Monday, I came home from work and took a look outside at my bird feeders. Sitting near the squirrel feeder – the one they’re supposed to eat from, as opposed to the feeders meant for birds, most of which they also eat from – was one very unattractive squirrel. His face was decidedly odd looking for a squirrel, and he was even fatter than most of the well-fed squirrels who frequent our feeders.
I looked again, and I saw it wasn’t a squirrel at the squirrel feeder.
It was . . . this guy. Woodchuck. Groundhog. Whistlepig.
Apparently, having found the food on offering to be of his liking, we had a return visitor on Tuesday. Some creatures around the house were quite interested in our new furry friend.
Travels with Choppy 
Whistlepig is a great name! I bet Schooner would love to chase him off!
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He probably would! Choppy regularly chases them when they venture to our yard. She just didn’t see this guy.
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Release the hound (and the cat) 😃
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The hound enjoys chasing these guys.
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Whistlepigs can do an enormous amount of damage to gardens. 😕😬
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They stay out of our well-guarded and animal-proofed vegetable garden. Then again, as the only veggies in it are tomatoes, peppers, and onions, perhaps we’re just not enticing them with the correct foods!
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Large rodent indeed. I’ve only recently seen my first live Armadillo; I’ve yet to see a groundhog. Had no idea they got that big, lol. What on earth do you have on the buffet?
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This one is a small groundhog, actually! I think it’s a juvenile, as most of the ones we see around the neighborhood are about twice this size.
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@_@ Good grief…lol.
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There are lots of hungry critters out there. 🙂
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At least most of the ones around here aren’t going to eat us – I’d worry about alligators a lot if I lived in Florida!
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Uh-oh, bad news. They can eat a lot in a garden. 😦 But dishes of ammonia-soaked rags left around repel them…
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I wonder if that would work with squirrels, by putting a rag at the bottom of a shepherds hook with the birdfeeder hangong on it. They are hungry, too, but eat so much!
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That’s a good question – but would it keep the birds away as well?
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Worth a try, I’d wager.
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They usually stay away – this one is much smaller than our normal ones, so I’m guessing he’s a juvenile and doesn’t realize the dog menace he has to deal with (or the hawk that has been sticking close to the yard and I think has its eye on him). Choppy does a good job of keeping them out of the yard – there are easier pickings elsewhere in the neighborhood!
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We have lots of groundhogs around here. They can be mean when cornered….so be careful.
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Choppy does chase them a lot – and much bigger ones than this little guy. She seems to know enough to give them a wide berth when up close, so I suspect that at some point when I wasn’t looking she tangled with one who taught her a painful lesson.
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Probably. I don’t think Tippy has encountered one yet. We live on a hill and I tend to see them more in the valleys. Hopefully, if she ever does, she’ll be smart enough to stay away and just bark to let me know that something is there.
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hahaha well whatever he is eating he is enjoying, shame he must be hungry.
How did Schooner react, was he going crazy at the window wanting to get out or was it a matter of silent…shock and horror?
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Schooner had multiple reactions – at some point, he was scared and hissed at him, but mostly he just watched him.
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Fascinating ! 🙂
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Wow! Big guy! I would be terrified finding him in my yard 😄
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They aren’t scary – and this one is small! They get to be about twice this big around here.
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Wild Animal Kingdom!
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Wait until this weekend – I’ve got a couple wildlife posts coming up. It seems Wisconsin is wildlife-central!
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