Help with Raccoons

[oldjones]

I have had the same problem for years and I have tried everything listed above and more. Here is what works for me.

Grubs are a key factor and I go to the US and get grub killer to spray on the lawn.
That only solves part of the problem because the racoons are still filthy, potentially rabid and will do lots of damage in addition to the lawn.'
Next is the live trap. I find peanut butter works best. But don't transfer your racoon problem to another neighbourhood. I drown them. I believe it is illegal to transport trapped wildlife more than 1.5km from where you capture them and that's just a night's stroll for a racoon. You have to finish them off and I concluded a drowning was the quickest and surest way. Racoons are out of control.. In a 12 month period, in an urban area of the GTA I trapped 30 racoons on my property which is 110 x 45 feet.

At one drowning every 12 days that sure must have cut into your lawn maintenance time. I'm curious where you did the deed, how far you transported your victims, in what sort of cage-vehicle combo, and how you disposed of their corpses?

Just imagining the mechanics of getting a dead raccoon out of the cage you drowned it in, never mind how you might drown an uncaged one is enough to make me dubious about truth and civic responsibility levels in your story.

 

[danmand]

I have had the same problem for years and I have tried everything listed above and more. Here is what works for me.

Grubs are a key factor and I go to the US and get grub killer to spray on the lawn.
That only solves part of the problem because the racoons are still filthy, potentially rabid and will do lots of damage in addition to the lawn.'
Next is the live trap. I find peanut butter works best. But don't transfer your racoon problem to another neighbourhood. I drown them. I believe it is illegal to transport trapped wildlife more than 1.5km from where you capture them and that's just a night's stroll for a racoon. You have to finish them off and I concluded a drowning was the quickest and surest way. Racoons are out of control.. In a 12 month period, in an urban area of the GTA I trapped 30 racoons on my property which is 110 x 45 feet.

What a massacre. I have a large variety of "pests" where I live, raccoons, opossums, skunks, deer, rabbits, coyotes etc, and they do a fair amount of damage. I occasionally dispose of one, but in general I believe thay are part of this world, just as I am.

 

[AdamH]

What a massacre. I have a large variety of "pests" where I live, raccoons, opossums, skunks, deer, rabbits, coyotes etc, and they do a fair amount of damage. I occasionally dispose of one, but in general I believe thay are part of this world, just as I am.

I have all of the above types of pests.. I leave them them all the fuck alone (the Possums actually scare the shit outta me)..

To be honest, I think my local racoons have got a "don't shit where you sleep" attitude because the ones living in my neighbors garage have never once knocked over my garbage or green bins (both of which I leave outside at all times). The worst we have to deal with is the odd half eaten banana peel in our driveway.

When I called animal control it was because I was worried about rabies (I had two small kids at the time).. They told me that they haven't seen an account of rabies in a raccoon in over a decade, so it's nothing to concern myself over.. They also told me that I should just count my lucky stars that the raccoon is in my neighbors garage and not mine..

So I say live and let live.. The little fuckers are cute anyway.

 

[fun-guy]

Some of you guys who say to trap the coons or hurt them should rethink that. I use to think like you until I had a life altering experience with them. I problems with coons for years, they always came around to eat my pond fish. It was pissing me off as coy fish isn't cheap and one day decided to trap them. I was awaken at 3 am with squeals outside my door and it was the mother coon on her back hind legs crying and begging me to let her baby out as it was in the trap. I couldn't believe the look in the coon's eyes and felt really bad, but I didn't go outside for fear it would attack me. I called animal control and they told me it was illegal to trap them and I could be charged, and they said humans have to learn to live with them. They told me I had to release it within a kilometer of where I trapped it. I released it at the back of my yard and sure the mother was happy. I tried everything to keep them away, chicken wire, moth balls, hot pepper, bleach, etc... and nothing worked since rain waters down most of the items and it becomes weak after several days. I finally found one thing that does work and heard it from a friend, place Irish Spring soap at the areas they frequent. Well, it worked. There's a chemical, only found in Irish Spring soap that works, no other soap works. The soap works for at least a month and then I get a new bar.

Most of the holes in my lawn were caused by skunks or possum, not coons. I hired a lawn treatment company that sprays it for grubs and it works.

 

[Terminax]

All you do is open the trap's door, slide the body into a garbage bag and put it to the curb with the rest of the trash.

