Animal relocation.

[varidgerunner]

I'm glad I know someone that is a legal wildlife trapper. He has his own land that he recently purchased to turn into a sanctuary. I have not called him yet about my raccoon problem but I know he is part of he plan if needed.

Hope he has a million acres, because according to the studies they are going to travel for days after being released, so hopefully they will still be on his property while they slowly starve to death so they won't be a bother to anyone else. His spot might work out though, a lot of trappers stock their property with nuisance animals all summer and then whack them and stack them when the fur gets prime in winter. There could be some local population depression that would make food and den sites easier to find. A relocated raccoon is no different than a dumped dog or cat. It is lost.

 

[Folly's place]

I too have a relocation story, from years ago, when wildlife rehab people in Michigan were still raising raccoons.
Friends had a rural property, with barns and horses, and small children. One year they were finding unafraid raccoons in the barn, a very bad situation, especially with children involved. After eliminating a few, they contacted a neighbor who trapped, and over that winter he got OVER THIRTY raccoons in and around their barn!
They then found out that a rehabber lived up the road, and was releasing all these raccoons that she 'saved' in the neighborhood. After having a conversation with her, the problem stopped.
Our friends got to decontaminate their barn, removing a lot of raccoon poo, nothing anyone wants to have around either.
Mary

 

[BYCforlife]

Can you post a link to this regulation please... I’m not doubting you... I just want to be informed on the verbiage of such a law, and be informed about where such a law exists... thank you!

I think your question is fair in those circumstances or where laws prevent discharging a firearm inside city limits, etc. I’ve helped others in a similar situation who had critters causing problems with crawl spaces and bird feeders, in town where their options were limited.

https://www.pest-control-products.net/959/raccoons/does-the-law-allow-you-to-kill-raccoons/

 

[OhZark Biddies]

So it seems Toronto is a place where the animal is required to be euthanized by a vet... I would guess a licensed pest control business would also be able to help euthanize problem animals. Toronto being large enough that there should be some options.

 

[Jules929]

Ten years ago I was attending UCF in Orlando. I worked as a research assistant on the sea turtle research team. We had a significant spike in disturbed/damaged sea turtle nests. Turns out that a man was trapping raccoons and releasing them at the Sebastian Inlet State Park. I don't know whether he was charged or fined, but his relocating efforts were halted PDQ.

 

[Folly's place]

Happily, I live in Michigan, where regulations seem to make more sense, at least to me. And, I live in a rural area, not suburbia, so farm rules apply. Over the years, through bad experiences, we've learned to have a 'Ft. Knox' coop, so predator issues are much less. But, I do manage nuisance and dangerous critters effectively when necessary, and never relocate.
Having higher than average numbers of rabies positive critters around this year is inspirational too.
Mary

 

[bobbi-j]

Happily, I live in Michigan, where regulations seem to make more sense, at least to me. And, I live in a rural area, not suburbia, so farm rules apply. Over the years, through bad experiences, we've learned to have a 'Ft. Knox' coop, so predator issues are much less. But, I do manage nuisance and dangerous critters effectively when necessary, and never relocate.
Having higher than average numbers of rabies positive critters around this year is inspirational too.
Mary

That right there is a good reason not to relocate. Skunks are a major carrier here. They don't leave the yard alive if seen.

 

[Howard E]

Not sure what the intent of the OP was with this, but in general, I agree with the sentiment. No relocation.

So what is the alternative solution? Don't trap it in the first place. Build housing that is predator proof and that alone eliminate the need to trap or kill them. So a house that once the door closes at night, birds are safe from all comers until dawn the next day. Then if allowed out, protect them by day within a yard established by a protective fence, the best of those being the E kind. That is what I do and I've never lost a bird to a predator, and I don't trap and kill them either. Nor do I shoot dogs. The E fence deals with all that for me.

If there is a need for trapping, it is to eliminate a short term problem animal until a long term solution (exclusion) can be put into place. But if you do elect to you trap it, you kill it. No exceptions.

 

[Dona Worry]

Relocation is harmful for everyone except, perhaps, the clueless idiot who does it.
If I need to get rid of a problem animal, it will simply be shot. A quick and easy death rather than a slow painful one via relocation.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

... But if you do elect to you trap it, you kill it. No exceptions..

Relocation is harmful for everyone except, perhaps, the clueless idiot who does it.

The title of this thread is "animal relocation", and though I realize that most who have participated are focused on raccoons, there are animals that can be relocated without issue, and I will point out that I relocate some animals from time to time when I see fit, and I can assure everyone I'm far from "clueless" on the issue.

I'm all for educating others about the issues created when relocating nuisance wildlife, and I agree with the idea of building a run a coop that prevents depredation, but there are exceptions to the "never relocate" mantra. And I don't see the value in using inflammatory language like "clueless idiot" in any discussion

So with that in mind, I will say that my coop and run are built with the local predators in mind, electric fencing is not an option currently because there is no electric to my out building. I do not let my chickens range at this point, because I know I would have losses if i did....but this is the reality of keeping chickens where I live, and I recognize others have different issues and options where they live.

But even with these measures in place, I still trap critters to reduce the population and minimize the chances of loss, because I am surrounded by farmland and wilderness. I do some of this in accordance with state nuisance wildlife regulations, and much of this in accordance with the fall fur bearer trapping seasons and regulations. As a trapper I have always released "incidental" or "non target" catches. This is standard practice among trappers. Often relocating the animal a short distance will prevent it from ending up right back in the trap and getting in the way of catching the target animal.

Like wise I have caught non target animals around the chicken coop, and have relocated them to a different part of the property as needed in order to prevent them from getting in the trap again the next day. A bit of common sense goes a long way in determining when this appropriate and when it is not... but obviously releasing animals that show signs of disease should be avoided.

I've caught and relocated protected species such as birds of prey, as well as desirable animals such as large black rat snakes as well, and I see no issues with doing so, and would hope that others would use a bit of common sense in these cases and see them as exceptions.

While I agree that building a critter proof coop and run should be more of a priority than many folks make it, and that relocating (raccoons in particular) should be avoided in many/most cases, I don't agree with this idea that there are no exceptions to releasing and/or relocating animals, and I do not agree with the idea of using aggressive language in a friendly discussion to talk about the issue.

I would encourage everyone to realize that the person who keeps chickens in Tuscon, AZ is going to have different issues, regulations, and real world challenges concerning predators than the person in Maine, or the person in Iowa, or the person in Hawaii... or even the person that lives just down the road, out side of Tuscon in a more rural setting... and these differences in locations can help inform us all, if we open our minds and realize that not everyone keeping chickens has the same issues and options that we ourselves might have.