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Pat Sullivan controls chipmunks and voles

Many people tolerate chipmunks on their property, but they can become a problem and need to be addressed.

INDIANAPOLIS — A few weeks ago, Pat Sullivan from Sullivan Hardware and Garden shared on 13Sunrise his DIY advice on how to rid your yard of moles. A generally universal disdain for the burrowing rodents guarantees Sullivan's advice is always well-received by homeowners.

But an equally destructive pest -- the chipmunk -- is somehow more tolerated by the same domestic demographic.

For this, Sullivan blames Disney. "Chip and Dale," he said. "They're adorable."

But they can do plenty of damage to a house and yard.

"They pull pea gravel out and get underneath sidewalks, and, eventually, that can cause the sidewalk to fail," Sullivan said. They also eat flower bulbs.

If they over-populate your homestead, you need to address them.

Small traps for mice and other rodents, baited with sunflower seeds and peanut butter, will also effectively catch chipmunks. 

Larger cage traps that drop doors on either end will catch the chipmunk alive and allow for humane rehoming. "If you live on the inside of 465, take them to the outside," Sullivan joked. "They'll never get across all those lanes of traffic."

Rehoming a chipmunk, however, greatly reduces its chances of survival, so you may just want to use a repellent to try to keep them away from your property.

Voles

"A vole looks like a mouse," said Sullivan, "but (with) a lot shorter tail." 

They feed off vegetation, so the roots of young trees and new plantings are targets. 

A rodent trap set at a right angle to their trails will usually take care of voles.

Watch Sullivan's full 13Sunrise segment in the video player.

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