Which Way to go?

[rlshepard]

Say hello to my little friend... he has been move to a location better suited for his shenanigans

 

[centrarchid]

Put trap back out tonight. More likely than not additional raccoons still coming in unless is a fully adult boar / male. You may need to place trap in a different location and use some else as bait. Last round I went through, raccoons witnessing clan member trapped get trap-wise.

 

[Folly's place]

Young raccoons come in family groups, so listen to centrarchid and continue to trap! I hope you are sending them to the happy hunting grounds, and not relocating! Mary

 

[Howard E]

So you trapped this coon inside your fence? It somehow got past your two hot wires and chain link fence? Thats not good.

I view trapping as an immediate short term solution to a long term problem. BTW, once you know it is coons, I'd switch to the dog proof traps. They are more effective and you can buy 2 or 3 of them for the price of a single live trap. And yes, if you decide to trap it, do punch it's ticket on the spot. BTW, I know of one coon who was relocated 10 miles away, and beat the owners home. They knew it was the same one as they had marked it with a can or orange spray paint before they turned it loose. They turned it loose, went to dinner, then returned home to find it back in the barn where it had been trapped from.

But as for the long term solution, going forward, you need to revise and perfect your fence system so nothing gets in.

And lastly, do not be surprised if this was not the predator you have been losing birds to. This one may be in addition to.....somebody who was in the neighborhood and got caught. The real culprit still at large........

 

[Ridgerunner]

Howard and the others beat me to it. I'll emphasize a couple of things. It's certainly possible this is not your culprit. It could still be a bobcat or fox. Several times I've set a trap for a raccoon and caught possum.

The other is that if you have one it's highly likely you have others. I don't have traps out all the time but when I do it's pretty normal to a catch a possum or raccoon a night for several consecutive nights. A few years back I had a skunk enter my garage through a pet door and spray. Over the next few weeks I trapped seven skunks. I still don't know if I got the right one. It was breeding season and several males were on the prowl.

It's great that you caught that raccoon that was hunting on your property. That's worth doing, whether it was that one causing the problem or not, you've eliminated a threat. Congratulations! But if there is one there are more out there, you never know when a new one will show up. Strengthening your barriers is your best long term protection. That looks like a young one, there is a real good chance there are others around.

 

[centrarchid]

I use multiple trapping systems. They can wise up to all, including the dog proof varieties. Live-traps are easiest when dealing with a live animal.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I always thought raccoons eat the chicken in place, mostly the crop and don't carry off a whole full grown chicken, so I'm on the side of I'm not sure the raccoon is the culprit.

 

[Chickassan]

I still think you've got a bobcat too,they carry off kills and can easily take a big bird. Your fence or wire won't help as they can clear all that easily with a jump. I know you hate to but the tree needs to go that's probably how your coon got in.

 

[Crooked Chicken]

BTW, once you know it is coons, I'd switch to the dog proof traps. They are more effective and you can buy 2 or 3 of them for the price of a single live trap. A

rlshepard -- I see you are in Missouri too. I think that MDOC and the humane society have traps you can borrow or rent. Might be worth looking into as opposed to buying a bunch of traps.

 

[centrarchid]

I always thought raccoons eat the chicken in place, mostly the crop and don't carry off a whole full grown chicken, so I'm on the side of I'm not sure the raccoon is the culprit.

Most of the time they consume the chicken in place. Most of the time. I have allowed them to work carcasses at their leisure and they do sometimes move carcass which can involve climbing with carcass. A farmer I used to work with had a sow coon with kittens come into farrowing house and drag live 10-lb pigs from farrowing crates, pull them through an open window that was 18" above floor before going into high weeds of paddock where actual dispatching took place.

We are too much into absolutes (black and white) in terms of how the world operates when there is lots of variation, especially where live is involved.