Gophers feed on the roots and underground stems of grass, flowers, vegetables, shrubs, and trees. The best bait for gophers is fresh and succulent portions of vegetable roots and stems, or any part of their agricultural favorite plant, alfalfa.
Carrot sticks, celery sticks, apples, and peanut butter are all highly attractive to gophers. The advantage of peanut butter is that it is easy to apply to the vertical bait pan of the snap type trap. The bait pans have to be oriented vertically so that the gopher is killed with a quick snap of the neck rather than trapped by its paw to die slowly or perhaps to escape. Alfalfa greens or alfalfa pellets (such as those used to feed rabbits or hamsters) are another favorite food that few gophers can resist.
Unlike other rodents, gophers do not require a “free sample” to habituate them to the presence of the trap. Any gopher trap is always placed below ground in the gopher’s main tunnel where it has to pass to get from one end to the other. Even if the gopher does not like the food, it still has to pass through the trap. The scent of human sweat on the bait or the trap, however, may induce the gopher to burrow around the trap entirely.
Gopher bait is always more attractive when it’s the best food available. Before setting out gopher traps, stop irrigating your lawn as long as you can without damaging plants. Make sure that your bait is the juiciest and tastiest food the gopher can find.
If there are parts of your lawn or garden that you keep moist, put out predator scents around desirable plants. Placing fox urine crystals on the ground around desirable plants combined with providing the gopher a delicious last meal will greatly increase the number of gophers you can remove from your lawn.
For more information read the review on gopher traps.
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