So what's the deal with Racoons?

[PhilErvin]

If you have children you need to protect them from coons as well. They are brazen and will take food right out of your hands. There is one that hangs out in the big oak tree in front of my church. On evening as I was walking to the front door he say me and turned to walk away. I squeeled at him like a cat and he stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face me. I did it again and it started at me. I ran.........

 

[pookiegoldman]

So I've got a loaner live trap set now. I set it out right before dusk. I saw him strolling through the backyard, and watched him walk up to it, go in and steal the fish head! I reset it and woke up this morning to my pet cat sleeping inside it. Next step... buy bullets for the .17 caliber....

 

[ThePolishPrincess]

We had a small pullet in a cage with her buddy. A raccoon got ahold of her and ripped her through the cage, probably while she was still alive. Then it ate what it could, and I'm sure she was screaming in agony all the while she was still with us.

Her friend is alive, but now gets overly paranoid at the most rediculous things. She is scarred for life.

I hate raccoons.

 

[Yardbirds286]

Question about this. We have a very secure coop, wrapped in hardware cloth, covered in plywood, 2 feet off the ground. We have a very big chicken yard for the girls made of woven wire, with poultry netting run around the INSIDE bottom two feet. We just put two hot wires one 8" off the ground, and one 8" from the top around the entire chicken yard, including the gate. The girls are ALWAYS locked up at night and the fence is cookin. Sure got the neighbor dog to drop to his knees. Never came back. Our fence charger is a monster. Will this help keep the coons out??

 

[MMPoultryFarms]

Quote:
I am gonna say More then likely But dont under estimate a racoon ever there very smart and cunning. there dexterity and agility are quite amazing.

 

[Yardbirds286]

Well I am gonna keep my fingers crossed. We have a motion light, and two good sized, coon hating dogs as well. Nice shot on the Bob by the way.

 

[farmerbrownsdaughter]

I was naive! There are no racoons in my area (So I thought) and I housed my pet bantys quite nicely for over a year, letting them out during the day to follow me around the garden and scratch around my abundant veggie garden. Two nights ago 2 racoons got into the coop and mutilated my dear pets. The scene was so awful I couldnt deal with it myself! I called my husband home from work and we spent the day fortifying the coop and I have sworn to NEVER let that happen again!

 

[chickendude]

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It most definitely will help keep them out. I have the same set up as you also. My hot wire is 6" from ground and 6" from top of run. I leave it energized all the time and never close the pop door on the coop unless it gets very cold. I have heard coons and other animals come in contact with the hot wire at night, they let out a pretty good yelp and scream

. Here is a pic of my run.

I also feel every coon should be killed. On Sept. 13 my wife was walking our dog at 7:15 am. As she went off the front porch the dog dragged her around the front corner of the house and he came face to face with a coon. My wife did all she could do to keep them apart as she screamed for help. Long story short I shot and killed the coon and the NYS board of health had the head tested for rabies and it was positive. They told me coons are the largest carriers of rabies then skunks then fox and bats. Never leave food outside for your animals. It will only invite disaster in the long run.

 

[Yardbirds286]

Callemin, that is a very nice set up you have.

I still lock their pop door every night. Helps me sleep. I thank you for your response. I have not heard anything scream or yelp since the dog. However, with winter on its way, that is probably gonna change. Last fall we had to call animal control on a coon that was out during the day, around 2pm. It was in our side yard stumbling around. They shot it in the head. It was rabid. Scary stuff with those things.

 

[Ibicella]

Your two biggest enemies are typically going to be raccoons and dogs.

If you're seeing them a lot during daytime, it sounds like you have a glut in the population going at the moment. Raccoons are normally nocturnal, but they can and do come out during the day if they didn't find enough food the night before. They also often come out if they are sick with distemper or rabies.

So definitely take in any and all food around the house, and secure your coop. They WILL come after your chickens and do horrible things to them.