The most effective way to catch an armadillo is with a live cage trap placed directly along its travel path, using wooden guide boards to funnel it inside. Bait is surprisingly unhelpful. Armadillos are creatures of habit that follow the same routes night after night, so your success depends almost entirely on trap placement rather than luring them in.
Why Bait Doesn’t Work
Armadillos have poor eyesight and rely almost entirely on their sense of smell to find insects and grubs underground. They root through soil with their noses down, following whatever trail of bugs they happen to encounter. This makes them nearly impossible to attract with bait the way you’d lure a raccoon or opossum into a trap. Research from the University of Georgia Cooperative Extension found that an unbaited trap with guide wings placed near an active burrow is the most effective method for capturing a nuisance armadillo. The animal simply walks into the trap because it’s in the way of its nightly route.
Choosing the Right Trap
You need a cage trap large enough that the armadillo doesn’t feel squeezed going in. The minimum recommended size is 10 inches wide by 10 inches tall by 36 inches long. Wire cage traps in the 10-by-12-by-32-inch range also work. Wooden box traps tend to perform better than wire ones, possibly because the solid walls feel more like a natural tunnel. Either type should have a sensitive trigger plate, since armadillos aren’t heavy animals and may not trip a stiff mechanism.
Building Guide Wings
Guide wings are the single most important addition to your setup. These are boards attached to the open end of the trap in a V shape, creating a funnel that channels the armadillo toward the entrance. Without them, the animal will simply walk around the trap.
Use two pressure-treated boards, each about 2 inches by 6 inches and 6 feet long. Attach the narrow ends at the trap’s opening so they angle outward, forming a wide funnel. The boards should sit flat on the ground or be staked in place so the armadillo can’t push underneath. You can also use existing structures as natural guides: a patio wall, the edge of a building, a fence line, or a fallen tree. Position the trap so the animal’s path is narrowed toward the entrance with no easy way around.
Where to Place the Trap
Look for fresh signs of armadillo activity. The most obvious clues are small, cone-shaped holes in your lawn (3 to 4 inches deep), overturned mulch, and damaged flower beds. If you can find the burrow itself, that’s your best spot. Place the trap directly in front of the burrow entrance with the guide wings fanning out on either side. The armadillo has to leave the burrow to feed, since they don’t store food and can’t go more than a few days without eating. When it emerges, the wings direct it straight into the trap.
If you can’t find the burrow, set the trap along a path the armadillo uses repeatedly. Edges of buildings, fence lines, and borders between landscaped beds and open lawn are common travel routes. Armadillos tend to follow linear features in the landscape. Place the trap flush against these barriers so the animal encounters it naturally during its nightly foraging.
Timing and Checking the Trap
Armadillos are mostly active at night, particularly in warmer months. Set the trap in the late afternoon and check it first thing in the morning. In hot climates, a trapped armadillo exposed to direct sun can overheat quickly, so position the trap in a shaded area or cover the top with a board or tarp. Check the trap daily without exception.
It may take several nights to catch the armadillo, especially if your guide wings aren’t positioned well or the trap isn’t on an active path. If nothing happens after three or four nights, move the setup to a different location with fresher signs of digging.
Handling a Trapped Armadillo
Do not handle the armadillo with bare hands. Nine-banded armadillos can carry the bacteria that causes Hansen’s disease (leprosy). The overall risk of transmission to humans is low, but direct contact is the main concern. Wear thick gloves if you need to move the cage, and avoid touching the animal itself. Transport the entire cage by lifting it from the ends or using the handle.
Keep the cage covered with a towel or cloth during transport. This calms the animal and reduces the chance of it thrashing around and injuring itself.
What to Do After the Catch
Your options after trapping depend on where you live, and this is where things get complicated. Many states allow property owners to trap armadillos causing damage without a permit, but the rules about what happens next vary significantly. Some states prohibit relocating wildlife entirely because moving animals spreads disease to new areas. Missouri, for example, does not recommend relocation and requires you to report the take within 24 hours. Other states may allow release on private land with the landowner’s permission.
Before you set the trap, check your state wildlife agency’s website or call them directly. You need to know whether you need a permit, whether relocation is legal, and what disposal methods are considered humane in your jurisdiction. Local city and county ordinances may add further restrictions, particularly on trap types and firearm use in residential areas. Getting this sorted out beforehand saves you from being stuck with a trapped armadillo and no legal way to deal with it.
Preventing Armadillos From Coming Back
Trapping removes the individual animal, but if your yard is attractive habitat, another armadillo may move in. Two changes make the biggest difference. First, remove ground cover like brush piles, dense low shrubs, and debris near areas with digging damage. Armadillos prefer to burrow in spots with overhead cover, and clearing it makes your yard feel exposed and unsafe to them.
Second, consider exclusion fencing around gardens or high-value landscaping. The fence needs to be at least 3 feet high and buried 12 to 18 inches deep, since armadillos are strong diggers. In sandy soil, go deeper. One detail people overlook: armadillos can jump 3 to 4 feet vertically when startled, so a short decorative fence won’t cut it. The buried portion is what really matters, though, because their instinct is to dig under rather than climb over.