Crafty Coons

[darin367]

I've had coons testing the fortress for over a 5 months.. They've torn the tarp, tried a bit of going under the wire, scratched at doors etc.. I know there coons because the wife went out 1 night and there were 10 of them or so surrounding the coop..Also in the last 15 years we've had 4 or 5 cats disapear, i've always suspected coons, but now i'm almost convinced...... I got a live trap.. So far i've caught 5 possums and finally 1 coon..... But the amount of baight i've went thru is crazy.. i tried tuna fish-only caught possums.... went to some old hering in the freezer and it would vanish, even wired it in the cage, they would still get it without setting off the live trap.... went to marshmellows, after 3/4 of a bag i finally got a coon-about a week ago... now i'm back to losing 6-8 marsmellows a day.... it amazes me that they can steal that much bait without stepping on the paddle to set the trap off....... i was also amazed how vicious the one coon i caught was...

 

[Ukiah]

Oh man, I know what you mean

We've owned chickens for about 5-6 years, and just

had our first coon problem about 3 months ago. He was getting into the cage somehow,
and eating our birds right there. VERY high quality birds to. Some mornings we'd walk out

and there would be only sertain body parts laying around the cage. Well, we secured the
fence more and set a live trap.. after weeks and weeks of using tuna and being robbed,
we FINALLY caught him. A vicious little thing, to! After that our problem stopped. A friend
of our's catches alot of coons using honey buns. Says it works best. We mixed cat food
& tuna together in the can, and also canned cat food. Hope you catch your coons, it was
hecktic with ONE coon, I can only imagine how it'd be with 10-15 of them!

 

[ivan3]

Some ideas on how to keep more marshmallows on hand for hot chocolate: https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=232969

 

[kari_dawn]

tried wiring raw chicken to the trap (rope a thigh/leg to the back end)? Also, using a draw string sack with inards in it hanging from the top (tied securely, they are going to eat through it, so maybe a piece of scrap cloth) You have to cover the baited end with solid walls to convince them to go in, but if they want chicken, let them eat chicken! Also, depending on what kind of live trap you have, you can try setting it to a lighter trigger.

 

[BSCHULZ]

I have caught 21 Coons in 2 months, using dry dog food.

Traps have been set for about a week with no more action. I think I got them all.

If the traps are not tripping there is something wrong.

Try tripping the trap with your fingers.

 

[littleoak]

Dry dog food works really well. Are you using a live trap with only one end open? Some people open both ends and that allows the coon to run out before it shuts. Another good bait is a can of sardines slightly open and attached to the wire floor of the trap. The coon gets really frustrated and forgets to be careful. Also best to end the trapped coon if possible.

 

[darin367]

think i'll try walling the sides n top with plywood.... it's just a 1 ended trap...... the trap sets off just fine, just touch the paddle and it snaps shut... these guys are crafty.....and yes after trapping them, they go to the great hunting ground in the sky......

 

[Black Cochin Bantams]

I have used dry cat food because it is something that works. I have baited my live trap with that and they reached throught the sides and got it out and set off the trap. I wired a piece of scrap wood to side and caught them after that. Good Luck. I never did catch a cat with cat food only coons.

 

[Katydid2011]

We have hot wire lines running along the bottom and top of our run and pasture fences and that seems to effectively deter predators. We saw evidence of digging around the bottom of the fence, too far back from the hot wire to get the critter inside, but we set a trap anyway and caught a raccoon using dog food as bait. Our problem was what to do with it after we trapped it. We ended up driving to a forested area away from people and setting it free there.

 

[Mattemma]

I have been tossing old apples or carrots in my live trap.15 coons and 11 or 12 possums since July.Keep trying!