Muskrats and woodchucks are both rodents that can be nuisances to homeowners. Although similar, understanding their unique habits and habitats is critical to preventing property damage and ensuring successful animal removal efforts. Here are the key differences.

How Are Woodchucks Different From Muskrats?

Woodchucks

Woodchucks, also known as groundhogs, are members of the squirrel family. They’re easily identifiable by their furry tails and stocky bodies—weighing in at up to 15 pounds. Generally found in open fields, woodchucks are primarily vegetarians and are always on the lookout for common plants.

Woodchucks gnaw constantly to wear down their perpetually growing incisor teeth. They may chew on your property’s greenery, as well as on decks, outdoor furniture, and siding. They love to burrow, digging under porches, sheds, walkways, and woodpiles. Their tunneling can damage foundations, retaining walls, patios, and other structural elements, leading to expensive repairs.

Live trapping is the best way to handle animal removal and protect your property from woodchucks. Because of the animal’s persistence and potential to carry disease, the process is best left to professionals.

Muskrats

Muskrats are smaller, brown, furry rodents usually weighing around 2 ½  pounds. With stout 10-inch bodies, their long, scaly, and furless tails can double their total length. Like beavers, their tails are flattened, and their hind feet are partially webbed to help them thrive near water. Muskrats tunnel in and around ponds, streams, and marshes. Like groundhogs, they are primarily herbivores, preferring to feast on the stems and roots of aquatic plants.

Their tunneling efforts can cause embankments around water bodies to weaken, increasing the odds of flooding around your property. Muskrats are also attracted to gardens, where their foraging can quickly destroy plants and crops.  

Fencing is effective for keeping muskrats out of some areas, but trapping is the best method for preventing damage to your home. It’s crucial to work with trained animal removal professionals, as muskrats can be elusive and carry disease.

If you believe woodchucks, muskrats, or other pests are damaging your property, contact the trusted nuisance wildlife removal experts at American Bio-Tech Wildlife Services. Serving New Milford, CT, they bring more than 45 years of experience to trapping and relocating wildlife that can be hazardous to your home, health, and family. Call (860) 355-1231 to schedule an appointment, or visit them online to learn more about their services.