them about 25 miles away from your home is a safe option.
In most states, kill traps are illegal. Because armadillos are relatively easy to trap and reasonably low risk, extermination is unnecessary unless the animal is obviously unwell. Instead, live trapping and relocating are the preferred options. Not every state allows for the relocation of armadillos either. Instead, they require the creatures to be trapped using a live trap, and then humanely killed.
Your wildlife removal specialist will place live traps at likely entry points, usually at the end of a burrow, and they'll return to collect and remove the armadillos. Once your pro is confident they've gotten rid of all the armadillos invading your property, you can fill in the burrows, start repairing any damage caused, and take steps to reduce the likelihood of a new roll (yes, that really is the name for a family or group) of armadillos moving in.
Several factors play into the total cost you’ll pay for armadillo removal.
Infestation Level
For a lone armadillo, you may pay as little as $50 for easy DIY removal or DIY repellant. For professional removal of a larger infestation or in difficult-to-access locations, you can pay $500 or more. The cost increases based on how many return trips the animal removal pro near you has to make to your property and how many armadillos they have to haul away for relocation.
Property Size and Terrain
The larger your yard, the more time it will take for your hired pro to inspect the property entirely. Plus, the more complex the terrain is or the harder the burrow entry points are to find and access, the more time-consuming and expensive the job will be.
Inspection
The pro you hire should thoroughly inspect your property and home perimeter to determine the full extent of your armadillo infestation. This inspection typically costs $120 to $145 and may be rolled into the job total. Some companies claim to offer free inspections, but this may come with a higher removal fee that accounts for the labor time involved.
Repair
Armadillos dig small holes and raised burrows that can cover a yard and go under gardens, driveways, walkways, and building foundations. In loose soil, burrows uproot flowers and vegetation. Repair costs will vary along with the form and extent of damage, but expect to pay at least $75 to $110 per hole. An accurate repair quote will require a full property inspection.
Cost of Removing Armadillos Yourself
While removing armadillos yourself is possible, potentially saving you money, you have to weigh the risks versus the savings. Firstly, there’s the matter of learning how to get rid of armadillos yourself. You can get a humane trap big enough for an armadillo for as little as $50.
But remember, if you're in a state where relocating is prohibited, you also need to be able to quickly, humanely, and safely kill the trapped creatures. And, if relocation is legal, you'll need to transport and release them a significant distance from your home.
DIY Armadillo Removal vs. Hiring a Pro
While generally placid and gentle, these critters will attack if threatened, and they have large claws that can cause significant damage to humans and pets. Plus, they can be carriers of rabies and other diseases. Armadillos can also carry tapeworms that pass into your yard via their feces, which can then infect pets and people. Therefore, it's strongly recommended you hire a local wildlife removal specialist to handle your armadillo problem for the safety of all involved.
How to Save Money on Armadillo Removal
There are several ways you deter these creatures from becoming a problem in the first place:
Make the area inhospitable: By taking away their hiding places, you can encourage them to leave on their own or not move in to begin with. Armadillos love to hide in tall grass and burrow under rock piles, so adjust your landscape to be less welcoming. Consider hiring a local landscape gardener to rejuvenate your yard while simultaneously discouraging armadillos.
Remove food sources: Preventing armadillos from having a constant food supply will encourage them to go elsewhere. To achieve this, make your garden less hospitable to spiders, scorpions, and other invertebrates, which are the armadillo's staple diet.
Tidy the yard: Keep up with garden maintenance. Clean up the yard regularly, getting rid of leaf piles, wood, and other organic matter.
Use repellents: You can try armadillo repellents, such as mothballs and predator urine. Homeowners have differing levels of success with these methods, and it really depends on the severity of an existing infestation and just how determined the armadillos are.
Signs You Have an Armadillo Infestation
Spotting an armadillo or two in your yard is the easiest way to know whether you have an infestation. But if you’re not lucky enough to get eyes on one of these critters when they’re out and about, the following clues will help you confirm any suspicions.
Broken pavement or pipes: Armadillos pack a punch despite their size, and they can cause serious damage when they’re on the hunt. If you notice new cracks in pavement or pipes along with one or more of the indicators below, odds are you’ve got armadillos on your hands.
Nose prints in soil: Armadillos have long, distinctive noses that leave a mark on the ground when they search for food. You’ll likely find these markings sandwiched between shallow holes where they’ve been digging.
Shallow holes in your yard: Burrowing insects are a favorite of armadillos, and the garden pest will dig holes up to three or four inches deep to catch them.
Uprooted plants: While they’re working, armadillos often uproot plants and flowers in the process.
Foul odors: If you detect a fishy smell in your garden or yard but don’t live anywhere near a body of water, armadillos might be the source. In fact, they have a special gland that secretes unpleasant odors to deter predators and attract insects.
How Angi Gets Its Cost Data
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Frequently Asked Questions
Armadillos are attracted to water, so a leaky irrigation system or an overwatered lawn can encourage them to move in. They especially like wet areas where they can burrow and loose soil where they can dig for grubs. They are also attracted to dense ground cover, where they can often find food sources.
Armadillos have very strong smelling capabilities to track down insects efficiently. But this superpower is actually a double-edged sword because their extreme sense of smell also causes them to be more sensitive and deterred by strong odors. To keep them at bay, you can place small amounts of substances like vinegar, ammonia, and mothballs around your property and near armadillo hotspots.
Although you can technically flood an armadillo out of its hole, it’s important to remember that this can be potentially fatal to the animal. Armadillos sleep between 16 and 18 hours a day, and if you perform this technique while they’re deep in sleep, they may not awake soon enough to save themselves.
Armadillos generally avoid extreme temperatures and are most active late at night to early morning, between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m., when the conditions are ideal. The only exception to this rule is during mating season—which occurs from June to July in the northern hemisphere and November to December in the southern hemisphere—when male armadillos may be more active than usual.
What you should do with an armadillo after you catch it depends on what your local laws dictate. Often, it's easiest to relocate an armadillo rather than euthanize it. Contact your local wildlife control office or experts for information specific to your area. After removal is complete, be sure to repair any holes left in your yard or under your home.