Washingtonians Come Together! Washington Peeps

[Manningjw]

Second raccoon attack in only 3 days now this time he ripped open a part of the coop that was closed with bug screen then and got away with my 2nd best egg laying hen. I need to bait my trap better (I didn't re-bait it last night). My dad told me that raw beef is as good as you can get for drawing a raccoon in. I was planning to put some sweet and sour chicken pieces out in the trap - should i do both or just beef? Anyone else have experience trapping them?

 

[Rainier]

Second raccoon attack in only 3 days now this time he ripped open a part of the coop that was closed with bug screen then and got away with my 2nd best egg laying hen. I need to bait my trap better (I didn't re-bait it last night). My dad told me that raw beef is as good as you can get for drawing a raccoon in. I was planning to put some sweet and sour chicken pieces out in the trap - should i do both or just beef? Anyone else have experience trapping them?

Sorry for your loss. I don't know anything about trapping. I do know that the raccoon will continue to come back now that it has found a free meal.

We had one coon get our only silkie chick. It has been our only attack since getting the birds in April. Our dog used to be in the run with the chickens all the time leaving his scent all along the fence line. Although not a typical livestock guardian dog he functions as one. We had kittens born and he was busy protecting them and not as busy in the chicken run. After a week of him not back there we had the coon get our silkie. Now that he is back on patrol we have had no more problems.

 

[Theegoliath]

Second raccoon attack in only 3 days now this time he ripped open a part of the coop that was closed with bug screen then and got away with my 2nd best egg laying hen.  I need to bait my trap better (I didn't re-bait it last night).  My dad told me that raw beef is as good as you can get for drawing a raccoon in.  I was planning to put some sweet and sour chicken pieces out in the trap - should i do both or just beef?  Anyone else have experience trapping them?

My father and I would use this http://www.americanrentalls.com/pages/Ranger Raccoon Trap Lge.htmstyle of trap. We would then find the racoons most traveled pathway at night which was next to our house, and place the trap in its wallkway. We used anything from peanut better and jelly sandwiches, to cooked hamburger patties. Use a towel to cover up the metal lever though to hide it. We must have caught and released 30+ racoons over the years this way. We drive like 15 miles away and release them at the river. Just use whats in hand for food. They dont care. Hope this helps. Oh, use leather gloves when you handle them or the trap just to be safe. Thicker the better.

 

[CarolynF]

My folks live in Portland. Its where I grew up : o Is he going to breed for himself, or possible sale? How many do you want lol? I only need one : P

I really don't know what his long term plans are, but it's not unusual for someone to weed out the "second best" birds and sell them. I'll keep my ears open. They're very pretty, but I'm not adding any more Marans in the near future. The next ones on my list might be Breda, Heritage RIR, or another Swedish Flower Hen (SFH). Decisions, decisions, decisions!

 

[lisa1hess]

Below is a link to the coop we just finished and posted 2 days ago. The names and breeds of our chickens are at the bottom of the post : ) We have 7 different breeds out of our 8 flock.

Oh my goodness!!! This is an in incredible journey you have shared!! I Love your coop....and your process!!! I'm so impressed with your building skills, thoughtfulness and ability to save money!!! Thanks so much for sharing your amazing journey!!!

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-strange-coop

Please let me know how your friends GCM are doing. If they are local to Kitsap County, I would love to come by if allowed to see them in person!

 

[them chickens]

Baby's first day out (sorry for the dark pic)black chick in front of mama

 

[Theegoliath]

Deleted post. Mod, please delete this as I cannot find the delete button : /

 

[ochochicas]

Second raccoon attack in only 3 days now this time he ripped open a part of the coop that was closed with bug screen then and got away with my 2nd best egg laying hen. I need to bait my trap better (I didn't re-bait it last night). My dad told me that raw beef is as good as you can get for drawing a raccoon in. I was planning to put some sweet and sour chicken pieces out in the trap - should i do both or just beef? Anyone else have experience trapping them?

I'd use canned dog or cat food. You also need to make sure the trap is covered with something. The entire trap should be covered except for the open end where the raccoon will enter.

It also sounds like you'll need to get some hardware cloth to reinforce your coop to prevent them from coming in. Good luck getting rid of the culprit!

 

[Theegoliath]

I really don't know what his long term plans are, but it's not unusual for someone to weed out the "second best" birds and sell them. I'll keep my ears open. They're very pretty, but I'm not adding any more Marans in the near future. The next ones on my list might be Breda, Heritage RIR, or another Swedish Flower Hen (SFH). Decisions, decisions, decisions!

Please do keep your ears open. The Golden Chuckoo Marans has been the only chicken thats made me double take (besides a nice silver laced wyndotte) when I saw it. Polish, frizzles, sizzles and the like just make me roll my eyes. But the sheen and colors on the Golden made me WANT one as our next hen, and they lay dark brown eggs. Never can go wrong with another color in the basket : ) I would prefer a darker golden one, as Ive researched some breeders breed for the lighter gold...

 

[tridentk9]

Second raccoon attack in only 3 days now this time he ripped open a part of the coop that was closed with bug screen then and got away with my 2nd best egg laying hen.  I need to bait my trap better (I didn't re-bait it last night).  My dad told me that raw beef is as good as you can get for drawing a raccoon in.  I was planning to put some sweet and sour chicken pieces out in the trap - should i do both or just beef?  Anyone else have experience trapping them?

Catch a skunk first. Traps that have been skunked usually have a better success rate. Probably because they don't smell like metal or oil, gas and grease (when stored in garage).