The gophers have been terrible this spring. I’m using my Gopher Hawks two at a time. I’m afraid to admit this, but I’m starting to get a little sick satisfaction out of getting them out of my garden. It feels a little like fishing. lol Only the very first one wasn’t killed instantly, and that’s because she was huge. It was the gopher that overwintered in my garden. It was either pregnant, or morbidly obese, possibly both. I’ve never seen one so large. That was traumatic, since it was still alive and wiggling the trap back and forth. All the others have been dead immediately, and I usually hear the spring pop.

I was so tired of watching that gopher that overwinterled here, move through my yard, making a mess, and eating whatever wasn’t caged. Thank goodness I had so much Orlaya it keep them away from the other plants. They seem to love the carrot like roots.

Someone on this forum recommended The Gopher Hawk to me last year. I promptly ordered, and had my sons set it up. Then I waited, and waited, and waited. I had them move the traps to places I saw fresh activity, and waited some more. Finally I told the boys to put it away, and I ordered a “Black Hole” trap. It caught a few, but the boys had to dig to find the tunnels, and it was a mess. As the boys became less available for trap setting, I became more frustrated. Finally, after “Mrs Gopher” climbed into a cage full of Italian Ranunculus corms, I’d had it. I knew I didn’t have the physical strength to do the digging required to set the “Black Hole” in place. I decided to give The Gopher Hawk one more try, myself. I‘d never set a trap of any kind before. I always considered it “a man’s job.” Out of sheer frustration, I brought the Gopher Hawks out of the garage. I then watched every video available on the Gopher Hawk. Once I understood the contraption, I examined the traps. The claws had been bent! No wonder my traps weren’t working! My sons had no doubt, set the traps without doing any research. They must have pressed down to set the traps, and bent a claw or two in the process. No gopher could enter the claw, because it was bent to block off entry. I carefully bent the claw back and set up the trap. It was only an hour or so, before I heard it spring. I had done it! I used the shovel to dig it up, and accidentally ”finished off” that first gopher when I removed the trap. It wasn’t pleasant, but at least it happened underground, and I was relieved that I didn’t have to give it a whack with the shovel, after bringing it above ground. Millie was SO excited! I must have looked hilarious trying to get that fat gopher on my shovel, and hurl it over the fence. Of course, I didn’t hurl very well, and it hit the fence and went down under St. Elizabeth of Hungary rose. It was a race between Millie and me to see who could get to it first. I didn’t want her touching the thing. I’m climbing the slope with my “lady shovel” for balance, and Millie with her three legs, beats me to it. I had a hard time fishing that dead gopher out from under the rose bush and onto my shovel. I used the only thing within hands reach, a floppy, spent bearded iris stalk. I managed to keep Millie from grabbing it, and this time, my hurling was enough. Millie was pretty disappointed with what I had done, but she’s been showing me where to set the Gopher Hawk again and again. I wish she would start hunting them herself, but so far she’s too easily distracted.

I’m catching them almost daily, and sometimes more than one a day! I love that I can set it myself, and don’t have to have one of my sons come set it for me. I’m ever so thankful for the person that originally recommended the Gopher Hawk to me. I take it back! It does work! My sons didn’t set it correctly. Now it’s working great!

Sheila, I’m so glad it working for you guys. It’s a great little invention and a case of really “making a better mouse/gopher trap.“. :-). Lisa