Raccoon abilities

[Babe77]

This may sound strange, but can and do raccoons turn exterior household door knobs/

We just moved our chicks tonight to the coop and I never thought about it until just now. The knob on the coop is an old one that we replaced last year from our house. It does have a keyed lock on it but we would not need to lock it for human predators. What abut raccoons?

 

[Violet22]

On a duck board, there was an incident where a raccoon opened the back door and killed the lady's house duck in the kitchen.

. So, yes they can turn a knob!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Raccoons can do just about anything. I suggest you put a hasp and lock on your coop as extra precaution

 

[patandchickens]

People who keep them as pets can tell you, they sometimes do succeed in turning doorknobs. Heck, *cats* can sometimes turn doorknobs, yes even the normal knob-type ones.

The most secure thing is a latch with a padlock through the hasp, key hung nearby to be handy. Alternatively a coupla latches with double-ended snaps through each of them will *probably* be ok, as it would take a very *organized* raccoon to undo all that; or some people have rigged something where two springloaded latches have to be pulled *simultaneously*, too far apart for a raccoon to reach both at once.

Good luck, have fun, good that you're thinking about predatorproofing,

Pat

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

i read somewhere that a raccoon can even open a bottle of wine. So i lock up my wine bottle openers at night, just to be safe.

 

[verlaj]

I say use a combination lock and don't tell them the combination. We had to do that with a poodle I owned once.

 

[CityChook]

Quote:
awesome

 

[mightieskeeper]

I have been trapping coons lately. I can tell you that a raccoon can pull a 4x4 tarp through a 1 inch hole in a live trap. The coon pulled it in and started to rip it apart.
I caught a wild cat that was able to push the trap door open enough to get a paw out. Raccoons are tough and smart. I would not put any animal outside with out a hasp and lock. Ryan

 

[Babe77]

So a hasp and a lock !! Thank you