Vole Update

A few hours after my last post, we caught another vole. That brought the total to 4 voles caught and released in about 18 hours! Yay!

Chris and I spent the night at Roar and Snore at the San Diego Wild Animal Park on Saturday, so we made sure that the traps were removed while we were away. When we got back early Sunday evening, we placed the traps back out. Within an hour, we had caught another vole.

I'm noticing that the 'runways' that they use are looking messy. From watching them, I've learned that an active 'runway' appears well-worn, and the voles keep it clear of debris. So if you put stuff on the 'runway', or try to destroy an active 'runway', the voles will clean it up in no time at all.

Today I will be installing hardware cloth along the fence to create a physical barrier for the voles. And to make things more challenging for them, we're going to rake the debris on the adjacent property about 15 feet away from our fence. Since no one is keeping the property clear, the least we should be able to do is move their debris away from our property. Removing the debris will make it challenging for the voles to move into our yard, because they won't have any cover. They don't like being out in the open. It feels good that we're getting a handle on this! :)