How Much Damage Can One Gopher Do?

Homeowners sometimes hesitate to call for professional gopher control when they only see a few mounds, assuming the problem is minor. The reality is that a single gopher is capable of causing significant damage in a short period — damage that routinely costs more to repair than the gopher control service that would have prevented it.

Tunnel Coverage: More Than You Think

A single Botta's pocket gopher — the species responsible for virtually all residential gopher damage in Southern California — maintains a tunnel system that can extend 200 or more linear feet in total length. This system includes a main tunnel corridor, side branches for feeding and waste, and a deeper nesting chamber. The animal spends most of its life moving through and expanding this system, pushing soil to the surface at multiple exit points. All of this tunnel construction happens in your soil, under your lawn, within your root systems, and in some cases under your irrigation infrastructure.

Plant Damage: From Annuals to Mature Trees

Gophers feed by pulling plant material down from below, consuming roots, bulbs, tubers, and any underground plant material they encounter. A single gopher feeding actively over a season can destroy annual and perennial plantings across a significant section of garden, kill established shrubs by severing their root systems, and damage or kill fruit trees and ornamental trees by feeding on their roots. In mature landscape settings — properties with heritage roses, established citrus, specimen ornamental trees — the damage from a single gopher left untreated for a season can represent tens of thousands of dollars in irreplaceable plants.

Irrigation Damage: The Hidden Cost

Beyond plants, a single gopher commonly severs multiple drip lines as it expands its tunnel system, causing pressure loss across entire irrigation zones and leaving plantings without water. Drip line repairs, riser replacements, and pipe repairs add up quickly. On larger properties, a single season of uncontrolled gopher activity routinely results in irrigation repair bills that exceed the cost of professional gopher control several times over.

Structural Damage on Hillside Properties

On hillside properties with slope plantings and retaining walls, gopher tunnel systems in slope soil can affect drainage patterns, undermine retaining wall footings, and contribute to soil instability that makes slope maintenance more difficult. This type of damage is difficult to quantify but can be significant on properties with engineered slope systems.

The Math of Early Treatment

Professional residential gopher control from Rodent Guys starts at $60 and runs to approximately $300 for larger properties, including all follow-up visits within the 60-day guarantee. The average drip line repair call costs $75-150. A single killed fruit tree that needs replacement costs hundreds to thousands of dollars depending on the specimen. A single slope repair job costs far more. A gopher left untreated for a season causes damage that typically costs several to many times the price of control. The math always favors early treatment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it worth calling for just one or two mounds?

Yes. One or two fresh mounds means one active gopher that has recently arrived. This is the easiest and least expensive time to resolve the problem. Waiting until you have a dozen mounds means a more established infestation that takes longer and more visits to clear.

How long does it take for one gopher to do serious damage?

Irrigation damage can happen within days of a gopher arriving in a drip-irrigated area. Plant damage accumulates over weeks. Tree damage can develop over months before it becomes visible above ground.

What is included in your service?

Treatment, all follow-up visits, and a 60-day guarantee. If activity returns within the guarantee period, we return at no additional cost.

Call 909-599-4711 — the cost of early treatment is always less than the cost of the damage a gopher will cause if left untreated.