Agree with Dan. Search this forum to find numerous disucssions.

But I'll add my plug for using an electric fence as the solution choice. I finally came to this solution in 2002 after years of dealing with raccoons raiding my summer sweet corn. One of the best garden investments I ever made.

{{gwi:118439}}

Hi Elberdo,

Indeed itâÂÂs most frustrating! IâÂÂm also in So Cal fighting the same problem - that is, the nightly visitors digging up everything, leaving holes and uprooted seedlings or bulbs. The digging started in my raised beds, and then extended into the lawn area. This morning was the first time in weeks I didnâÂÂt see any new holes, so I think what I did is working (crossing my fingers)! (Oops, I hope they didnâÂÂt all go to your side of the town)!

Before getting my blood pressure up, I take solace that my soil is soft and rich in organic matters to attract grubs and grub eaters. And, it may NOT be raccoons doing the digging. A nurseryman in Pasadena told me it could be opossums or other nocturnal animals instead (He thought raccoons are too big).

I wanted to stay away from non-organic grub-killing chemicals, so the only options were biological or physical. It all started in October and could be too late for milk spores, so I started using beneficial nematodes. It wasnâÂÂt cheap and the spraying wasnâÂÂt fun either. Supposedly it would infect and kill grubs in 48 hours, but it certainly didnâÂÂt faze my nightly visitors (3 weeks after the initial application I started noticing dead grubs but new holes kept coming). Then I went with chicken wire to wrap around the beds, unappealing and inconvenient, to say the least.

One day I suddenly realized they never bothered my strawberry bed (1/2 is newly planted Gai Lan and garlic). That bed was previously wired to deter squirrels and rats with Harbor Freight solar fencing where wire is set at 1â and 3â above the wood frame. The free electricity doesnâÂÂt kill, but certainly sends a jolt (PERSONAL experience:-)). Gauge 14 wire is strung along the beds and connected to the unit. In another area chicken wire is used for now. (I think #14 looks better and may change to it later). ItâÂÂs an ongoing fight, but, at least, today was the first good day. Good luck to you!

Penny

{{gwi:15692}}
{{gwi:118440}}

I have both the fence and the trap. The trap is a bit of a nuisance, there are aggressive raccoons who try to swipe you through the cage. I also catch raccoons when I am trying to catch groundhogs. On the other hand. when the soil is dry, and I have a lot of insulating organic debris, the fence can fail.

If I were to place peanut butter on the wires once a month, my record would be perfect though, as shocks through the tongue stay in their memory. Like grandad, I prefer the continuous fence. I have two in two separate gardens, one intermittent and one continuous, and the continuous fence is much better at defending the garden. Continuous on top of chain link fence, with the chain link fence fortified underneath, has a perfect record for me.

Open a pack of Tunafish, toss it inside.....problem solved:

{{gwi:118441}}

Raybo

Are you certain it is raccoons? I have possum, cat, raccoon and skunk nighttime visitors and it took awhile to confirm the skunks were doing 95% of the damage in my yard.

I use melon rind as bait. It is free, and catches both the omnivorous and the vegetarian critters (rabbits and woodchucks). Same for peanut butter on the electric fence, everyone tries to lick it.

I'd think baiting an electric fence would be illegal. That's just cruel.

I think it is the least cruel option. Better that than trapped. Trapping is a virtual death sentence, though I release them about four miles away. I live in a place where, if I were to arm the trap outside the fence, I would catch 365 critters in a year. If I want to catch a groundhog, I have to arm the trap in the morning, if I do it in the evening I will catch a rabbit, opossum, or raccoon.

And I only bait the intermittent fence, which is intermittent (and less effective, it is really for cattle, not for pests) and gives the animal a chance to retreat. The shock is fairly mild. I have tested both fences with my hand (one finger to ground, one to fence) a few times.

I've got rabbits, armadillos. opossums, raccoons and deer but rabbit wire around my garden keeps them all out. Granted my garden is small. A couple of taller poles with mylar strips tied to the top that flap around in the wind also helps.

The addition of a dog might help.

I'll bait with peanut butter to get the the first racoon of the season but after that I rarely bait the live traps and everything wanders in out of curiosity... Raccoons, Groundhogs, Opossum, skunks. The skunk smell is a major attractant to everything else (including more skunks) for some reason.

Before you trap a raccoon make sure that it's allowed where you're at. A few months ago I trapped one inside my home. When the Health Department came to remove it, they gave me a citation for trapping a raccoon without a permit.

So, if a man breaks into my home and acts like a wild animal I can shoot him. But if a wild animal comes into my home it's time to roll out the red carpet!

The biggest irony is that after giving me a citation, the man from the Health Department took the raccoon out back and shot it.

Dennis did you have to pay a fine for the citation? how much was it?

"When the Health Department came to remove it, they gave me a citation for trapping a raccoon without a permit."

You have just got to be kidding!!! Do you live in California where there seems to be a law against everthing. I'm sorry but I think that I would've told them what they could do with their citaion, but the that's just me.

Greg
Southern Nevada

Why call the Health Department? The hard part was done! I'd have took it out back and shot it myself then made a coonskin cap.

