What’s Digging Holes in Your Yard? Armadillo Removal in North Georgia
Have you walked outside in the morning and suddenly discovered small holes scattered throughout your lawn, flower beds, or landscaping?
If the damage seems to appear overnight, you may have an armadillo visiting your property.
Armadillos have become a common nuisance wildlife problem throughout North Georgia and Metro Atlanta, including Woodstock, Canton, Marietta, Roswell, Alpharetta, and surrounding communities. While these unusual-looking animals aren’t usually aggressive toward people, their constant search for food can turn a beautiful lawn into a mess surprisingly quickly.
At Wild Trappers, we provide professional wildlife removal and animal trapping throughout North Metro Atlanta. If you’re trying to figure out what animal is digging holes in your yard at night, here are some clues that an armadillo may be responsible.
What Do Armadillo Holes Look Like?
One of the biggest signs of an armadillo problem is a series of shallow holes appearing throughout the lawn.
Armadillos spend much of their time searching for insects, grubs, worms, and other food beneath the soil. Their strong claws allow them to dig through turf and loose soil quickly.
Common signs of armadillo damage in a yard include:
- Numerous shallow holes appearing overnight
- Torn or overturned sections of sod
- Digging around flower beds and landscaping
- Holes underneath decks, sheds, porches, or foundations
- Damage concentrated in areas with soft or moist soil
- New damage appearing repeatedly even after holes are filled
If it looks like someone walked through your yard randomly digging small holes, an armadillo should definitely be on the list of suspects.
Why Are Armadillos Digging Up My Lawn?
Usually, they’re looking for food.
A healthy lawn can actually be an excellent feeding area for armadillos because the soil may contain insects, larvae, worms, and grubs.
Unfortunately, an armadillo doesn’t care nearly as much about your landscaping as you do.
As it searches for food, it may repeatedly dig into turf, mulch, gardens, and landscaped areas. A property with plenty of food and suitable shelter can encourage the animal to return night after night.
That’s why simply filling armadillo holes often doesn’t solve the problem.
If the animal is still using the property, there’s a good chance you’ll wake up to more holes.
Armadillo or Something Else? How to Identify What’s Digging in Your Yard
Armadillos aren’t the only wildlife capable of digging up a North Georgia yard.
Armadillos
Armadillo damage commonly consists of numerous shallow holes created while searching for insects and other food. Because much of their activity occurs after dark, homeowners often discover the damage the following morning.
Raccoons
Raccoons may pull up or roll back pieces of sod while looking for grubs. They may also be attracted to garbage, pet food, bird feeders, and other food sources around your property.
Raccoons can become an even bigger problem when they move from the yard into the home. Learn more about raccoon problems and raccoons in the attic.
Squirrels
Squirrels frequently dig small holes when burying or retrieving food. If you’re also hearing scratching or movement above your ceiling, the problem could extend beyond the lawn.
Read our guide to grey and flying squirrel removal in Cherokee, Cobb and Fulton Counties if you suspect squirrels around your home.
Other Wildlife
Skunks, chipmunks, groundhogs, rats and other animals can also produce digging or burrowing around a property.
The location, size, depth and pattern of the holes can help an experienced wildlife professional determine which animal is responsible.
Where Do Armadillos Live Around Homes?
Finding feeding holes doesn’t necessarily mean the armadillo lives directly underneath your house.
However, armadillos may look for protected areas where they can burrow or rest.
Potential locations include:
- Under decks
- Beneath porches
- Under sheds
- Along foundations
- Beneath brush piles
- Around wooded property edges
- Near retaining walls
- Under dense vegetation
This is one reason a professional wildlife inspection can be valuable. Finding the animal is only part of the job. Understanding why it is using the property can help determine the best solution.
Can Armadillos Damage Your Property?
Yes.
The most obvious problem is usually lawn and landscaping damage, but repeated digging can become much more extensive.
Armadillos may damage:
Lawns and sod: Repeated feeding can leave dozens of holes and damaged areas throughout otherwise healthy turf.
