Racoon found my home.

[Hip Hillbilly Acres]

I use cayenne pepper to discourage diggers.It burns like fire and sends them running.

Great! What is your method of application simply pouring it out? Don't the chickens eat it?

 

[McChooky]

Hello everyone,

I heard that cayenne pepper or ammonia will keep coons away. Also, sound machines. Does anyone have any experience with this? I tried the predator lights but the coon went up to it and sniffed it.....

I did let me dog out and tethered him to the porch to scare off the coon....he broke loose...and he killed a wild pheasant..:-(

I used motion activated lights and it could care less.

Any suggestions would be wonderful.

I have 2 free range roosters that just showed up 4 weeks ago that roost on my second story porch and I will be getting biddies in 3 weeks. They will be kept in my house in a brooder box until 3 weeks old then I will put them in the hardwire coop. (the base is surrounded in thick cement paver stones).

I would be very cautious about keeping the roosters if you haven't physically handled them and checked them for parasites or wormed them.They can introduce diseases to your chicks.

 

[McChooky]

Great! What is your method of application simply pouring it out? Don't the chickens eat it?

It won't bother chickens because they don't have receptors for it. I pour it on the ground around the perimeter of my coop & run.It also deters snakes, squirrels, rodents and bugs.
I haven't found anything but birds that can tolerate it.Btw way raccoons hate the stuff.

 

[neo71665]

Coons are smart and learn stuff like motion lights and radios that never turn off won't bother them.

 

[McChooky]

Cayenne pepper can be added to their chicken feed to get rid of rats & mice.

 

[Hedgeland Farms]

has anyone had any luck using a strobe light for coons and possums.....and owls??

I use these... https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B09PNCLMJK?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title#

I've not seen any kinda preditors in awhile...(i dont have cameras but I sit outside pretty late at night) we used to have a coon come right up walk by the coop and go to the cat food... WHILE WE WERE OUTSIDE!
We caught it, and haven't seen another since...

ETA I am not saying these work, but my experience has been like that of a lot of the reviews.

 

[Folly's place]

Having an food outside will attract raccoons, skunks, possums, and rodents. Remove all of it, at least for a few weeks, especially at night. Usually there's more than one raccoon, they come in family groups, and could kill those feral roosters at night.
If the birds roost low enough in the trees, a long handled fish net might work to get them. Or shoot water from a hose up there, maybe that would help get them in a better spot. And agree, getting them inside with food would be good too.
Only trap this raccoon if you will then shoot it!
I've never tried hot pepper as a deterrent. Our coop/ run combination is very secure, so haven't had to eliminate a raccoon for several years. And the wildlife rehab folks don't do raccoons, fine with me.
Here a trapped raccoon can be released on the same property, or on private land within the same county, with landowner permission. And nobody wants a trap wise raccoon!
Mary

 

[Red Horse]

We had a community skunk den under our house this last winter and every time we trapped and dispatched a skunk, it seemed like 2 more would show up and take their place. We tried all the things... cayenne pepper, moth balls, lights, radios... what finally ended up working was human urine. We tried various types of predator urine, but my hubby's morning pee was the only thing that sent them packing. Super gross, but when you have multiple skunks spraying under your kitchen and bathroom every night you get a little tired of that burning tire smell and people looking at you funny at the grocery store. Maybe try going around the coop? Raccoons seem so much smarter than skunks but it's worth a shot.

 

[ashcons]

Also, sound machines. Does anyone have any experience with this?

.22lr sound machines work great


Seriously, though, if you have a hwc ground skirt (to prevent digging), hardware-cloth'ed run, secure coop door and vents, you should be fine; be on the lookout for any openings that predators can use to access the run/coop - up at the roof and ground lines especially are where gaps tend to be overlooked. Preventing the coons from getting at your birds is the way to win that war and anything other than the basics seem to have spotty success rates.

If you want to get fancy or have bears, add some juice.

Maybe borrow Red Horse's husband just for good measure.

 

[McChooky]

.22lr sound machines work great


Seriously, though, if you have a hwc ground skirt (to prevent digging), hardware-cloth'ed run, secure coop door and vents, you should be fine; be on the lookout for any openings that predators can use to access the run/coop - up at the roof and ground lines especially are where gaps tend to be overlooked. Preventing the coons from getting at your birds is the way to win that war and anything other than the basics seem to have spotty success rates.

Maybe borrow Red Horse's husband just for good measure.

I built a predator proof coop or run with an apron after I moved to the mountains of WV . I'm one of a few who raises standard chickens .Game chickens are an all time favorite among the locals because they're alert and fly better.