Chicken friendly racoon

[Krstybrght]

Almost everyday for the last month I’ve had a raccoon come out during the day and eat/drink the chicken food. I let my chickens and ducks free range so I keep the door to their coop open. The raccoon never bothers them. Is this normal?
I’m a new chicken/duck owner and early
On I had a raccoon kill 2 of my chickens during the night. But this was before the. lol was predator proof.

 

[Ms Clucky]

Some one may have raised the coon or it doesn't like chickens.

 

[bobbi-j]

Some one may have raised the coon or it doesn't like chickens.

Or it hasn't bothered with them yet because it has easily accessible food. That could come to an end at any time.

 

[Gray Farms]

Sounds like a habit that needs to stop.

 

[slordaz]

not a good idea to allow, besides diseases raccoons are not pets they are predators, they will start with eating the hens feed, eggs and eventually your chickens because you have become complacent having a predator that knows the ins and outs and his highly intelligent on how to get around things

 

[SchultzWoodworking]

Don’t let the coon fool you... it’s a full fledged predator for a reason...I’m guessing he’s just gathering ingredients for when chicken is on the menu!!!

 

[EggWalrus]

You need to kill the coon. It.WILL eventually start eating chickens. Even if it never did, you have no longer than till breeding season till it brings it's mate and kids back for chicken feed and I don't mean pellets.

 

[MROO]

Almost everyday for the last month I’ve had a raccoon come out during the day and eat/drink the chicken food. I let my chickens and ducks free range so I keep the door to their coop open. The raccoon never bothers them. Is this normal?
I’m a new chicken/duck owner and early
On I had a raccoon kill 2 of my chickens during the night. But this was before the. lol was predator proof.

No, this is not normal. It's late in the season and food is still plentiful, so the coon isn't hard-pressed for a meal. When resources become scarce (winter) and/or needs become greater (breeding/kit raising season in winter/spring) your visitor will already know where to find a ready meal ... and it won't be at your feed bin.
I HIGHLY recommend rethinking your feeding station. There has to be a way to raccoon proof it so your hungry neighbor learns to look elsewhere for a free meal. And unless you're willing to accept some losses, you may want to rethink the free-ranging, too. Winters can be awfully lean for wildlife, and you don't want to be providing free chicken take-out for the locals!

 

[Chickin Out]

This is a difficult situation but at least
so far no chickens were lost. The raccoon isn't eating your chickens because so far it's still has food that is palatable and readily available. But this situation can change or your luck can run out at any time. So I advise caution. I agree that you should probably rethink the free-ranging unless you are right there to watch them and especially now with the summer coming to an end. You may want to think about a run that encloses the coop. my educated guess is that this is a young mother raccoon who is desperate for food during the day because she is nursing. In my experience they are not aggressive if they don't have to be. I advised someone who adopted chickens from me. Similar situation. It was indeed a desperate mom as I suspected. She placed an alternative food Away from the coop and didn't allow chickens to be free unless supervised .No chickens were lost at the time or in the ensuing years.

 

[deek248]

A Dog Proof Coon Trap will be your chickens best friend.
It WILL eat them! It's just a matter of when NOT if.

https://www.wildlifecontrolsupplies.com/animal/WCSPCSFL.html