Raccoons eating my corn-where are you experts

[Artichoke Lover]

For a disease with such high mortality that could possibly jump out from under my deck and bite me or mine I am cool\down\have support with any effort. I have killed 5 over the last 20 or so years. Only one was a Opossum the rest were raccoon. The Opossum was dripping and coming at me. One raccoon wanted me, but the rest were wobbly at the feeding station where we keep fresh water, so they could have had something else. I get my hazmat gear and bury it in a deep hole at the edge of the property.

We’ve had a rabid possum before. Luckily no raccoons yet but we’re reducing the population to try to lower the risk. If I continue to do foster cats I’m going to see if I can convince my doc to let me get the rabies vaccine.

 

[catjac1975]

For a disease with such high mortality that could possibly jump out from under my deck and bite me or mine I am cool\down\have support with any effort. I have killed 5 over the last 20 or so years. Only one was a Opossum the rest were raccoon. The Opossum was dripping and coming at me. One raccoon wanted me, but the rest were wobbly at the feeding station where we keep fresh water, so they could have had something else. I get my hazmat gear and bury it in a deep hole at the edge of the property.

Wow.....

 

[Dirtmechanic]

We’ve had a rabid possum before. Luckily no raccoons yet but we’re reducing the population to try to lower the risk. If I continue to do foster cats I’m going to see if I can convince my doc to let me get the rabies vaccine.

Its fatal if you get a wound and blow it off until too late.

 

[Artichoke Lover]

Its fatal if you get a wound and blow it off until too late.

I’m well aware. Luckily, I’ve had one bite from an unvaccinated animal and in all cases the animal could be monitored. I’ve gone to doc for every bite just because of the high risk a infection rabies being a concern or not. The vaccine just offers an extra layer of protection and you still need a booster dose if you’ve been bit.

 

[flowerbug]

We’ve had a rabid possum before. Luckily no raccoons yet but we’re reducing the population to try to lower the risk. If I continue to do foster cats I’m going to see if I can convince my doc to let me get the rabies vaccine.

if you have habitat that supports raccoons then it is very difficult to reduce the population in any meaningful way, they reproduce at a higher rate when there is available habitat and thus more food. all our attempts here to trap them out have been pure wastes of time and energy.

 

[Ridgerunner]

If your goal is to "trap them out" I agree that is extremely difficult, basically impossible. If there is one there will be more. Artichoke Lover's stated goal is reduce the risk. That was also my goal when I was in Arkansas and trapping and eliminating a dozen or more raccoons a year. Not exterminating them but reducing their damage.

When I trapped and eliminated the one that was eating my blackberries just as they were getting ripe I started getting ripe blackberries. @catjac1975 the same thing happened when I one got the one that was getting into my corn. I stopped finding chewed up apples when I got that one. It took more effort when I tried to use an Adirondack mouse trap, I had to get some possum as well as raccoons to stop them getting the bait and bashing the trap. I did get to the point I could play with that mouse trap but I switched to other mouse traps because I knew another raccoon or possum would eventually show up. When I removed several skunks in the area my dogs were sprayed a lot less often. I think one dog having a learning curve may have helped her but the other one didn't seem to be able to learn that lesson.

Those were all after specific targets. I also believe that if you can thin out the ones hunting your land you can reduce the numbers that are hunting your land so you will lose less to them. That's not a long term or permanent solution, others will show up. If not immediately then when their Mommy weans them and they go off looking for their own territory to hunt. To me the only long term solution to raccoons or other such "predators" are suitable and well maintained barriers. You may be able to enclose a small chicken coop and run well enough to keep raccoons out but for something like most of our gardens and larger chicken runs that just about has to involve electricity.

I do not feel that my attempts to trap them and reduce the numbers that were hunting my land (and targeting certain ones) was a waste of time and energy, but I agree that trying to trap them out to totally and forever eliminate them is an unrealistic goal.

 

[flowerbug]

the miscreants bothering our tomatoes have stopped. i didn't do anything about them other than pick up the parts of tomatoes they had eaten and left behind.

in the past we've had destructive raccoons and other's we've not even noticed getting into anything at all. when i was trapping them a lot it seemed like the fights for the new territory were nightly until things settled down again.

the most annoying raccoons were some young ones that were climbing our screen doors - that wasn't a sound i wanted to ever hear in the night.

 

[catjac1975]

If your goal is to "trap them out" I agree that is extremely difficult, basically impossible. If there is one there will be more. Artichoke Lover's stated goal is reduce the risk. That was also my goal when I was in Arkansas and trapping and eliminating a dozen or more raccoons a year. Not exterminating them but reducing their damage.

When I trapped and eliminated the one that was eating my blackberries just as they were getting ripe I started getting ripe blackberries. @catjac1975 the same thing happened when I one got the one that was getting into my corn. I stopped finding chewed up apples when I got that one. It took more effort when I tried to use an Adirondack mouse trap, I had to get some possum as well as raccoons to stop them getting the bait and bashing the trap. I did get to the point I could play with that mouse trap but I switched to other mouse traps because I knew another raccoon or possum would eventually show up. When I removed several skunks in the area my dogs were sprayed a lot less often. I think one dog having a learning curve may have helped her but the other one didn't seem to be able to learn that lesson.

Those were all after specific targets. I also believe that if you can thin out the ones hunting your land you can reduce the numbers that are hunting your land so you will lose less to them. That's not a long term or permanent solution, others will show up. If not immediately then when their Mommy weans them and they go off looking for their own territory to hunt. To me the only long term solution to raccoons or other such "predators" are suitable and well maintained barriers. You may be able to enclose a small chicken coop and run well enough to keep raccoons out but for something like most of our gardens and larger chicken runs that just about has to involve electricity.

I do not feel that my attempts to trap them and reduce the numbers that were hunting my land (and targeting certain ones) was a waste of time and energy, but I agree that trying to trap them out to totally and forever eliminate them is an unrealistic goal.

I certainly would not want to eliminate all of any species. I guess my hope is the same as yours. We got one of the dumber raccoons. But the nightly assault on the corn persists. We had corn thieving every year, but this year they are getting the best of us. Just want to reduce the population. I bought a sonic repellant and a couple repellers that look like coyote eyes. I already feel the fool and falling for these gadgets, but I will see if all of the good reviews are truth or not. When I saw the raccoon video of the animal avoiding the trap I knew they were just too smart. I will let you know it I wasted my money.

 

[baymule]

Big barky dogs with free run of the property does the trick. I don't mean free to go all over the neighborhood, but fenced in on your property and able to run around the garden. This is day 4 at the farm, so no garden, barely got a fence up on pasture for sheep and Anatolian dogs, will work on yard fence today for Carson, big black Great Dane/Labrador cross. It may take a couple years to get this place completely fenced in, like we had in Lindale, but a good fence and big barky dogs keeps predators of all sorts, OUT.

 

[seedcorn]

Big barky dogs with free run of the property does the trick. I don't mean free to go all over the neighborhood, but fenced in on your property and able to run around the garden. This is day 4 at the farm, so no garden, barely got a fence up on pasture for sheep and Anatolian dogs, will work on yard fence today for Carson, big black Great Dane/Labrador cross. It may take a couple years to get this place completely fenced in, like we had in Lindale, but a good fence and big barky dogs keeps predators of all sorts, OUT.

Except 2 legged ones......