There is a capsaicin-based hot sauce repellent (Miller's Hot Sauce) that is registered to protect plastic tubing from porcupines. Another repellent, Thiram, which is registered for squirrels and rabbits, may also repel porcupines. Thiram is sprayed or painted on plants to prevent damage. Exterior plywood painted with wood preservative will sometimes deter porcupines from gnawing.
Porcupines are considered non-game animals and are not protected. However, this unassuming and mild mannered creature should be controlled by other non-lethal methods before resorting to shooting. Lethal control should be limited to individual animals causing the damage.
Porcupines do not carry any communicable diseases that are of concern to humans or domestic livestock.
Porcupines are easy to live trap in commercial wire cage traps, which are readily available at feed, hardware and garden supply stores. The best bait is strips of plywood or other absorbent woods, cloths, or sponges soaked in salt water. Also effective are No. 2 or 3 steel leg hold traps or No. 220 or 330 Conibear body gripping traps when baited with the salted objects.
Porcupines are preyed upon by coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, black bears, fishers, martens, great horned owls and others. One of the best porcupine management tools would be to encourage natural predators.