I'm from a farm family and Raccoon's nothing but large vermin. This "we have to accept them because they're part of nature" is popular but misplaced bullshit. Cities aren't natural, and you wouldn't tolerate mice and rats nesting in your home or in your neighborhood so why should you tolerate Skunks, Raccoons, Squirrels or anything else that gets into your house and causes damage? If they step a foot out of the park, they're fair game as far as I am concerned. They have no place in cities. Same goes for Coyotes for that matter - kill the fuckers before they kill a pet or worse a person. I've had to clean out Raccoon shit and piss from under a house once and that stuff is fucking toxic - I took all precautions and I still caught a nasty bug from it so yeah, I have no tolerance for putting up with disease causing critters.

 

[danmand]

All you do is open the trap's door, slide the body into a garbage bag and put it to the curb with the rest of the trash.

I'm from a farm family and Raccoon's nothing but large vermin. This "we have to accept them because they're part of nature" is popular but misplaced bullshit. Cities aren't natural, and you wouldn't tolerate mice and rats nesting in your home or in your neighborhood so why should you tolerate Skunks, Raccoons, Squirrels or anything else that gets into your house and causes damage? If they step a foot out of the park, they're fair game as far as I am concerned. They have no place in cities. Same goes for Coyotes for that matter - kill the fuckers before they kill a pet or worse a person. I've had to clean out Raccoon shit and piss from under a house once and that stuff is fucking toxic - I took all precautions and I still caught a nasty bug from it so yeah, I have no tolerance for putting up with disease causing critters.

Show them who is in charge of this planet.

 

[Terminax]

Eh, I'm not that extreme. I just don't want them on my property causing damage or causing a potential health risk to me or mine.

 

[oldjones]

Eh, I'm not that extreme. I just don't want them on my property causing damage or causing a potential health risk to me or mine.

But you don't give a shit about breaking the law and endangering the trash loaders who have to deal with your irresponsible discard of your kill.

You are supposed to call 311 to arrange for Animal Services to do a proper pick-up and sanitary disposal.

 

[oldjones]

Some of you guys who say to trap the coons or hurt them should rethink that. I use to think like you until I had a life altering experience with them. I problems with coons for years, they always came around to eat my pond fish. It was pissing me off as coy fish isn't cheap and one day decided to trap them. I was awaken at 3 am with squeals outside my door and it was the mother coon on her back hind legs crying and begging me to let her baby out as it was in the trap. I couldn't believe the look in the coon's eyes and felt really bad, but I didn't go outside for fear it would attack me. I called animal control and they told me it was illegal to trap them and I could be charged, and they said humans have to learn to live with them. They told me I had to release it within a kilometer of where I trapped it. I released it at the back of my yard and sure the mother was happy. I tried everything to keep them away, chicken wire, moth balls, hot pepper, bleach, etc... and nothing worked since rain waters down most of the items and it becomes weak after several days. I finally found one thing that does work and heard it from a friend, place Irish Spring soap at the areas they frequent. Well, it worked. There's a chemical, only found in Irish Spring soap that works, no other soap works. The soap works for at least a month and then I get a new bar.

Most of the holes in my lawn were caused by skunks or possum, not coons. I hired a lawn treatment company that sprays it for grubs and it works.

My hunting fiends would agree that skunks and possums are liklier lawn-destroyers than 'coons. But when you add easy to catch tasty fish in a food-washing pond, next to the grub ranch you're maintaining under the sod, what do you expect Mama Raccoon to do, teach her kits to go hungry? Cities are ideal habitats for all sorts of omnivores, not just us. We'll never eliminate them, but we can make their shelter and food harder to access, so they bother someone else. And if someone else does the same …

A mail-order Fido-Shock™ fence did a good job for my ponds, once Mama finished the annual Spring Re-training.

 

[Terminax]

Considering what else goes in the garbage, I don't have any qualms about it.

 

[Why Not?]

Is it illegal to kill raccoons in Ontario?

There is a case working its way through the courts now I believe. There is a bylaw against it in Toronto. but the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act says:

"31. (1) If a person believes on reasonable grounds that wildlife is damaging or is about to damage the person’s property, the person may, on the person’s land,
(a) harass the wildlife for the purpose of deterring it from damaging the person’s property; or

(b) capture or kill the wildlife. 1997, c. 41, s. 31 (1)."

