Armadillo Removal in Buford, GA

Armadillos tearing up Buford lawns

Armadillos have become more common across Georgia every year, and Buford's building boom has handed them perfect ground. New subdivisions and townhome sections go in on freshly graded, loose soil, then get new sod, irrigation and mulched beds — soft, damp dirt full of grubs and worms. The wooded buffers, drainage areas and pond banks around the new development give armadillos a place to burrow by day. At night they come out and root through the lawn by smell, leaving shallow cone-shaped holes that some people say look like hogs went through.

What most people try first doesn't work. Mothballs, castor-oil granules, predator urine and ultrasonic stakes have no effect on an animal that digs by scent and instinct — and mothballs shouldn't be used outdoors around animals at all. Armadillos can't be baited either. The method that works is a trap placed right on the path the animal already walks, then sealing its burrows. Here's how a Gwinnett County pro handles it.

Lawn damage vs. burrow damage

There are two kinds of armadillo damage. The first is the feeding holes in the lawn and beds — unsightly, but shallow, and new sod recovers. The second is the burrow. Armadillos dig tunnels, and in loose graded soil they often dig them under patio slabs, decks, sheds, AC pads and the edge of the foundation. A burrow that keeps growing under a slab can wash out the soil underneath it. That's the part that really calls for action.

Why new Buford lots attract them

It comes down to soil and water. Graded fill is loose and easy to dig. New lawns get watered regularly, which keeps grubs and earthworms near the surface. Leftover woods and drainage strips sit right behind many of the newer lots, giving an armadillo a safe den a short walk from dinner. After heavy rain, digging tends to spike because the ground is soft and prey comes up. Older yards around downtown get armadillos too, but the newest sod tends to get hit hardest.

Skip the grub treatment

Treating the lawn for grubs sounds logical — take away the food, lose the armadillo. In practice, our crew don't recommend it: as grubs thin out, the armadillo simply digs more and deeper to find what's left, and the damage gets worse before anything improves. Repellents fail for the same reason. Removing the animal is what stops the digging.

How trapping actually works

Since there's no bait an armadillo reliably goes for, success depends entirely on placement. Pros use sturdy box traps — often wooden ones set ahead of time — and position them on the animal's regular runs: along a fence, a foundation wall, or the edge of a buffer, near the burrow entrance. Fencing or boards can guide the armadillo into the trap. A well-placed trap catches the animal doing the damage; a poorly placed one catches nothing for weeks. Georgia has no special legal restrictions on trapping armadillos.

Sealing the burrows

Once the armadillo is caught, the burrow is still there, and another armadillo will happily take it over. The pro checks for young, then fills or closes the burrow and installs buried barrier screening along decks, sheds and slabs so a new one can't dig back under. On a new lot with loose fill, that barrier is what keeps the problem from restarting.

When more show up

Georgia's mild winters don't slow armadillos down much, and they don't have many predators here. Once one finds a good lot, others can follow the same wooded buffers and drainage strips. That's why a pro may keep traps out for a while after the first catch and recheck the barriers. Trapping plus sealing is what holds; trapping alone just leaves an empty burrow for the next one.