ethics of prevantative predator killing

There's a reason it's 3 S's, and not just 2

Shoot
Shovel
Shut up

There's a very good chance what you did could be considered "illegal" since the coon wasn't in the act of attacking your birds, unless of course it's coon season and you followed all the hunting regulations.

 

Quote: this is very good advise! i never got to see the original post but ive got a good idea what it was.

 

Quote:fixed it for ya LOL

A lota times trapping regs are a bit more liberal then hunting regs they are here in Va I can use a gun on sunday for trapped animals here, I can not go hunting though on sundays

 

There's one lady on here who's husband is a game warden (Which is right above toll taker in the rank structure chart) and threatens to turn people in! 3 S's baby.....

 

I didn't even know there was a coon season... shows how little I know. I don't hunt. Haven't fished in years. I don't like guns. Know how to shoot one, just don't like it at all. But I know how to shoot if i needed to protect my livestock.

 

I didn't even know there was a coon season

Many states have a hunting season AND a trapping season for them.

Generally speakiing ALL wildlife falls under some type of regulation, and again, generally speaking, you can't LEGALLY just kill them anytime you see them on your property.​

 

Since the OP removed the original post (makes this topic almost useless ) I can only gather by inference what the gist was. While I couldn't find anything specific for raccoons I did find this in the Oregon statutes:

609.150 Right to kill dog that harms or chases livestock. (1) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, any dog, whether licensed or not, which, while off the premises owned or under control of its owner, kills, wounds, or injures any livestock not belonging to the master of such dog, is a public nuisance and may be killed immediately by any person. However, nothing in this section applies to any dog acting under the direction of its master, or the agents or employees of such master.

(2) If any dog, not under the control of its owner or keeper, is found chasing or feeding upon the warm carcass of livestock not the property of such owner or keeper it shall be deemed, prima facie, as engaged in killing, wounding or injuring livestock.

(3) No person shall kill any dog for killing, wounding, injuring or chasing chickens upon a public place, highway or within the corporate limits of any city. [Amended by 1975 c.749 §6]

http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/609.html

Since raccoons are not an endangered species in Oregon I would assume you can protect your flock.

Another possibility, you could always suspect that any mammalian predator is rabid. Apparently, shooting rabid animals is an approved activity in Oregon. ​

 

I had a racoon problem and after some checking was given the green light to shoot on sight, they are considered pest animals, some areas do have regulation on discharge of a firearm, so they said if regulation prevented that to use water and a garbage can to submerge the trap in.

I also just found out if a dog just chases poultry on your property you can destroy the dog.

 

It is not possible to rid the world of predators, it is possible to make reasonable levels of defense against them however. In our area we have raccoons, opossums, cats and many dogs. We have yet to lose a bird to a predator because of protections we have in place.

That said, if I did find a raccoon attempting to kill or in the act of killing our chickens, it would die and be buried, following the letter of the law in my city.