OT Groundhog tunnel/nest

A friend has been watching a groundhog out her office window. Says the hog has been taking all sorts of things into the tunnel. Has anyone on here ever dug up one of their nests? If so what sort of things did you find. Are they like a pack rat that will steal anything shiny?

There was what turned out to be a funny situation 50 miles east of me.
There is an old Revolutionary War to current Cemetary, with many vetrans buried in it. The caretaker discovered many American Flags had been stolen. He replaced them only to find that they were gone the next day. (we're talking 25 plus each time). The Media and police were brought in, and new flags were set out again with survalence cameras. The cameras cought the thief redhanded. There was a lot of redfaced people who had falsely condemed kids for this dasterdly dead. They sent a plumbing camera down the hole, and fount the stash.
The new flags now fly on lengths of pvc pipe so the subteranian grounds keeper can't reach them.
Loren, the Acg.

I guess the sound of the flags blowing in the wind made too much noise underground for the old groundhog. We use to put pin wheels in our yard to keep moles out when we were kids.

I had one under my front porch, theres an annex of concrete block, 3 sides against the concrete foundation, which the porch is built on and its filled with sand or gravel, dry, not sure what kind of den was dug under their or how it would even hold up, being so dry and loose and although the woodchuck would roam to different holes in the vicinity, he would hang out under there for long periods of time. I kind of made friends with him, he was no trouble and as I realize later, depending on weather conditions that can change, meaning, your watered and lush garden had best be 'chuck proof.

This guy grabbed a broom off the porch on afternoon, was trying to take it under the deck and I had to grab hold of it and tug o war with him to get it back, he was actually a lot of fun for a about 8 years, same one, was missing a finger. I got overun with them last year, and had to kill several, live trapped a couple and released. I've always liked them as they can be quite interesting, very smart and always aware of whats around them, its just the darned holes and when they find what you grow is better than whats on the lawn or in the nearby field. I think we had a spike in population and it got real dry for some time which caused so many to linger around the house, should be different this year, having reduced the population.

My Grandpa used to dump a gallon of ammonia in the hole. The smell will drive them out.

I had them under my polebarn/garage and couldn't get rid of them. I shoot em off and the next family would move in. Finally I put the exhaust of my f250 diesel down there. Must have poisoned the ground as none have moved back in and it has been 5 years now.

A couple of Conibear 220's, not sure on the spelling, took care of my groundhog problem. Some may call them a body trap. I don't know about the nest. I just fill the holes in afterword's.

story on the flag stealers
link to story

Used to help my grandad burn "em out. Put five gallons of water down the hole first, then a gallon of gas, then flip in a match. Have shotgun ready in case they come out I"ve killed a lot of them that way, and the gas and smoke smutties up the hole and discourages them from coming back.

Thanks ACG, that was what I was asking. I know how to kill them, but around here the raccoons are much more of a problem. I know how to deal with them too. I was justcurious if anyone had actually dug up one of their dens.

Alot of years ago we had one dig by the creek. He pulled about 5yrs of dirt out of the ground. He followed the tile line(clay) but never got into the tile. His tunnel was well drained that year.

Neighbor kid and I tried this method over 50 years ago. Only problem was that we had a skunk, not a groundhog. We weren't sociaslly acceptable for several days.

I dropped the left rear wheel of an SC Case down in one, the ground hog didn't put the tractor there but I did! I was plowing a creek bottom patch next to the creek, and the ground caved in under the tractor. My uncle said that there was a burrow coming from the creek bank, and had let high water wash out the underground. Uncle Pete and Dad pulled the SC out with the 88 diesel. I spent a lot of pleasnt evenings laying in our alfalfa field , with a springfield 22, popping ground hogs, and scalping them for the $.25 bounty that Pike Co. paid. Shore would like to be 16 again!

Opening the door of a 2500 gallon slurry spreader over the holes will drive them out as well. They usually look drunk by the time they get above ground.