How to Keep Badgers Away Before They Make Themselves at Home
You do not want this solitary creature to become your persnickety neighbor
Badgers are pretty cute when you spot them in a viral video on your social media feed, but that’s about the only place you want to see them. When they pop up in your garden to start digging holes, eating your plants, and hissing at your dog, you’ll want to know how to keep badgers away ASAP. These cantankerous critters are tenacious and will keep returning to the same spot if they can. Keep reading and find out how to get rid of badgers in as safe and humane a way as possible before they become terrible tenants.
Why Do I Have Badgers in My Yard?
Badgers may have made their way to your home for a few reasons. Most often, they’re just looking for food and shelter. Heavy construction in the area may have forced the badgers out of their homes, or you could have a very appealing garden for them to set up shop. They love finding larvae and earthworms for a snack or dinner, so it’s only natural they’ll head to a place with abundant soil.
How to Identify Badgers in Your Garden
There are a handful of tell-tell signs you have a badger making itself at home in your space. Badgers aren’t too complicated—they typically keep the same pattern going when they’re on your property.
Holes in the ground: They like to dig in your flower beds or grass when looking for food like larvae. These holes are deep, and you’ll quickly find out how dangerous they are when you accidentally step in one.
Droppings: Badgers leave behind their own special calling cards on your lawn or flower bed. You’ll often find the droppings in more shallow holes as badgers leave them as a way of marking “their” territory.
Remnants of prey: Another signature move for a badger is to leave behind the scraps of food they don’t consume from their prey, such as rodent heads, spines, or animal fur. Yuck.
How to Keep Badgers Away
Fortunately, you have a few options for keeping badgers away, but it may take more than one to finally work.
Install Nighttime Solar Lighting
Badgers are naturally nervous animals, so if an area is well-lit, this may keep them from wandering in. Solar lights that charge during the day and light up at night are a great solution because you can strategically place them around the flower beds.
Remove Food Sources
Removing wildlife that badgers feed on may prove difficult, but some food sources are easier to eliminate. For example, spilled birdseed can attract badgers, so pick up any seeds that have fallen or fruit and vegetable scraps from trees.
Even though larvae are a badger’s favorite meal, it’s not recommended that you kill them with an insecticide. Applying an insecticide can contaminate your soil and cause further damage to the area.
Try Strong-Scented Repellants
Strong-smelling oils like citronella can deter badgers, but these typically need frequent and abundant application. It’s also possible the badger will get used to the scent over time. You can try other strong-scented items, such as male urine or manure, but these may not be the most practical methods.
Prevent Badgers From Entering Your Space
Sometimes the best offense is a good defense. Stop badgers and other animals from getting into your yard in the first place with a few tricks.
Add mesh fencing: Adding a fence is a common way of dealing with badgers, but it’s important to do so correctly. The fence should run 12 to 18 inches underground to prevent badgers from digging under and helping themselves to your garden.
Add a garden scarer: Badgers don’t share their territory very well, so a well-placed garden scarer (such as a lighted scarecrow) can keep them from stepping foot on your land.
Use motion detector lights: They’re most likely to stir at night, so installing motion detector lights can scare badgers away before they ever reach your home.
Keep your garden clean: Removing debris and keeping lids on bins will make your garden beds much less appealing. Don’t forget to keep your pet food indoors, too.
DIY vs. Hiring a Pro
You may prefer staying as far away from a badger as possible, or you don’t have the time to try various removal methods. If this is the case, consider hiring a professional local pest control service for small animals. Wildlife removal companies can not only safely remove rodents and mammals from your home, but they can relocate them in a humane manner. The average animal removal cost is $190 to $585.
Frequently Asked Questions
Badgers have a strong sense of smell, so it’s possible you can deter them with strong scents, such as applying citronella oil to the bottom of your fence, adding crushed scotch bonnet peppers sprinkled throughout your garden, or mixing both of these into a solution to spray around your home and garden.
Yes, badgers are aggressive mammals, which is why it’s important to safely remove them from your home or garden area as soon as possible. Keep in mind though, badgers rarely attack pets or people, but their sharp claws and even sharper teeth can make them dangerous if they feel threatened.
Badgers are nocturnal, which means they’re most active at night. This is when they leave their homes and go out in search of food. They’re also creatures of habit, so they will continue going back to the same places when they are active, as long as there doesn’t appear to be any danger.