Flower beds: Loose soil and mulch make landscaped areas particularly easy to investigate.
Gardens: Digging can disturb plants and root systems.
Areas around structures: Burrowing near decks, sheds, patios and foundations can create unwanted cavities and potentially undermine surrounding soil.
For homeowners who invest significant time and money maintaining their property, an armadillo repeatedly visiting the yard can quickly become more than a minor annoyance.
Why Does the Armadillo Keep Coming Back?
Wild animals generally don’t choose properties randomly.
Your yard is providing something the animal wants—usually food, shelter, or both.
If an armadillo finds an abundant food supply in your lawn, there’s little reason for it to stop visiting voluntarily.
This is also why many DIY armadillo deterrents provide disappointing results. Repellents, lights, noises and homemade remedies may temporarily change an animal’s behavior, but they don’t necessarily eliminate the reason it is visiting.
Professional armadillo trapping and removal addresses the animal causing the damage rather than simply trying to convince it to move somewhere else.
Should You Try to Trap an Armadillo Yourself?
Wildlife trapping isn’t always as simple as purchasing a cage and putting it in the backyard.
Successful trapping requires understanding the animal’s behavior, travel routes and the specific areas of the property it is using.
Improper trap placement can result in days of unsuccessful trapping or the accidental capture of non-target animals.
There may also be state and local regulations governing wildlife trapping and what can be done with an animal after capture.
For these reasons, homeowners dealing with recurring wildlife problems are often better served by an experienced wildlife control professional.
Wild Trappers specializes in wildlife removal and exclusion services for homeowners and businesses throughout North Metro Atlanta.
Professional Armadillo Removal in Woodstock, Canton, Marietta & North Metro Atlanta
If you’ve searched for “armadillo removal near me” because something is destroying your lawn every night, Wild Trappers can help determine what’s responsible.
We’re based in Woodstock, Georgia, and provide professional wildlife removal throughout North Metro Atlanta.
Our service area includes communities throughout:
- Cherokee County
- Cobb County
- North Fulton County
- Woodstock
- Canton
- Marietta
- Roswell
- Alpharetta
- And surrounding North Georgia communities
Whether you’re dealing with an armadillo digging up your lawn, raccoons around your home, squirrels in the attic, snakes around the property, or another nuisance animal, identifying the animal correctly is the first step toward solving the problem.
You can also read our North Metro Atlanta wildlife removal guide for information about some of the other common wildlife problems Georgia homeowners encounter.
How Can You Make Your Property Less Attractive to Wildlife?
No property can be made completely wildlife-proof, but homeowners can reduce some of the things that encourage animals to stick around.
Consider:
- Removing outdoor pet food at night
- Keeping garbage securely covered
- Cleaning up fallen fruit and other potential food sources
- Eliminating unnecessary brush and debris
- Inspecting decks and sheds for possible denning areas
- Addressing openings around crawlspaces and foundations
- Keeping vegetation around the home maintained
For animals attempting to enter the structure itself, professional wildlife exclusion can be especially important.
Our article on keeping unwanted critters out of your house explains several additional ways homeowners can reduce wildlife problems.
Stop Armadillos From Destroying Your Yard
A few small holes can turn into significant lawn damage when the same animal returns night after night.
If you’re seeing mysterious holes in your lawn, overturned sod, digging around flower beds, or burrows underneath structures, don’t assume you have to live with it.
Let Wild Trappers determine what’s digging up your property and recommend an appropriate solution.
Need Armadillo Removal or Wildlife Control in North Georgia?
Wild Trappers provides professional animal trapping and wildlife removal in Woodstock, Canton, Marietta, Roswell, Alpharetta and surrounding North Metro Atlanta communities.
If an armadillo—or another unwanted animal—is damaging your property, contact our local wildlife professionals today.
Call Wild Trappers: (770) 504-4154
Request a wildlife inspection or contact Wild Trappers
Learn more about Wild Trappers wildlife removal services
Wild Trappers — Local Wildlife Removal & Animal Trapping in North Metro Atlanta