There is a guy in Toronto who was caught killing racoons with a shovel in his vegetable garden and he is using this as a defence. A small game license allows you to hunt raccoons in Ontario from Oct 15 to Jan 15. But you can't hunt in urban areas. You may be allowed to trap them with a trappers license as they are considered fur-bearing game.

 

[danmand]

There is a case working its way through the courts now I believe. There is a bylaw against it in Toronto. but the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act says:

"31. (1) If a person believes on reasonable grounds that wildlife is damaging or is about to damage the person’s property, the person may, on the person’s land,
(a) harass the wildlife for the purpose of deterring it from damaging the person’s property; or

(b) capture or kill the wildlife. 1997, c. 41, s. 31 (1)."

There is a guy in Toronto who was caught killing racoons with a shovel in his vegetable garden and he is using this as a defence. A small game license allows you to hunt raccoons in Ontario from Oct 15 to Jan 15. But you can't hunt in urban areas. You may be allowed to trap them with a trappers license as they are considered fur-bearing game.

Hunting raccoons is only allowed with a registered hunting dog.

 

[Why Not?]

Hunting raccoons is only allowed with a registered hunting dog.

Hunting raccoons at night is only allowed with a licensed hunting dog. The dog is not required for day hunting. By the way, if hunting at night you can only use a .22 calibre rimfire rifle chambered for .22 short, long or long rifle cartridges.

 

[danmand]

Hunting raccoons at night is only allowed with a licensed hunting dog. The dog is not required for day hunting. By the way, if hunting at night you can only use a .22 calibre rimfire rifle chambered for .22 short, long or long rifle cartridges.

season is oct 15 to jan 15.

PS: Please do not discharge a gun in your backyard.

 

[oldjones]

If it is grubs and you/raccoon/skunk don't get rid of them, your lawn will be destroyed anyway.

Grubs stripped my in-laws' entire street in Dearborn one summer; barren brown both sides for blocks. Of course without ravines providing refuge, and with energetic Garbage Police and Building Inspectors enforcing bylaws, Dearborn had no significant raccoon/skunk/possum population to keep the grubs in check.

Gotta live with 'em.

 

[james t kirk]

The LAST thing we need in the City of Toronto is a bunch of urban rednecks out shooting raccoons.

Just don't leave any food out for them if they bug you that much.

 

[TeasePlease]

PS: Please do not discharge a gun in your backyard.

...without a suppressor?

 

[oldjones]

Considering what else goes in the garbage, I don't have any qualms about it.

Well we know what you illegally put in your trash, because you have told us you illegally dump your unlawful animal kills there. What other examples of diseased and parasite ridden carrion and the like are you imagining the rest of us are 'disposing' of, "considering what else goes in the garbage"?

Funny how the guy who's too queasy about his health to endure even a visit from the critters has no qualms about ignoring the law and safe and sensible practice and endangering the sanitation workers he expects to pick up after him. Never mind. His kids and yours will never share a pee-wee hockey dressing room.

Why not just do things the right way and just call 311?

 

[Intrinsic]

All you do is open the trap's door, slide the body into a garbage bag and put it to the curb with the rest of the trash.

I'm from a farm family and Raccoon's nothing but large vermin. This "we have to accept them because they're part of nature" is popular but misplaced bullshit. Cities aren't natural, and you wouldn't tolerate mice and rats nesting in your home or in your neighborhood so why should you tolerate Skunks, Raccoons, Squirrels or anything else that gets into your house and causes damage? If they step a foot out of the park, they're fair game as far as I am concerned. They have no place in cities. Same goes for Coyotes for that matter - kill the fuckers before they kill a pet or worse a person. I've had to clean out Raccoon shit and piss from under a house once and that stuff is fucking toxic - I took all precautions and I still caught a nasty bug from it so yeah, I have no tolerance for putting up with disease causing critters.

Cities were at one point farmland.... hate to break it to you.
They just didn't appear out of nowhere, cities that is.

Btw, is your shit all rosy and like potpourri?

 

[Terminax]

There's absolutely nothing in an animal carcass that's any different from the leavings of an average household, let alone the shit that goes into city, commercial and industrial garbage bins. And it all goes to the same dump at the end of the day. And I've worked on a crew that picked up dead animals and guess what? Same garbage bags, same dump.

And I'm not completely heartless, I don't kill every single animal that crosses my path - just the ones who decide to hang around and cause damage. So enjoy your frothing