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DianaT
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Registered: 12-17-2004
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TOPOS
At first we thought they might moles because that is what we found for the translation of topo, but they are our old familar enemy---GOPHERS. They
call them topos here.
In the states the best way John ever found to get them out of our garden was to entice them up and shoot them with his 22 pistol---but no pistol in
Baja.
Of course old fashion flooding just gives them a place to enjoy a swim. We brought down some smoke bombs---they just enjoyed a good smoke.
We have hesitated to use any poison because of the dogs--my aunt lost a dog who picked up and licked a poisoned rat. And there are no traps to be
found in town.
John tried one of the local ways with no luck---fishing for topos --using a line, small hook and piece of potato. Mr. Gopher ate the hook. He also
tried getting him to the surface and smash him with a shovel. The gopher saw him and I watched the little creep just close his door---and I know I
also saw him smirk and make obsence gestures toward John. It is beginning to be all out war.
We will bring back some traps from the states, but I am curious as to how others have dealt with these little monsters in Baja.
We just planted several new palms and a good friend told us that the topos killed 7 new palms she planted.
So, more suggestions?
Thanks
Diane
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Osprey
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They are tuzas and you trap em. Most vet/feed stores in baja carry tuza traps. Have the store clerk give you a quick demo. Everybody in our little
village uses em. They work better than the magnesium pellets and I think the store clerks will tell you that.
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vandenberg
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Watch "Caddyshack" with Bill Murray.
May give you some ideas.
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Edguero
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Don't know if they work but I have seen these;
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnu...
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toneart
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About 10 years ago I bought a rubber connector with a hose. It attaches to the tailpipe of your vehicle. It did the trick for me. I don't remember
where I got it. I think it was a hardware store.
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thebajarunner
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"used to be a good solution"
| Quote: | Originally posted by toneart
About 10 years ago I bought a rubber connector with a hose. It attaches to the tailpipe of your vehicle. It did the trick for me. I don't remember
where I got it. I think it was a hardware store. |
Tony,
That one does not work with the modern cars, because the emissions have really cleaned up, truly.
My favorite is the box traps, you need two so you can put them in each direction in the tunnel.
That way, when you catch him, you know you got him.
The smoke bombs work, sometimes.
I have a great home-made solution that works real well on the ground squirrels around here, and may work on the topos.
I save the empty plastic water 1/2 liter bottles,
pour about an inch of gas in the bottom, place it in the tunnel, with the open end facing outward (very important!)
Put some wadded up newspaper in front of the bottle, dump some gas on that, wait a moment, light a match from at least 6 feet and toss it in.
That plastic will burn for a really long time.
Whether the toxics in the plastic, or the oxygen being sucked out.... whatever, it works great.
Oh, by the way, this Spring I set our whole hillside on fire with this technique, so use a bit of better sense as to the surrounding fuel than I did.
And, it is fun, in a perverse sort of way.
(Prop. 2 probably discourages this...)
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bajajudy
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We have tuzas too. The traps are too much for me.
Nope, drowning does not work. As I type, we have a major leak going down the road behind our house. A lot of water flowing.
Well, about half the volume goes into a tuza hole right beside the road on our side, it has been flowing into this hole for 3 days and so far the hole
has not filled with water.
Yes I have called OOMSPA about the leak but they dont seem to care!
I guess the tuzas have joined our menagerie of misfits and lost animals.
Having major problems with mice now as we do every year at this time
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Cypress
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Pour a half gallon of gasoline into the hole, then plug the hole.  That'll
get their attention.
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toneart
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| Quote: | Originally posted by thebajarunner
| Quote: | Originally posted by toneart
About 10 years ago I bought a rubber connector with a hose. It attaches to the tailpipe of your vehicle. It did the trick for me. I don't remember
where I got it. I think it was a hardware store. |
Tony,
That one does not work with the modern cars, because the emissions have really cleaned up, truly.
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Oh no! I guess if I ever need to check out, it is back to the Golden Gate Bridge. My gopher device was my ace in the hole. (pun intended)
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BajaGringo
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| Quote: | Originally posted by thebajarunner
I have a great home-made solution that works real well on the ground squirrels around here, and may work on the topos.
