Armadillo in a cage trap.


Go back to the main photograph page or the home page.

Catching An Armadillo - Since my work falls in the service-providing category, I always have to make myself available on the phone no matter where I am and what I am doing. There have even been situations where customers caught me while I was on the roof trying to set traps for rats or even when I am sleeping. I always pick up in the hope that it might be work-related. There are, however, times when I regret picking up my phone because it is someone or the other wanting a short tutorial on how to trap a certain animal. Just like the other day, I had a really crazy asking me how to trap an armadillo.

Come to think of it, if trapping animals like armadillos was so easy, I would not have been making a living out of it, would I? It took years of training and experience for me to reach the stage where I can finally call myself an expert at it and you want me to explain the entire process in 5 minutes? My only reply to such people is to hire a professional who knows and deals with trapping an armadillo.

What I usually do is to set a large-size cage trap on the armadillo’s trail, usually close to the burrow. I wish I could explain in simple words how to do it. When using the armadillo trap, I do not use any bait because these animals make burrows for their own meals and will not eat anything you offer. Setting up barriers around the trap can help direct the armadillo right into the cage trap. It is a painstaking process as I have to check each morning if the armadillo walked into the trap or not.

Once I catch one, I usually either release them into the wilderness or take them to the wildlife preservation people who would know better what to do with it.