What to do about the raccoons?

[Sarkchick]

You might just be giving your problem to your fellow poultry enthusiast 10 miles down the road.

There is an overpopulation of raccoons in the US with related rabies epizootics.

If raccoons invade your property and attack your chickens, it’s better to dispatch them yourself rather than passing the problem onto the neighbors.

It is forestry land where I take them. No one lives there. I am just not that great a shot. I have gotten really mad when they actually kill a chicken and shot them and my husband is bed/chair bound. I do what I can

 

[Ruthster55]

It is forestry land where I take them. No one lives there. I am just not that great a shot. I have gotten really mad when they actually kill a chicken and shot them and my husband is bed/chair bound. I do what I can

You don’t have to be a good shot if you shoot it point blank in the trap, as long as there is evidence that the raccoon and relatives are attacking the poultry on the property for which you are responsible. If the raccoon is on the property and attacking the chickens, you are usually within your rights to dispatch it, as long as you are allowed to use the firearm. Definitely check your state laws about trapping and about firearms, but in most states you are within your rights to control nuisance wildlife that is killing your chickens. A .22 is enough.

https://mdc.mo.gov/wildlife/nuisance-problem-species/nuisance-native-species/raccoon-control

I don't know about every state, but in some places, relocating raccoons is prohibited. That would include California, Connecticut, Texas, and Virginia.

https://portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Wildlife/Nuisance-Wildlife/Problems-with-Raccoons
https://www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/nuisance/raccoons/

It’s not an issue of hunting, but rather of protecting the chicken flock from nuisance wildlife that are killing them.

Of course, the permanent approach is to make sure the coop and run are both secure.

 

[GC-Raptor]

May I ask, if you can tell me if my Coup and Run is safe enough?

Good enclosure. Looks secure to me for critters gray squirrel size and bigger.
I see you have the medium size Over Easy coop. I have the large size. . GC

 

[Sams Backyard Flock]

Good enclosure. Looks secure to me for critters gray squirrel size and bigger.
I see you have the medium size Over Easy coop. I have the large size.View attachment 2216239. GC

Thank you for responding. I worry being new that are flock is safe. Yes love it but wish I got the large one too now. Chicken addiction Were getting more. It looks like you used chain link? I’m sure nothing will get through that.

 

[GC-Raptor]

It looks like you used chain link?

Yes, it's actually multiple dog kennels bolted together.

GC

 

[thomasj]

To the OP Thomas....and others like him......doing battle with coons, the solution is a whole lot simpler than it might seem. Put your birds in safe housing at night and 99.99% of your coon problems will be solved. Coons can be stacked up 3 deep and it if they can't get to the birds, it won't matter.

It's not that simple. Raccoons are not truly nocturnal. They just operate at night, usually between the hours of 10PM and 3AM because that is usually when it's safe for them to come out. The raccoon family I have in contention, have been seen by me out in the middle of the day going for the guineas' food. If you find that your ranging birds are slowly dissapearing, one at a time in the daytime, it's probably a nearby raccoon grabbing lunch.

When you say just build a nice safe coop for them and lock them in at night, you have to defign what is actually a nice safe coop. This takes a lot of extra planning and time to build and very expensive to do it right.

There is almost no door latch that a man can open that a raccoon cannot also open. They are smart and dexterous. Placing the door latch too high for the raccoon to reach probably wont work either. Remember that raccoon that scaled that 23 story building to the roof? They can climb because of their claws and great strength and the fact that their paws can rotate 180 degrees when they want to turn in the middle of a climb. They climb high because they have no fear of falling like we do. They are like a squirrel when it comes to falling. They can flatten their body and raccoon coat like a parachute so that the rate of descension is minimal and they land pancaked. I am still waiting for the proof of safety for my coop because I sided it with plywood which if the raccoons get hungry enough, they have the power to rip it apart.

 

[Sams Backyard Flock]

. I had no idea racoons are that strong. If that’s the case then my wire is not going to be strong enough either. . Maybe I should have used hardware cloth all around mine as well. We can’t shoot racoons or any animals in my area.

 

[Acre4Me]

Sorry for your loss of birds @thomasj .

Agree with much of what is said above. Secure coop, don’t feed the coon, remove ones from under your shed, and coons are opportunistic. I’ll add they are murderous Little devils.

you could just decide to free range, and plan for losses accordingly.. have a timetable to raise new replacement chicks, but you will need a secure coop for that to work. There are some that let their birds roost in trees at night too. But there will be losses and generally the best luck there is with game hens, or similar type of agile/outdoor smart chicken....not your typical heritage type dual purpose. So, you can live in a sort of natural harmony, but it will take different planning than what you are doing now.

if you decide that you would rather have your chickens secure and safe from the predators, And their meat and eggs available for you (instead of the predators), then you plan more along the lines of what has been mentioned earlier.

FWIW, I’m in active-coon-hunt mode. My neighbor had his entire flock wiped out in 2 nights by coons. We (myself, and 2 neighbors) have trapped and killed 8 of the murderous little devils. They killed more than 8 chickens...ripped them apart while alive, so the coons had a more humane death than the chickens did. The coons are now interested in my flock ... so, the hunt continues. My neighbor kept his feed outside in a weather proof container, but coon could access it if they wanted, and it appears that onoccasion they did. They also raided several gardens nearby, and maybe pet food if anyone has left any out. So, they had food access but killed the chickens anyway.

 

[Acre4Me]

. I had no idea racoons are that strong. If that’s the case then my wire is not going to be strong enough either. . Maybe I should have used hardware cloth all around mine as well. We can’t shoot racoons or any animals in my area.

you can trap them in a live trap. There maybe someone in the county/city that is designated to take them away. Look into the rules in your area. Btw, a .22 isn’t very loud, would sound like a firecracker to someone else, if they even heard it. There is the “SSS” idea that some recommend....”Shoot”, “Shovel”, “Shut-up”. I’d personally find out the rules and try them out...call and ask questions of the people that manage that aspect in your area (county extension? Animal control? Wildlife officer?).

so far, the coons after my flock have focused their attention on the ground and digging. They could easily get into the run, if they climbed the fence. We have plans to re-do the fence, but everything takes time and money, so it will get done eventually. the coons have been digging around my garden area, even in random spots between my raised beds. so, I’ll take the digging coons for now as they could easily climb into the run if the idea occurred to them!

 

[Sams Backyard Flock]

What kind of locks are best? I use a carabiner for the storage containers And these for the gate. Are these good enough?