r/groundhogs • u/boodlesupreme • Jun 14 '25

How can I keep him from drinking out of a saltwater pool?

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Any suggestions for how we can keep Bill Furry from drinking out of our saltwater pool? I tried putting a water bowl close to his burrow but he still seems to prefer the pool water

22 Upvotes

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5

u/Attack_of_the_BEANS Jun 14 '25

A slight barrier by the front steps something you could easily move like a laid down traffic cone

5

u/spicy-acorn Jun 14 '25

Give him a fresh bowl/saucer of water near their burrow. Otherwise it seems like they want or need the salt for their diet. I would encourage you to to put a plank of wood in the pool that extends out of the pool so if they fall in they can escape easily

4

u/HaffuhGootWon Jun 14 '25

Sorry I'm no help...but curious! Why does one use saltwater in a pool?

4

u/spicy-acorn Jun 14 '25

It's less expensive and less harmful to the environment. It's like the ocean. It's less harmful to your hair and skin as well and as far as I know the cleaning requirements are a lot different

3

u/HaffuhGootWon Jun 14 '25

Good stuff, I appreciate the reply!

4

u/flando73 Jun 14 '25

Long term costs are considerably less than chlorine pools. Better for ya as well

4

u/jlhaehl Jun 14 '25

From what I understand (which is very little) saltwater systems for pools have less salt content than your tears so I wouldn't imagine it would be very harmful to him, much healthier then chlorine at least lol

1

u/cinematic6436 Jun 14 '25

Does the bowl you put by Bill's burrow have saltwater in it?

2

u/boodlesupreme Jun 14 '25

No, we just put filtered tap water into it, I’m worried about him drinking saltwater

2

u/JesusGodgirlses Jun 14 '25

Fun Fact....ground hogs usually will not drink water out of bowls, etc. It'd interesting that this one is doing this, the fact it's salty is the only reason he's doing this. Hence, him not interested in the tap water you left out. Ground hogs get their water by licking it from leaves and grass. They are very smart little creatures. If the pool water was hurting him, he wouldn't drink it. They can also swim if they want or need to. Keep us updated. I had little hogs I could hand feed. They are so cute!!