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 Can a Groundhog Hurt my Dog?

Groundhogs are herbivores and, as such, are a prey item on the menu of many predators.   That is one good reason for them to dig burrows and to live in them.  Dogs, on the other hand, are predators, and their instinct is to hunt.   If you put the two together something is likely to happen.  Dogs want to hunt and groundhogs run for the burrow.    The big question is what happens if the dog manages to catch the groundhog or tries to go into the burrow after it.

Most people that I meet are worried about their small breed dog.    Small breed dogs do not have the power to overwhelm a groundhog like a large breed, but often think that they can.  They are also unable to attack from above and get a good hold on the groundhog’s neck.  They are more equally matched with the groundhog and must face off nose to nose.  I think that most injuries that dogs sustain while fighting groundhogs are around the face and ears. 

Fierce Groundhogs

Of all the animals that I trap, groundhogs are especially fierce and tenacious.   Once inside a cage trap they will rush both ends of the trap like a linebacker in attempts to break out.   They often rush the side of the trap in an attempt to attack me.   When I carry a trap to the truck with a groundhog, it is always lurching from one end to the other.  There is a lot of teeth chattering and aggression when they are handled.   Of all the animals that I handle, groundhogs never fail to impress me with their attitude.   It pays to have this type of attitude if you are cornered by a predator.

In the open, a groundhog will about always run for a nearby burrow.  In the open, they are still likely to run, but if the dog is fast enough they may be forced to make a stand.  Up close, they are an entirely different animal and will stand their ground and fight and would behave similarly to what they do in a trap, except that there is no trap wall between the groundhog and your dog.    I personally can’t imagine being a small dog and facing one of these guys in a burrow, but they sometimes do.

The Case of the Chiweenie dog and the Groundhog

I had a customer who had a Chihuahua/Dachshund mix.  They called it a Chiweenie dog.  Whether or not you have trouble (or more accurately your dog has trouble) depends a lot on the personality of your dog and your dog’s personality depends a lot on its breed.  Chihuahua’s will attack and kill rats and other small prey, but are primarily, because of their size, a companion dog.  Dachshunds were bred to go down the burrow of badgers. I would not give any guarentees what a Chihuahua would do.  It depends on a lot of factors that make prediction hard.  Things like the age and individual personality of the dog come into play.   I would give fair odds that a Dachshund would be likely to attack considering its breeding, but I am not sure exactly what this dog would do.  In this case, as with many others, the owners would have to fall back on their own knowledge of the dog’s personality.

My Grandfather’s German Weimeraner and my English Setter – Dogs with Different Personalities

My grandmother and grandfather lived in open farm country in Blountville Tn. and my grandfather had a German Weimeraner which is a German hunting breed.  His name was Dag. He was a large dog and probably weighed over eighty pounds.   Dag was a “four legged groundhog death machine”.   If he caught the animal in the open the fight was short and decisive usually lasting less than a minute.  Dag was tall compared to the groundhog and would come down across the animals neck and shake it and the fight was over.  Dag was very efficient, but, as I recall, he still got a bite on the muzzle once or twice and needed a trip to the vet.   Occasionally, he would sniff out a groundhog burrow and would dig it out.  That might take a morning or afternoon, but he worked at it continuously and in the end he got his groundhog.

I lived between Bristol and Abingdon on the corner of a large farm.  I had an English setter through most of my childhood and a large Malamute that weighed over 100 pounds.  Both these dogs had enough power and size to handle a groundhog.  There were 360 acres of groundhog opportunities right next door.  But, I am certain that neither of these dogs made much of an impact on the farm’s groundhog population.

These two dogs scenarios are excellent examples of how the personality of the dogs will influence their impact on the area. 

How Bad Can a Groundhog Hurt my Dog?

I was in Limestone Tn. finishing up with a customer when I met a man who said that he had a Rat Terrier that would go into burrows and bring out the groundhogs.  I believe that he was telling the truth.  Rat Terriers are one of the fiercest rat killing breeds.  I guess that this little guy just mistook the groundhogs for oversized rats.  The Rat Terrier probably weighed about as much as the Ground Hog.  Evidently he was one fierce Rat Terrier and had some skills.   He eventually did come home with his face cut open from a bite.  He needed about 12 stitches to close the wound.  

Will my Dog Go After the Groundhog?

Ultimately, that is a question that you have to ask your dog, but here are a few things that I do know.  Generally speaking, groundhogs will retreat to their burrows if given the choice.   Standing to fight is not in their best interest.  I also know that dogs will give chase, especially if the prey runs.  That is their instinct.  Predators chase and prey runs.   The big question is what happens if the dog manages to corner the groundhog somehow.   Cornering the groundhog against an above ground barrier like a fence or in the burrow will probably result in the animal turning to defend itself.  That is when things could get ugly.

Using Dogs to Control Groundhogs

Just a note on groundhog control with dogs.  People will say to me something like “we didn’t have this problem till my dog died last year”.  While having a good dog around will affect the behavior of wildlife, it definitely won’t solve all your problems.    Dag, my grandfather’s dog described above, definitely reduced the number groundhogs in the area.  But, there were not strong leash laws in place in his area at the time.  Dag had free run of the vicinity.    

I also meet lots of customer who have dogs and still have groundhogs under decks and outbuildings.  If the groundhog has a burrow on site it gives a level of security from attack.   The groundhog learns that it just needs to stay closer to home for safety reasons. 

Groundhogs under outbuildings and decks

Solutions to the Problem

For some homeowners, having a groundhog on the property is too big a risk.  They can wound your pet and also do damage to your property by unsettling foundations and chewing wiring under buildings.  If this is the case, something will have to be done.   But, expecting the dog to solve the problem is probably expecting too much of the dog.    A permanent solution is going to include a combination of trapping and screening out the building.    Screening the foundation keeps the groundhog out preventing property damage and also deprives the groundhog of a private safety zone where it can dive.

Protecting the Dog with Burrow Elimination

Protecting the dog can be done simply by keeping the dog inside, and keeping the dog on a leash when it goes out for a potty break.  However, lots of homeowners don’t want to have to do that.   In that case, the best option is to remove the groundhog.   Simply trapping the groundhog and hauling it away is not the perfect choice.   In lots of case that I see, the burrow has another groundhog in it within days.  If the burrow isn’t filled in days then it almost certainly will be filled by the next season.  The best way of dealing with this is to eliminate the burrow or access to the burrow.  This is something that we specialize in.  We developed techniques for eliminating groundhog burrows.  We have had very few call backs from customers who had this done on their property.