Go go gopher...

The last two gophers were easy. Each time on a Thursday afternoon, I found new gopher holes, and on Thursday night I dug them out then laid my trap inside. Each time on Friday morning, I had a dead gopher in my trap and tossed him out in the trash to be taken later that day. It's been weeks now, since my last gopher encounter. I had thought they were gone and done with since it had been so long. Then about a week ago, I saw a small pile of dirt in the front lawn. I presumed it was gopher but it's not always easy to tell - our yards have so many weeds and we pull them all by hand (no chemicals) so you cannot always tell whether that small pile is from a gopher or from a large rooted weed recently pulled. Friday though.... Friday afternoon was obvious. It was definitely a gopher hole in the backyard, right outside my bedroom window. With confidence, I dug out his hole and set my trap, then laid it in the ground. Later that evening, my guy tells me, "Your gopher covered your trap up with more dirt." Sure enough, more gopher dirt was all around my trap and it was not set off. I pulled the trap out, dug out the tunnel again, and set the trap back in the hole for the night. Saturday morning, more dirt - no gopher! Ok, this one seems smarter than the last two. But then again, I think this one had just moved in, locating the old gopher holes below ground and was doing some housecleaning. I got the pitchfork and found where the tunnel went down further. I ended up digging a hole big enough to hold a basketball, just so I could put my trap in further in hopes of catching this little bugger. BF told me, "You won't catch him in that hole," but I went about it anways. Sunday morning, no gopher, no new dirt. Sure enough, he had evacuated that hole. Thinking I had lost him, I wandered over to admire my sunflower and - BANG! - a new little gopher mound. ARGH! I left it for the day and dug it out on Sunday night. It wasn't easy as the hole twisted and headed in the other direction, but a couple of searches with my pitchfork and I could feel where the ground gave out and the tunnel ran. I laid my trap and left it overnight. This morning, after the cats had eaten and I had showered, I headed for the back door. My Siamese was staring outside and I asked her, "What are you looking at, Meow? Tell mother you sense a dead gopher outside." Sure enough, I had caught him. The ants were none-to-happy that he died next to one of their nests though - tough luck, huh?