Managing Common House and Garden Pests

Common household and garden pests differ across the United States and North America. Typically, house and garden pests include rats, mice, voles, pocket gophers, skunks, raccoons, foxes, deer and birds such as woodpeckers and starlings. The answers to a few common questions can be found under the 'Questions from the Community' tab.  We generally differentiate between 'household and backyard' pests and 'agricultural' pests. Agricultural pests are those that can disrupt larger farming ventures, such as pocket gophers and ground squirrels eating alfalfa, or deer eating corn. Often, the species are the same, but the methods that we use to manage them may differ. For example, we would not want to use strobe lights and alarms to scare deer in your backyard, but this method is fine to use in a large agricultural field.

Utah State University Extension has a large library of resources to help you with your household and backyard pests. Simply go to extension.usu.edu and type in the animal you need help with. Below are a few quick links for common conflict species. Click on the name of the animal to go to that resource.  We also have a 'Featured Animal' section that highlights many of these species within this website: Featured Animals

​Bats
Mule Deer
Mice
Raccoons
Rabbits 
Rats
Skunks

Pocket Gophers (Tho­momys spp.) and Voles (Microtus spp.) in Yards and Schools

Pocket gophers and Voles are two common species that can cause damage to either households or agricultural lands. Pocket gophers live in extensive tunnels underground and can damage roots of grass and trees.  Voles forage above ground, causing damage to grass and gardens. Here is a video that explains these 2 species and offers some advice for controlling them in areas such as houses, backyards, and schools. 

Managing Agricultural Wildlife Damage Management

Agricultural wildlife damage management is often happening on a larger scale than backyard wildlife damage. However, many species that cause conflict overlap between the two, including deer, pocket gophers, voles, and birds. Many of the options for Agricultural Wildlife Damage Management differ because we are able to control the animals differently when they are not around human development. For example, some pesticides are not labelled for use anywhere near humans or pets. Similarly, one cannot discharge a firearm within most municipal boundaries in the United States, so that option is only available to farmers and ranchers. This is why you may read different recommendations for the same species, based on if the animal is in one's backyard or in a large agricultural field. 

Pocket Gophers​ in Agriculture

​Pocket gophers are often the number one vertebrate pest species in agriculture production such as alfalfa. In fact, some research estimate that pocket gopher populations are 4x higher in alfalfa fields than in natural vegetation. Pocket gopher can also damage small productions and even residential areas. We have provided a link to a 10-minute video that overviews pocket gopher damage management in alfalfa.

In Utah, Extension professionals have been studying methods to improve pocket gopher management in agricultures fields for nearly 2 decades. Their recent fact sheet summarizes their research findings and provides an overview to most management techniques available to producers. 

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PUBLICATIONS

We are constantly updating and researching new ideas.  Below are links to several recent studies to manage agricultural wildlife damage management.

Case Study Involving Pocket Gopher Damage Abatement in Alfalfa

Replication of a 1970s Study on Domestic Sheep Losses to Predators on Utah's Summer Rangelands

Using IPM Techniques to Improve Cooperator Effectiveness to Mitigate Damage Caused by Townsend Ground Squirrels

Controlling Piute Ground Squirrels in Southwest Utah

Utah Prairie Dogs

Utah prairie dogs (Cynomys parvidens) present a unique challenge to wildlife damage management.  They can create conflicts in agricultural production and for human health. And they are listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Therefore, they have special protections and care must be taken when trying to manage conflicts.  If you think that you have Utah prairie dogs on your property, please contact the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources for help. Their office number is +1 (435)865-6100.

In the meantime, I have provided some presentations and videos about Utah prairie dogs, so that you might learn more about the animals causing you conflict. 

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS WITH THE SPECIALIST

Our resident specialist Dr. Nicki Frey answers your animal related questions on a weekly basis on our page "Questions from the Community", and selects one to highlight.  For more questions and answers, see our "Questions from the Community" page.  Have a question? Go ahead and ask it below, we'll answer it within a day or two.

How to Identify a Ground Squirrel versus a Utah Prairie Dog?

Click here to learn how to tell the difference between Ground Squirrels and Utah Prairie Dogs
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Questions from the community

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS?