Hello... I'm new to the forum and really could use some help. I have a mole taking over my life and it needs to end (the mole's life...not mine). For the past 2 months or so, I have been trying to get rid of a pesky mole (or moles) in my back yard. I've tried poison peanuts, 1 spear trap, 2 Victor Out-of-Site traps and 6 Trapline traps. No luck. I've watched the videos and searched the web about them and I feel like I am setting the traps correctly. There are variations on how to set some of the traps and I've tried them all.

My ground is compacted with sparse grass which makes it impossible to cut a plug because the dirt just crumbles. I've had a relatively straight run across my yard about half way, then a 90 degree turn for 10-15 feet, then another 90 degree turn back the other direction ending on the opposite side of my yard. The mole seems to work in one area at a time and the tunnels seem a little deeper than the moles I've seen in the past. While the runs do meander a bit, in general they are straight. I also have had several dirt mounds at various times. The mole runs go across my neighbor's yard and then hit a fence line in the next neighbors yard. In the summer, I had runs up next to my house but I stomped them all down and they never came back. This fall, they reappeared in the back of my yard and won't go away.

Most of the time, I cut a hole in a run and either use one Out of Site or 2 Trapline traps. For the Out of Site, I have tried leaving the hole open as well as sprinkling it with loose soil to cover the hole. I've also tried the approach where you only cut slits in the soil and sit the trap on top of the ground. For the Trapline, I've tried both leaving the holes open and covering them with a large dirt ball to seal the tunnels. With all trap types, I cover them with a bucket. When I check the traps, they are either untouched or completely packed with loose dirt. 95% of the time, the traps have not been triggered and when they have been, no moles. They seem to be digging under or around the Trapline traps some of the time but I really can't tell for sure as the hole is completely full of dirt when I check it. I even found one of the Trapline traps sitting on top of the fresh dirt mound one day. I just busted out laughing followed by a bunch of words I can't say on the forum.

In a 20' section of tunnel, I've had 5 or 6 sets thinking I'd increase my odds. I've also been using gloves to control scent. I just can't figure out this mole and really could use some advice.

Thank you

Hire someone

It takes years at times for some to get really get on to mole work thru trial and error. It isnt easy telling someone how its done effectively online.With the money spent on traps,products and time vested would probably have been adequate funds to pay for a seasoned professional to come in to resolve your problem.

You have the tools, its getting them set properly in the right intersecting points of the most active runs or frequent use tunnels.Thats the challenge.Keep at it. Make sure you bed/seat your traps adequately for the best results and that you are setting the proper depth when using the O/S traps to engage the mole at that level.

We have no moles in our area but what Bob Jameson said about them also pertains to a lot of other wildlife.

I can handle it if it's in the St. Louis area. What Bob says is right; my technique doesn't seem all that complicated to me, but I sure do catch 'em!

To catch mole you will spend 95% of your time on your knee's prodding to finding the right tunnel. When first starting you will be setting a lot of traps, there are no short cuts. Look at the price of having someone replace a wall plug and the cost of hiring someone to trap your mole does not look bad,and all it takes to replace a wall plug is a screw driver and twenty minutes. JMO

Well, I will keep trying. If I hire someone now, I will feel like I have lost my initial investment of time and money spent on traps. At this point, it is getting personal. I read somewhere that a moles lifespan isn't very long so maybe I will just wait him out until he kicks the bucket. lol

Thanks

Then you must factor in reproduction and migration filtration into your area from adjoining properties.

Maybe you can barter for your trap with the person you hire, chalk up your time to experience! It never hurts to ask.

Oh.. that makes me feel better. Thanks

I checked my traps tonight and again, no luck. This particular hole had 3 tunnels coming together and I placed a Trapline trap in each tunnel. I've used this location for several days and because of all the digging and resetting, the hole is now pretty large. I'd say it is about 6" x 12" and about 6" deep. Two of the tunnels are only 2-3 inches down but the other one is closer to 6"-8" down and seems like it is coming up at an angle. I placed a big dirt ball about the size of a baseball over each tunnel and then place a board over the hole in the ground. When I checked tonight, the hole was completely full of loose dirt and the traps were not tripped.

I had a few other sites set along the same mole run just a few feet away and no activity was present.

The cycle continues. I'm doing something wrong and can't figure it out.

We all run into a mole a two every year that I describe as the "The Mole from [Please excuse my language... I'm an idiot]". Sometimes you have to get creative. I had one a few months ago that I worked on for 3 weeks. Finally I thought back on the definition of being crazy, doing the same thing over and over and getting the same results.

This mole was working a small boulevard where I figured he was denning under a sidewalk, too awkward for a Out of Sight. When I used traplines, he would push the one out from under the sidewalk. So I decided to place only one trapline trap in the outgoing tunnel vs the incoming part of the tunnel. But I reversed the trap so when he entered the outgoing tunnel he was met by the clutching tines. It was a easy task setting the trap using a pliers being careful not to trip the trap and just pushing it in and then moving a little dirt to cover the exposed metal. Needless to say after describing this set-up, I caught the "Mole from [Please excuse my language... I'm an idiot]".

This was just one incidence, I have used many creative methods, I guess my summary is, sometimes one must think out of the box.

