I may be hunting in my own home

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SodaPop

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I had a racoon come into my house last night. The raccoon came in threw the cat door in the basement. I put one of those pet doors downstairs so I wouldn't have to wake up at 5am to let my cat in.

Well.....5hrs ago I found opened up box of Tastycake products by my basement door, and muddy animal foot prints that don't match my cat's paws. I'm almost positive they are racoon tracks (if I have time I'll scan the box I found them on).

Does this coon have balls or what?

I picked up a 'have a heart' trap for the sucker, but I'm not sure where I should set the trap. My house backs up against a park and there are plenty of critters running around. I'm kind of worried about setting up the trap and catching a neighbors pet.

Solution:

I think his racoon has to be pretty small if he's coming threw a cat door, so I'm sure he's a dumb and curious one.

Do I set up the trap in the house or outside?

This guy took 2 Tastycake apple pies last night and I figured I could put one in the trap and try and get him tonight.


Should I call animal control and have this guy killed (I was told they would do that if I call them) or should I just release him at a park that is 2 miles from me?

I wouldn't think a critter coming into a house for apple pie would be a sign of rabies. Maybe just the midnight munchies?

:uhoh:

I have no experience with trapping animals, so any advice would be helpful.
 
Mr. Coon is pretty smart. This is typical behavior, so I don't think you have much possibility of rabies.

Sounds like you have the trapping down, catch him and transport him. Two miles is pretty close - furthur the better.
 
Does this coon have balls or what?

Depends if it's a male or a female...:scrutiny:


I think his racoon has to be pretty small if he's coming threw a cat door, so I'm sure he's a dumb and curious one

You would be surprised on how large a coon can come through a small opening, and they are very smart.


Do I set up the trap in the house or outside?

Sounds like he likes it in your house, but either will work.


or should I just release him at a park that is 2 miles from me?

Not sure what their territory is, but as Al said I would take him as far away as possible. Coons go to where the food is so it is not uncommon for them to come into your home.

Good luck!
 
I scanned the box with the prints on it, but I am having trouble posting it on THR ( too big) and I don't have time to mess around with it. Anyone that wants to see the prints email me if you've got the time to shrink it down and post it on THR.

Gotta get to work...........
 
Think twice before you drop it off somewhere. Thats illegal in these parts. Pest animals may only be released on the same property they were caught on (like a 4th degree misdemeanor, punishable by a fine I think )

If you know its just going to be out in the middle of nowhere thats one thing. In a park or near other people's property is pretty inconsiderate, seeing as how its a problem animal and there are so many of them around already.

Personally I would probably trap it and shoot it. But then I've caught a dozen coons within a few hundred yards of my house within the last 2-3 months and there are still plenty of signs of them around.
 
Personally I would probably trap it and shoot it
Click to expand...

I wish, but I'd have to drive about 1hr from here to do that. If I get anything tonight I'll probable call up the township in the morning. The people that I've talked to so far said the township would probable kill them anyway.

We've got fox around here but we need something around here to prey on the bigger rodents.

11:10pm Pennsylvania time.

Trap set and waiting.....................
 
I had the same thing happen when we lived in town. Woke up one morning to hear crunching in the kitchen- but both my cats were in bed with me! Crept into the kitchen (not quietly enough) in time to see the coon's tail going around the corner headed for the cat door. I rigged all kinds of snares and nets to no avail. Finally gave up and started locking the cat door at night. Kind of defeated the purpose of the cat door, then. We ended up building a house in the hill country with a new cat door. Have lots of coons here, but none have made it thru the door (yet) and it's been 6 years. I've borrowed the neighbor's live trap and eliminated several coons, possums and wild cats. Shoot them if you can, or transport several miles (10+ in my case).

Good luck- them coons is smart
 
Do you have the cat's food anywhere near the cat door? If so, I would consider moving it to another part of the house, that's what may have drawn him in. Coons like catfood more than just about anything I've found. If the pies don't work, try cat food or a can of cheap, smelly sardines. Those work good too.
 
My father-in-law has coons and they are a frequent problem. He has tried trapping them and releasing them three miles away, but they still come back. He called animal control when a baby coon got stuck in the trap. He was afraid he might have injured it (he would have no problem shooting it, but he didn't want it to suffer and would rather not deal with 1) shooting inside city limits and 2) a dead racoon). All they did was come and release it right on his property.

So I'm not sure what my advice would be. :D

-Pytron
 
What if it's a skunk

Sodapop,

What do you do if you trap the little bugger inside your basement and it's a skunk?

jdkelly
 
My 78 year old Grandmother found that a racoon had decided to set up housekeeping in her basement.

She beat it to death with a 2by4.

Never mess with grandma.





PS to commemorate her victory I sent her a Coon hunting license.

PS I'd try the live trap at first.
 
There's a couple of young ones hanging out around my hunting cabin. They come around at night and watch me watching them. After viewing the length of the shed rattle I found on the doorstep...I hope they eat snakes.
 
GOT HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Got up this morning and was about to go on my way to work and saw the trap was sprung.

This guy is the grossest coon I've ever seen. He looks like he just crawled out of a sewer.

Called the township and told them to pick him up. I called them over a week ago and they never responded.

Tomorrow is trash day and I guess this guy knows the schedule.
 
You should see my cat. He's sitting about 10yds from the cage and laughing at the raccoon.:D

I didn't post this last week, but, I caught my cat in the cage last Wed. I'm assuming my cat has had run-ins with this raccoon over the last few weeks. I'm sure he'll be glad to see him go.

Scratch one for Soda.:)
 
Sounds like you got one of the infamous tile coons!
They frequent field tiles and drainage diches for getting from point A to B unseen, and yes they are pretty gross to behold!

I don't know what to think of it, but I had a guy tell me just a day or two ago that when he catches stuff in a live trap he wraps it in plastic and pipes the exhaust from his car into it. I really don't know how humane that is. CO is supposed to kill quickly and especially in such a small area...... I suppose its a fairly viable alternative to shooting if you can't get anyone else to take care of it.
 
Did you bait the trap with Krimpets, SP? Your roots are showing("Tastykakes"). Remember when the rest of the world didn't know what a cheesesteak or a hoagie was? I like coons, but not in my house.
 
If that coon is released, he'll probably come back. Bears do and so do coyotes. Then your kitty won't think it's so funny anymore. I suspect the Tastycake is a draw for them and if you went to Hostess or Nabisco products, they mav visit less frequently. Suggest getting him attracted to the neighbor's house instead. :)

Can't kill the critter now since the Animal peepul know about him.
 
The township animal control people said the raccoon is going to be killed. :(

There apparently has been a rise in rabies cases in PA and any animal that waltzes onto residential property get the death penalty.
 
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