darn raccoons

[BarredRockMom]

If they're not in chicken proximity, I have no problem with them. But you can't "train" them to be anything other than lethal toward a chicken.

 

[Howard E]

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Well apparently I'm a drama queen this week. My 6th girl was in the tree in my front yard, but I still hate those raccoons and my friend at work said her son would LOVE to trap and kill them. Side-note, I have 5 chickens hanging out in my bathroom today........

Good news on finding all birds safe. Out of curiosity and to clarify, can you post some pictures of your coop setup? Is it tight enough to deter attacks if the birds are inside and locked up? If not, perhaps some informed eyes on the forum may be able to help you get it there....and get the birds moved to a safe spot out of your house.

Also, I assume when the coons showed up your birds were running around unsupervised in the yard? Do you have any perimeter protection to keep coons and other predators safely at a distance? If not, you may want to consider adding some, or else keep the birds locked up unless you are there to keep an eye on things.

 

[RonP]

Unfortunately I believe you will usually find out you have a problem with raccoons, or any other predator, AFTER you have suffered a loss.

You must realize trapping and killing only leaves an opportunity for another to take the unoccupied territory. Doing so, your battle and losses will never end, not to mention interrupted sleepless nights…

Best advice I could offer you is to reinforce your defenses unless you are fully prepared to suffer the consequences, as many seem willing…

Personally, I gave up the battle. Although they keep irritating, I am very confident my coop and run is impenetrable by raccoons, and do not give it any attention nor mind.

If you question your security, it probably is not secure.

 

[itsasmallfarm]

not sure where you live as the coons here are held up for the winter (might see one on a nice day) but i would trap and kill them. (and i go the extra step of selling the hide), depending where you live will really affect the method i would use. if your urban then i would go with a cage style trap (just in case of cats or dogs) if your like me and live in a rural area, i would go with the duke dog proof coon trap (or any dog proof coon trap for that matter)

we have cats so i baited mine with marshmallows and seeds (caught 2 in a cage trap this year and my grandpa shot one up a tree all in spring, bad news is the hide was worth crap then)