Jerry.... thanks for the tip. I will remember that for possible future use.

I can't seem to figure out what this mole is doing. He just fills the holes but it isn't evident (to me anyway) that he is using the tunnels. It seems like he is just plugging them from one direction but not going on through. I have several sets in a row about 5 feet apart. One hole will be full of dirt and the next one down the line hasn't been touched. Is it possible that he is only coming up to plug the air holes in the tunnel and is really working mostly deeper than I can see?

I read somewhere that you can bury a 3 pound coffee can with the top of the can even with the bottom of the tunnel. The mole comes along and falls in and can't get out. Something tells me this mole isn't that stupid but at this point, I will try anything. Do you think that will work?

Also.... Does anyone know of a way to lure the moles in by scent? Berkley makes soft plastic fishing lures that smell natural. (Power Bait) I wonder if plastic worms would attract the moles by scent and if so, how far could they smell it. My thinking is that it might divert their attention when they get close to the trap and put the plastic bait just behind the trapline trap or in the middle of the out of site trap. I know they sell poison worms that but I'd rather see the critter in the trap so I know his fate rather than guessing he is dead.

Are you bedding the Traplines like the video on Steve's website?

Do the traps fit pretty tight in the tunnel?

With moles I like to set the trigger really light, too

I'm just thinking out loud here. Sorry you're having problems. Moles can be maddening at times. Good luck!

Terrier...Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I have watched the Trapline videos and feel like I am bedding the traps correctly.

Some of the tunnels are tight but some are a little larger than the trap. They have gotten larger I think because I have had to reset a few times and each time the ground crumbles away a little when I clean out the hole. The part of the yard where this mole is doesn't have a healthy lawn with grass roots to help hold the soil together.

I don't know if the trigger would really matter as it seems like the mole isn't even going through them. It seems like he is just pushing the dirt to plug the tunnel where the trap is but somehow, he fills up the rest of the hole. Most of the time, the trap is full of dirt and not tripped. I then have to dig out the hole to get to the tunnel and then dig out the tunnel to retrieve the trap. It has me baffled.

Pull your traps for a week and come back with a fresh mind and set of eyes and you will get him.
Works for me.

Water the lawn for 3 days and set the area :-) should do the trick

I trap for a golf course and when I find a mole that continually pushes up dirt into my traps I do the following. Take a one inch section of 5/16 inside diameter tubing and place it over the spring of a trapline trap. I then use a 6 inch turf staple and insert it along the back of the trap. I then place it in the run at top so it hangs down so the mole can't feel the trap. This takes some time to set up but it has been quite effective for me after I learned just how to make my set. I also believe scent on my traps is very important so I wash my traps between sets and not use a trap a second time without washing it. I also wash my gloves after each set. Good Luck!

I have been expermenting with several liquid products the past few months and have been getting some positive results. My first objective was to mask any human scent left on the traps and then something to lure moles to my sets. This last week after 17 inches of rain and two days of sun I put out on fresh mounds ten sets without scent and caught four moles. I also put ten sets using scent and caught seven. All the sets were on higher ground as the level areas were too wet. If my research pans out I will place the info on this site for all to use as they see fit as I dont want to proffit from what should be given to all.

Thanks, Coast Trapper. My experience with the Talpirid "worms" was disappointing, to say the least. The manufacturers, Bell Labs, refused on several occasions to provide hard science to back up their claims as to the efficacy of their product. That's pretty bad.

First of all, sorry for the posting to an old thread but I just had to share... (as Paul Harvey would say)... the rest of the story.

As you can see from my posts last fall, I was having a difficult time catching a mole that was tearing up my yard. I spent most of the fall and early winter trying to catch this mole. I never did catch him and gave up when winter got here.

This spring was pretty cool in western Missouri and I didn't see any mole activity until mid June. For the first few days, I didn't see enough activity to know where to set traps so I didn't set any. Then a few mounds started appearing so I went to work again. I have 2 Out of Site traps, 6 Traplines and one old rusty spear trap that I don’t use much in my yard since the moles seem to work deeper than most I've seen.

After a few days of moving traps around and trying to find the best spot, I finally got my very first mole in an Out of Site trap. I felt so much relief that I did a mole victory dance in the yard. I disposed of the mole and reset the trap.

Day 2….Mole #2 caught from the same hole on the OOS trap.

Day 3….No mole or activity from this hole so I moved the trap.

Day 4….Mole #3 caught from the new hole on the OOS trap.

Day 5… It rained hard and kind of made a mess out of my set ups and dirt mounts. No Moles caught.

Day 6…Still a muddy mess… No moles caught.

Day 7…Mole #4 caught from the same hole as #3 on the OOS trap.

Ok…. I spent 2+ months trying to catch a mole last fall and got goose egg. In one week this year, I have caught 4. The only thing I can think of is that the mole from last fall was a smart old timer and he died of old age over the winter. A new family moved in that is dumber than dirt.

I have read that moles don't like company. How many more could there be? All 4 moles came on the OOS traps and I still have not had any luck with the Traplines. Maybe I need to shelf the Traplines and buy more of the OOS traps.

Anyway, I just had to post this as I am still in amazement of my lack of success all fall last year and a complete turn-around this year…...so far that is….