I save the empty plastic water 1/2 liter bottles,
pour about an inch of gas in the bottom, place it in the tunnel, with the open end facing outward (very important!)
Put some wadded up newspaper in front of the bottle, dump some gas on that, wait a moment, light a match from at least 6 feet and toss it in.
That plastic will burn for a really long time.
Whether the toxics in the plastic, or the oxygen being sucked out.... whatever, it works great. |
My dad would use a similar technique for gophers. The trick was getting the smoke into tunnels. What he would do is use a piece of old garden hose,
tape over one end with saran wrap and fill it half-way with a 50/50 mix of gasoline and cooking oil. This configuration would allow him to work the
mixture deep into the tunnel. He would place one at every opening and light them off. The saran wrap would melt and release the mixture even deeper
into the tunnel. They would burn for quite a while and the problem would be solved every time. I remember he would always stand watch with a shovel in
case a critter try to escape out an undiscovered hole.
Life can be cruel...
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stimbo
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Cypress
Pour a half gallon of gasoline into the hole, then plug the hole. That'll
get their attention. |
There's a macabre story to tell with your method. Apparently someone tried the same trick, pouring gasoline into the hole, igniting and covering the
hole (s). Make sure you plug ALL the holes. In this instance, the gophers popped out, all with flaming fur and bodies. In their panic and scampering
around, lit the field and yard on fire, then subsequently the house burned to the ground. 
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BajaGringo
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Mood: Let's have a BBQ!
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Ouch!!!
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Lauriboats
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Hi Diane,
If you want I could check around some of the stores here in Mulege for some traps and bring them to you. I am sure that if you have tuzas we will
too. Lauri
What we see depends mainly on what we look for.
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Cypress
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Don't light the gasoline, the fumes will do 'em in.
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Bob and Susan
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etpHKueh6S0
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BajaGuera
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Gum...just stick some Juicy Fruit in the holes. They eat it, can't digest it and die. Old trick I learned from my dad - it really works - no poison
- no traps - no smoke. And we haven't found any carcasses either so no messy clean up.
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Maria
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I bought gopher chasers. You stick them in the ground and they buzz every 20 seconds. My gophers made a "beeline" to the neighbor's house where he
sat for hours with a gun waiting for them to surface. hehehe
( if you knew him you would be cheering for me)
I went out and bought more and slowly moved them closer and closer to the neighbor. Different ones cover different square footage. Eventually I
forgot about gophers. THEN the batteries died and the buggers came back.
The only problem with these things is every time you pass by one when it buzzes you jump thinking it is a rattle snake. You think you'd get used to
it knowing it is there-----but NOOOOOO you jump every time. No wonder the gophers move away.
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Barry A.
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| Quote: | Originally posted by BajaGuera
Gum...just stick some Juicy Fruit in the holes. They eat it, can't digest it and die. Old trick I learned from my dad - it really works - no poison
- no traps - no smoke. And we haven't found any carcasses either so no messy clean up. |
OH--------MY----------Gawd!!!!! Think about it. 
Barry
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thebajarunner
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But lighting the gas is 90% of the fun
| Quote: | Originally posted by Cypress
Don't light the gasoline, the fumes will do 'em in. |
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DianaT
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Registered: 12-17-2004
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| Quote: | Originally posted by Osprey
They are tuzas and you trap em. Most vet/feed stores in baja carry tuza traps. Have the store clerk give you a quick demo. Everybody in our little
village uses em. They work better than the magnesium pellets and I think the store clerks will tell you that. |
Tuzas they are, but they call them topos around here---donīt know why, because they are definitely tuzas. There are a number of words that are
different here, local usage.
Could not find traps in any of the stores here nor in Vizcaino. One man said he could order them. We did not try the feed place---didnīt think of
that. Thanks. Seems the fishing method is very popular around here.
Lots of interesting suggestions. Thanks.
Diane
[Edited on 11-10-2008 by jdtrotter]
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