Raccoons!

[AaronP]

What is the best way to get rid of raccoons in your corn and gardens? When I trap I fill the cages every night, and I only have so many cages. Shooting them isn't effective, and not many people hunt them with dogs up here. Heck, if anyone knows guys who do hunt raccoons with dogs in W.NY or NE Ohio, let me know, I have 150 acres myself and farmers on each side that want their 'coons gone, so about 600 acres total. The darn ground hogs are a problem too, and I don't have Jack Russell to ground hunt them anymore...I think I just need a bigger tractor and some hunting dogs (again).

 

[DocHeb]

What are you doing with them when you trap them?

 

[polo1665]

What are you doing with them when you trap them?

I know of a couple people down my way who coon hunt and several who raise coon dogs for contests and breeding. I think the lack of hunters has to do with the price they are getting for the hides, not worth the time for alot of people, they would rather be deer hunting. I was surprised to find that I don't have a lot of racoons. I see evidence of them in the woods but not out in the open. Groundhogs are a different story though. I have shot over twenty of them this year in a three acre field. Another one comes out of the woods to occupy a hole just as soon as I dispatch the original owner. Kind of fun to shoot them though

 

[AaronP]

After I trap them, they are shot with a .22, usually. No one really want's them released near where they live or farm or whatever. I also found that if I release them they often come back. I don't like trapping them anyhow, I'd rather have someone get some enjoyment from hunting them. I will get a 'coon dog eventually, but I already have two dogs and I don't need anymore right now. The one dog will track (hot nose) and tree, but she runs away at the sound of a gun, the other dog does not hunt.

 

[AaronP]

Yeah, the groundhogs are a pain and their holes always threaten to break an ankle or an animals leg. Smoking them out works well, shooting works okay. The best solution I have found is to find a group of people who hunt with Jack Russell Terriers or other small Terriers. The dogs go down the holes and pull out ALL of the groundhogs. You can clear a 10 acre field in one day with one or two dogs. This can mean of reduction of 20 to 30 groundhogs in a day. It takes the groundhogs a while to repopulate after that, but not too long. Those little dogs also solve raccoon problems at the same time, a surprising number of raccoons will use groundhog holes as homes.

 

[N80]

We had a real problem with them getting into our bird feeders and I live in the suburbs but on a 1 acre wooded lot. I got rid of them by shooting them. Run outside with a light and 22, run them up a tree, shoot them between the eyes. It took a while and I killed 7 or 8 and then they never came back. But, that was bird feeders and one acre.

I'd be hesitant to put a small dog on a coon. I know Jack Russells are tough but a big old boar coon could kill one. But that's not the big problem. Rabies is.

 

[mbohuntr]

Suggest you ask on "bucket of guts" or trapperman. Whole bunch of respectable trappers and ADC people there.

 

[CurlyDave]

I'd be hesitant to put a small dog on a coon. I know Jack Russells are tough but a big old boar coon could kill one...

When I lived in CA, we had coons come by every week or two.

My neighbor had a Rottweiler, which was very aggressive toward other dogs, cats, people and raccoons. Victor would get into fights with the coons at least once a month. Sometimes Victor killed the coon, sometimes the coon sent Victor home pretty seriously torn up.

I have a hard time imagining a Jack Russel killing a coon...

In general even a mediocre very big guy will mop the floor with a good little guy.

 

[jinjimbob]

Killing one raccoon just creates more space for another raccoon to move in on.

The same with all animals, same with a coyote. Killing one does nothing.

 

[MikeD74T]

Three strands of electric fence around the garden works pretty well on coons. 4" -8" -12". Keep the grass trimmed underneath, turn on at sunset -off in the morning. MikeD74T