Woodchucks - Groundhogs

Discussion in 'Pets & Critters' started by Ken Anderson, Nov 15, 2016.

  1. Ken Anderson

    Ken Anderson Senior Staff
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    We called them woodchucks in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where I grew up, but you may know them as groundhogs. In fact, while I had heard of groundhogs, as in "Groundhog Day," I wasn't aware until sometime later that they were the same animal.

    Related to ground squirrels, woodchucks are also known as chucks, wood-shocks, groundpigs, whistlepigs, whistlers, thickwood badgers, Canada marmots, and red monks. The Indian name was monax, which means "the digger."

    One of the things that my dad did for a living was logging. Apart from several 40-acre plots of land that he farmed, he also owned some woodland, and had permission to harvest trees on some land that he didn't own, I think.

    He spent a lot of time in the woods. Other people would set animal traps in the woods. I don't think dad liked trapping very much because any animal that stepped into the trap would be caught so a lot of animals would be harmed or killed that weren't even the desired catch.

    I spoke in another post about the fox we raised. Its mom had been caught in a trap, leaving four orphaned pups. We raised one, and I don't know who took the other three or what might have happened to them. We also raised a couple of raccoons whose mothers were caught in traps, I think.

    We even raised a skunk who spent her whole life in the vicinity of our yard, yet never sprayed our dogs, although they would tease it, or took any of our chickens, as far as I am aware. She was fully intact, as she did let go a few times on the other side of the barn, probably when she felt endangered by some other animal, but never near the house. She raised a family in a hole in our side yard. As a kit, she would let us pick her up but was never as friendly as a cat might be and, as an adult, she would take food from our hands, but that was about as far as it went. When we tried to get closer, her tail would go up in the air and that was enough for us to get the idea to back off.

    We tried raising a couple of wild rabbits, but they didn't survive.

    One day, dad came home with a baby woodchuck. We built a cage for that woodchuck to keep her in until she was big and healthy enough to be set free. As kids, of course, we tried to make a pet out of everything we had. Although we raised that woodchuck to adulthood, she wanted nothing to do with being a pet.

    Although she would take food from our hands, there was always the threat that she would take our hands as well. I wouldn't go near her without wearing thick protective gloves because she bit hard. Yeah, I know. I have seen people holding groundhogs on Groundhog Day, but we didn't have that kind of success. Once she was old enough, she was gone. No goodbyes, no regrets, and no second thoughts.

    woodchuck.jpg
     
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    Last edited: Nov 15, 2016
  2. Chrissy Cross

    Chrissy Cross Supreme Member
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    I didn't realize they were the same thing til you just posted it. Was always familiar with the groundhog growing up in PA. But the only woodchuck I knew was the tongue twister one.

    How much wood could a woodchuck chuck....

    When I was little living in Pittsburgh we had a wild rabbit for awhile my grandmother caught for us...it was with us for quite awhile. We also had a few chipmunks as pets every so often.

    It was in this time period we had the colored chicks every Easter also.
     
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  3. Frank Sanoica

    Frank Sanoica Supreme Member
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    @Ken Anderson
    Touching story, and we appreciate that, Ken. I suspect the groundhogs held in arms for display purposes are somehow groomed to accept. Perhaps Xanax.
    Frank
     
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