Cleaning out some coons

[Stony]

It seems like about once a year I need to cut down the numbers of coons hitting my feeders as they get sort of out of hand. The last time I got motivated with this endeavor, I stopped at around 89 of them....but they seem to populate pretty fast again. I got to thinking maybe some of you guys might appreciate the manner in which I do this as it works pretty good for me. I use Duke's dog free traps which catch a coon by the front leg or sometimes both front legs and they just stand there waiting for you to catch up with them. I fill the traps with dry fish flavor cat food generally and the coons seem to really like it.

 

[Stony]

Just another shot of one of the coons

 

[Orcon]

Haha, that's awesome. Back when I was a rough neck I caught a barrel full of coons. They kept getting into the trash and making a mess of our wellsite. So one night I tossed the leftovers and food rubbish from surf and turf night into a 55 gallon open top drum. I set up a piece of expanded steel held up by a 6 foot grounding rod. I attached a spool of aircraft cable to the rod and retreated to the shadows cast by the mud tanks and waited. Eventually the bandits showed up and started piling into the barrel, I stopped counting after 8. Feeling that I had a sufficiently full barrel, I pullled the cable. Out came the rod, down came the steel and bingo-bango, barrel-o-coons.

Are you gonna try skinning them?

 

[Flintknapper]

I have trouble with coons congregating around some of my feeders. I don't mind a few....but when numbers grow to 6 or more, some of them have to go.

I have good luck initially using the Duke traps, but then it seems they catch on and I am forced to set up about 100 yards out with my .17 HMR in order to take out the rest. Even then it can be a short term solution.

I don't care if they eat the corn that is broadcast on the ground, but they climb the feeder and spin out corn seemingly just for the fun of it.

They will walk over corn to climb the feeder to spin out more.

 

[Stony]

I've had them do the feeder spin thing myself. Occasionally I go out at night and can watch one hanging upside down on it. I will get them occasionally hitting the trigger system on the hog traps and dropping the doors as well. I have one large protein feeder for the deer and you can regularly watch them hanging on it scooping the feed out onto the ground. They can sure be pests.
I really don't want another hobby skinning and processing coons, but a guy could get a bunch in these woods if he was so inclined. This guy finally decided to hang himself one time under a feeder.

 

[Stony]

I've had this happen numerous times under the trap doors as well. The coon that was behind him and tripped the door probably had a good laugh over this one.

 

[rondog]

Y'all need some claymores....

 

[alsaqr]

Coons at feeders are a huge pain. Recently a feeder stopped working because coons muddied the photo cell.

I must get a few of those traps.

 

[Blue68f100]

Stony, I took your advice and have some of the Dukes traps (6) for the coons. Have not set them out because the coons have not come back after disposing of 5 earlier. Once they show up I will set them up near the feeder. I will set them this spring to hopefully thin them way down before my peaches are ready.

 

[Stony]

Alsaqr....You can generally find those traps on ebay for around 10 bucks or so apiece. I took mine, since I am always just sticking them in the sand....and welded a longer piece on the bottom to go in a little deeper and hold better. They are the best option I have found for controlling the little bandits so far.

 

[jmorris]

They are only $13 new if you don't want to wait on an auction.

http://www.eders.com/duke-dog-proof-coon-coil-spring-trap.html?&gclid=CP6r5LOu7M8CFQkKaQod3pIOvw

 

[Arkansas Paul]

Just got introduced to coon hunting last year. Joined a new deer lease and the guys there love hunting them and have some great coon dogs.
It's good fun. There's a couple of the ol' country boys in the lease that eat them. I'll pass on that but if they want to eat them, I'll go along and listen to the dogs.

 

[Leanwolf]

You boys better watch out for coons that have Rabies. A lot of them carry it. Yesterday a little four year old girl down in Alabama was severely bitten when a rabid coon attacked her. Also it bit through her father's shoe into his foot when he kicked it trying to force it to let go of his daughter's leg. Both are now on the Rabies medication shots.

Be careful around wild critters.

L.W.

 

[Stony]

Something you won't see often....an albino coon. I had this guy in a trap, and would have released him, but his front legs were injured to the point where he wouldn't have survived. I don't know if he would have gone along with me releasing him anyway and it might have cost me a finger or two.

 

[Nature Boy]

That would be a pelt I'd invest the time into skinning and curing. Pretty cool

I have a pelt from one I killed many moons ago that has a very distinctive red stripe down his back.

 

[Stony]

Never seen one with a red stripe. I thought about skinning the albino one, but I have no idea what I would do with the pelt. Coons for me are just pest control. If I were to cure out the pelt on one, it would just end up thrown into a corner somewhere or given to someone that has an interest in them.

 

[Orcon]

I'd make the missus a nice pair of...mittens?

 

[jmorris]

I can't say I have killed a lot of them but when they don't run away from humans during the daylight hours and allow them to come into close proximity, there is something terminally wrong with them, IME.

"Fixed" my feeders years ago and don't go out of my way to get them at night so they get to eat with the rabbits but have to be gone before the squirrels turn.