That's why I asked the cost of the citation. Here, you need a small game license to even so much as pick up a roadkill coon for the fur. If Dennis could have bought such a license for less than the citation, he could have killed the coon himself. Only I would not have shot it, as the bullet can break cage wires. You could drown, dehydrate, release miles away or feed rat poison.

Maybe if Dennis had asked the Health Department or Humane Society or Fish and Game what their permitted procedure was for nuisance coons, before trapping it, they might have given him a one-time permit, maybe for free. In some places the Humane Society lends out cages, you just might have to pay a deposit.

Always check your local laws first.

You don't need a license here to kill any varmint that's recking havoc or destroying things. Animal control lends the traps here no cost.

with all due respect, taz, peanut butter on the wire is a lot less cruel than a bullet. It educates instantly while not killing.

hey the peanut butter sounds like a great idea for helping with electric fence critter control,,,,,when testing your electric fence, never try the peeing on it method. (free tip)

"Only I would not have shot it, as the bullet can break cage wires. You could drown, dehydrate, release miles away or feed rat poison. "

I see rather than shoot it you prefer to torture it....classy

classy

You bet. I knew a guy who insisted he could shoot a skunk inside a cage. He missed and the bullet ripped the cage wires. Havahart cages are expensive.

You missed that I also said "release miles away" I see you prefer to shoot it rather than let it live...not classy.

And I would prefer that you kill the thing rather than bringing it out to the country and letting it loose near my farm, so that I have to kill it.

Deal with your own problems instead of hauling them off and dumping them on someone else.

Sometimes you can take the trap into the humane society and they will deal with the raccoon if you don't want to do it.

Right, so what's the consensus? What do most of you do when you trap a varmint? Shoot it? Have you ever ripped a cage wire shooting it? Drown, poison, release, hand over to authorities, or other?

I'm thinking that you should investigate & think this through BEFORE you set the trap

If you're in an urban/suburban area, you're probably not supposed shoot stuff on your property anyway--you'll want to check out your options with the local authorities

For that case, I would give appropriate fencing (electric OR the standard wire with a floppy top & buried bottom) a determined effort first--usually there's not just one or two raccoons/ground hogs/rabbits in the vicinity

If you're in a rural area where you're allowed to shoot stuff, why trap it first?
Just set up an alarm, then go out & check that the culprit is shootable
(rather than, say, your neighbor's beloved dog)

When you drown a caged skunk, you are not likely to accidentally miss and drown your neighbors child or window or what have you. Not to mention it cleans the cage without ripping it open. Poisoning also less likely to hit your neighbor as long as you stay and watch that the skunk eats it, and you don't just leave it there for your neighbors child or pet to find and play with.

But I guess according to some people who likeeatplants, bullets are gentle and good, never miss, and are the only way to kill.

Bullets are fast, and if shot into the brain, death is instantaneous. Less cruel than the panic of drowning or perhaps slow death of poison.

I'd prefer not to kill the local wildlife, so I fence them out.

There is a huge problem in my area, of idiot people releasing wildlife and domestic pets that they don't want "out in the country", passing on the problem of dealing with it to someone else.

Very few of you are within driving distance of a location where that released wildlife will not become a pest to someone else.

I had critters eating my corn, lettuce, spinach, peppers, and other plants this spring. I put up electric fence, took about an hour, and it all stopped. Highly recommended.

if shot into the brain

Sure, but are you that good a shot? How many times have you shot an animal right in the brain, even caged? It's just as possible to have to shoot the poor animal many times, is that not cruel as well?

Seriously you guys should read accounts about the alternatives the guy suggested. Drowning, poisoning and dying of thirst are nasty ways to go and are torture to the animal. I wasn't advocating killing the animal. I'm saying that I would have the respect enough to kill it quickly with a bullet to the head than prolong its pain.

The first garden book I bought on growing edibles mentioned animals eating your plants and suggested to plant enough for you and them. I end up giving stuff away as it is so I don't feel the need to trap or kill animals to save a few extra vegetables or fruits.

I'm saying that I would have the respect enough to kill it quickly with a bullet to the head than prolong its pain.

I doubt that you even own a gun or have ever taken an NRA safety course. Always be sure of your backdrop. Every year there are preventable shootings and deaths because people don't always know how to handle guns. I bet that you could not hit a caged animal in the head from two paces. Last time I watched a guy try, he ended up with several gutshots, a torn cage, and a long wait for the animal to die. Was that kind?

So what if I listed alternatives to guns? These are the facts of life and death. You didn't bother asking if I "preferred" or even used any of them, you just went straight for the character assassination. Typical judging behavior from holier than thou types.

In answer to those questions about my Health Department citation:

happyday: No fine, the first one is just a warning. And the man from the Health Department was very apologetic as he is from rural Colorado and thinks these rules are kind of silly.

I can buy a permit to trap vermin, so I would not get cited, but I would be committing a serious crime if I killed them. Only the Health Department can do that.

As far as asking the Health Department first, I found this raccoon at 8:00 AM on Sunday, in my bedroom. I felt it more prudent to act first, call later.

