Raccoon story with a happy ending

[workinnanie]

I always thought racoons were so cute until we had to live trap them! They are seriously mean when caged! Be careful! We did relocate them to a 5,000 acre refuge near us.

 

[M.sue]

Loved the story and enjoyed trying to picture the whole scenario in my head....not funny at the time but funny, funny, after. That would be my luck, something like that happening and the DH & DS are gone! I'd just make sure that they can't get back in. You need to find where they are getting from. Raccoons can do a lot of damage to a flock.

 

[darkmatter]

Quote:
As a husband, all I can say is these things are always happening, we hubbies just don't tell you what we've been" taking care of" cause then we have to listen to would of/should of static. We secretly laugh when this stuff happens and you have to try to deal with it since you didn't want to know what we were doing anyway.

 

[chickfamilyonsleepyhollow]

Thanks for all the replies

so far its been a quiet week with the exception of our trash barrels taking a severe beating with garbage everywhere

guess they're sending us a message that they are indeed out there just waiting for another opportunity to strike

we're still trying to figure out a long term plan but for now they're locked up at sundown

guns aren't an option ... all I keep thinking about is all those old Disney shows that used to air on Sunday nights with cute racoons getting into mischief and I

those shows ... we don't have time to secure 25 x 25 run

so I'll keep reading posts for ideas

and pray that they will be safe

 

[smkchick]

IMHO, live trapping and relocation would be the best solution. The raccoons are just doing what they do, but you need to protect your flock. Sure, other raccoons will probably show up at some point, but these guys know you're running a "raccoon buffet", so they need to go. Things can only go downhill from here!

 

[Clay Mudd]

http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/wildlife/living/moving_wildlife.htm

Please, for the best interest of wildlife, never move an animal because you think it would be better off somewhere else.
...
Finally, for the protection of wildlife and people, Massachusetts law prohibits the capture and re-location of wildlife. Often people want to catch a problem animal and release it elsewhere. It is illegal to move any live wild animal from one area to another. This law has been in effect for many years, protecting both people and wildlife.

http://audubonportland.org/backyardwildlife/brochures/relocation

One of the most disturbing trends in urban wildlife management is the increasing reliance upon relocation of wildlife to resolve human-wildlife conflicts. Relocation is commonly perceived as a quick, effective and humane solution. It is, in fact, none of the above. In the vast majority of cases, relocation is an ineffective, inhumane and ecologically destructive method for dealing with urban wildlife.​