What is a Potgut? How can I get rid of them?

When I was a kid we went up to a cabin in Idaho to spend a few nights with cousins and family. When we got to the cabin I noticed a ton of rodents running everywhere.

A potgut is a small rodent or squirrel that lives in the mountains and area surrounding the Uintah Mountains. They are small rodents similar to a prairie dog but have a more gray color to them. They are also known as the Uintah Ground Squirrel.

When we got out and started playing my uncle told me they were potguts and were digging holes under the cabin and in the yard. He handed me a BB gun and said we could shoot as many of them as we could.

He also showed us some traps we could also use to catch them. I was so excited and spent a large chunk of time I had up there trying to shoot them and trap them.

How to Trap Potguts

When I was trying to trap pot guts as a kit we were not given super good traps. We made some live traps out of a large can and chicken wire doors that closed when a mouse trap was set off. They were not very effective.

It was fun for us kids but very disappointing when I didn’t catch any because they kept escaping.

Potguts are small enough animals that they can be trapped in rat traps. I think that would be the best way to trap them. If you need a rat trap to start trapping them here is a link to a victor rat trap on Amazon.

Bait For Potguts

Potguts are very attracted to fresh fruit. When we were trapping them I would fill the back of the can trap up with watermelon and the trap was set off usually in a very short amount of time.

As I said before the trap wasn’t too good because they always got out and I didn’t have enough time to up my tactics.

Potgut Hunting Utah

When we were shooting poguts with the BB gun as kids it was not a big enough gun. A good .22LR rifle or pistol would do the job quite nicely though.

Can you hunt them in Utah? Yes you can. They can be hunted and trapped as needed as a pest or for teaching how to hunt and trap or for any other reason.

Hunting and trapping potguts was probably one of the things that got me into trapping when I was young.

Hot to Get Rid of Potguts

Potgut vs Prairie Dog

Potguts and prairie dogs are very similar in many ways so it can be hard to tell them apart. After seeing potguts and prairie dogs I will explain how they are similar and how I tell the difference.

Similarities

• They both have tails that are one to two inches long
• They both dig burrows and eat and forage near them
• They both live in similar areas although the prairie dog is found in more areas than potguts.

Differences

• A potgut tail seems to be darker when I see them.
• A prairie dog tend to stand up on its hind legs more
• A potgut is grayer in color
• A prairie dog is more tan in color
• I tend to see more potguts in higher elevations and prairie dogs in lower sandy areas.

What Do Potguts Eat

Potguts are herbivores and will eat a lot of grass and other plants growing near their burrows. They also will eat about anything you plant in your garden.

Uintah Ground Squirrel Facts

The nickname the Uintah Ground Squirrel has earned is potgut. I have heard my dad call them that since I was a little kid and he grew up in Uintah county which is the same area they got their name from.

Ground squirrels were found early on in or near the Uintah Mountains that are located in the North-East part of Utah.

They can be found in Utah, Idaho, and Wyoming. I personally have seen them in many parts of Utah and Idaho.

Source: Wikipedia