Raccoons

[debinhollister]

you should not be relying on only a gun, especially a run of the mill pellet gun for raccoon. it would just piss them off.
we have had great luck catching them with a 220 conibear rigged up in a notched 5 gallon plastic bucket. this is deadly and will kill almost instantly, house cats, dogs or anything that goes in it.
better yet just fix your coop so the racoons can not get in. spend your time securing the coop you have instead of staying up all night waiting for coons to come. really how long can you do that. you will never kill them all, and if coons can get in so can many other chicken eating critters.
good luck!

I have a secure spot for most chickens to sleep at night but there are five remaining that roost in trees too high for me to reach. Most free range during the day. I’m only able to set a humane trap to deal with raccoons (we have adopted feral cats) or get them while they roam.

 

[debinhollister]

Tha

A pellet gun isn't sufficient to take out a raccoon. Go to a gun shop and ask them which gun you need. At least a shot gun. Get a trap and trap them first so you don't just wound them. You'll want to have a clean kill, or at least I would.

So sorry about your hens.

Thank you for responding.

 

[debinhollister]

Pellet guns are fine for plunking tin cans but not killing coons. A shot gun will take one out but there will be some collateral damage. My suggestion would be live-trap them then use a .22 for a coup de grace. As far a prevention is concern, you need to be thorough because they will keep coming back looking for a way in. Coons are clever and very strong.

Thank you. I have a live trap as well.

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome!
Your tree roosting chickens will be killed off by raccoons, opossums, or owls, at least. They won't do well for long at all! Try getting them into a safer run with treats, or have a big fish net on a long pole, and get them inside.
Your coop and run need to be safer!
When necessary, we live trap raccoons and then shoot them in the head with the 22g. A pellet gun at a distance is a bad idea, and a shotgun makes a mess.
Are you trained to handle firearms? If not, get training before you try to shoot at anything!
Mary

 

[centrarchid]

Chickens roosting trees are harder to protect. A couple neighbors I just visited can do it even with owls (I cannot) where they have dogs below and motion sensor lights (I am still skeptical as to whether those red light things work). Raccoons can be easier than owls when traps are used. I use live-traps and dog-proofs (more than one brand) where the latter appear more effective, and require more materials and experience to use. Electrified poultry netting can be used to block most mammals including gray fox that can climb trees. I have a fair amount of experience with poultry netting and found it is more worthwhile when defending a larger number of chickens. It has cost involving more than just setup. Best I can do with the electrified netting is about $300 to get everything up and running.

In the end I would acquire a light rifle like a .22. You can shoot a raccoon out of tree with such a rifle while the typical pellet gun is less likely to give a clean kill.

I do have chickens roosting in trees much of the time, even now. They require more effort and are the ones I take the rifle out at night for when dogs tree raccoons often close to where the chickens are roosting.

Most cost effective option I have found, especially when number of chickens is small, is to get birds roosting in pen or coop at night that is easier to defend.

 

[centrarchid]

you should not be relying on only a gun, especially a run of the mill pellet gun for raccoon. it would just piss them off.
we have had great luck catching them with a 220 conibear rigged up in a notched 5 gallon plastic bucket. this is deadly and will kill almost instantly, house cats, dogs or anything that goes in it.
better yet just fix your coop so the racoons can not get in. spend your time securing the coop you have instead of staying up all night waiting for coons to come. really how long can you do that. you will never kill them all, and if coons can get in so can many other chicken eating critters.
good luck!

I have done the all night thing, more to just say I did. It is not a good investment of time unless it is a stop gap measure until better defenses are in place. Sleep is important.

 

[Howard E]

I have a secure spot for most chickens to sleep at night but there are five remaining that roost in trees too high for me to reach. Most free range during the day. I’m only able to set a humane trap to deal with raccoons (we have adopted feral cats) or get them while they roam.

Out of curiosity, how many birds total and in what type of secure quarters are they housed? Size, type, construction, etc.

None of my birds have ever roosted anywhere but inside the chicken house. They ALL go in every night.....always. But it is a Woods house, so is comfortable for them and appropriately sized for the number of birds I have. Home sweet home and they like it in there.

My daughter's first flock refused to use the house they were given. It was a hand me down freebie coop built by some well meaning folks who had no clue what a chicken coop was supposed to be. Too small, and a poorly constructed sweat box death trap. Bottom line is when allowed to do so, the birds refused to use it....voting with their feet so to speak.....and took to roosting on top of the playground equipment, sheds, etc,.......basically anywhere but inside that coop. They were also allowed for free range. As a result.......they all were taken by predators. I think she might have gotten 1 or 2 eggs per bird before they were gone.

I would expect that birds that free range during the day and roosting in trees at night in a predator laden area are not long for this world.......it would be a miracle if it were anything else. No pellet gun, shotgun, rifle or any amount of trapping is going to change that. The predators are going to win that game 99.9% of the time.

 

[Howard E]

BTW, when I say "birds", I'm referring to the traditional laying breeds most of us have. If you have games or other breeds.......or birds not that far from being feral themselves.......they may have a better chance. Same as wild turkeys, quail, pheasants, etc.

 

[woodmort]

BTW, when I say "birds", I'm referring to the traditional laying breeds most of us have. If you have games or other breeds.......or birds not that far from being feral themselves.......they may have a better chance. Same as wild turkeys, quail, pheasants, etc.

First of all I don't like the idea of leaving birds out at night, it attracts predators. I begin to train my chickens early to go in the coop by confining them close when they first are free-ranged and by having a light inside timed to stay on until after dark. That being said, I've never was able to get my guinea fowl to do go in at night. Consequently my original 25 guineas, after 3 years, are now down to 1 (who only occasionally goes in at night so it'll disappear sooner or later).

 

[50-45-1]

so is comfortable for them and appropriately sized for the number of birds I have.

this is so true with so many victims of "chicken math" who end up having more chickens than they are set up for.
making sure there is enough room that the birds are not cramped into an uncomfortable situation. making sure there are alternated roosting spaces for the Picked on or new additions so they also have a safe space withing the coop to want to return there.
so much relevant and helpful info here. without pictures or measurements or dimensions its kind of hard to determine what is the best way to resolve this for you.
if you could coax your tree birds into the coop somehow and catch them at night. then you could clip their wing and hopefully make it impossible for them to fly up that far. maybe trim off the lower limbs of the trees.