Greg: No, I don't live in California, I live in the Chicago suburbs. I can understand them municipality not wanting people shooting at animals in their yards, but the rules may be a little extreme.

Not sure if this was already mentioned, but you can go a different route and try and kill all the grubs with beneficial nematodes, thereby removing the incentive for the varmints to dig up your yard.

Here is a link that might be useful: beneficial nematodes

This (from Dennis) is pretty funny:
"As far as asking the Health Department first, I found this raccoon at 8:00 AM on Sunday, in my bedroom. I felt it more prudent to act first, call later. "

I can't believe they even warned you, given the circumstances

[[[.....Sure, but are you that good a shot? How many times have you shot an animal right in the brain, even caged?....]]]

Yes, I am that good a shot, thank you for asking. Any animal I've ever shot has died instantaneously. If you don't have a good clear shot, you don't shoot.

My family has raised their own beef, pork, and lamb for 60 years. A lot of animals have been shot on my property and every single one of them died instantly. (Chickens get their heads chopped off and rabbits get knocked in the head.)

The brain is not a difficult target. If the animal is calm, it will stand there looking right at you. Even a wild caged animal will stop moving and stand and watch you if you don't crowd it.

I've never shot a caged animal. I fence the wildlife out of my garden.

If you don't want to shoot or aren't allowed to shoot, take the poor thing down to the humane society and have it killed by lethal injection, which is also an easy way to die. Just don't haul it out into the country, or into a city park, and release it to go and annoy someone else. It's your pest, you deal with it yourself.

If you have an animal trapped and caged, you can also use the exhaust from your car to kill it. Carbon Monoxide is supposed to be painless.

If you have a trapped raccoon, be extra careful that it doesn't bite, scratch, or spit on you. Raccoons are a major rabies vector.

Any animal I've ever shot has died instantaneously. 60 years. A lot of animals have been shot on my property and every single one of them died instantly

I don't believe you. Sounds too good to be true, you must be making it up. Everyone knows that chickens do not die instantly after getting their heads chopped off.

For those who do try to shoot an animal in a cage, a word of advice. Stand well back. You are just as likely to hit a wire of the cage on the way in as on the way out, and if you do you could be hit by shrapnel.

Also, get all pets, children and idiots out of the area and secured. A child or pet could wander into your line of sight just as you pull the trigger. You can tell the judge about how you were just trying to be kind to the trapped varmint when you killed little Billy instead.

Also, killing an animal is not kind, no matter how you do it. You are still KILLING them. The only kind thing to do is to release it back into the wild. Be aware that an animal may travel many miles to get back to it's home territory (your garden).

For those who rant that it's unkind to release an animal into what might be another animals territory, you are right. There might be a territory dispute, and I'm sure that when you explain this to the animal you've trapped, it will beg you to kill it instantly with a bullet to the brain, rather than let it live and endure a possible territory dispute.

And of course, since oregonwoodsmoke now thinks he owns every inch of North America, there are no wild areas left where even one trapped coon or skunk can be released without himself being personally affected by it, so you will have to kill the animal instead. Otherwise you risk being unkind to oregonwoodsmoke.

Bottom line is that there are several ways to manage the problem. I listed a few, to offer help to those who may be able to use it. Nobody asked me what I actually do, but a couple holier than thou knowitalls used my advice as a jumping off point for their rants. This thread has turned into a bit of a trollfest as a result. Looks like common sense and rationalism has taken a backseat to politically correct emotionalism lately.

About:
"Also, killing an animal is not kind, no matter how you do it.
You are still KILLING them.
The only kind thing to do is to release it back into the wild."

This is not right.
(And this comes from someone who traps the palmetto bugs she finds in the house, to release them outside.)

Most creatures in the wild die young and if you trap a social animal like a ground hog or a raccoon and then release it far away, its prospects are short & unpleasant.

It may feel good to set it free, but it's kinder to take responsibility for what happens to it after you've trapped it

if you trap a social animal like a ground hog or a raccoon and then release it far away, its prospects are short & unpleasant.

Using that logic we should kill all orphans and immigrants, too. That's kinder than a new chance at life somewhere else?

Anyway I'm interested in likeeatplants reaction to the carbon monoxide idea. Does suffocation pass the kindness test?

"I doubt that you even own a gun or have ever taken an NRA safety course"

This is irrelevant. FWIW I have taken one as a teenager for a .22 rifle I was using.

"I bet that you could not hit a caged animal in the head from two paces."

This is irrelevant. True I've never shot a caged animal. I used to shoot deer at my Uncles house in WV. He had a salt lick set up down a hillside and we couldn't have been more than 35 yards away for this. I'd like to think if I could hit a deer from this distance I could shoot an animal right in front of me. Sorry your friend can't do it.

"long wait for the animal to die. Was that kind?"

It's relative isn't it. How long a wait? Longer than suffering through dehydration or poisoning as was suggested?

"you just went straight for the character assassination. Typical judging behavior from holier than thou types."

You character is called into question by your statements. Advocating killing an animal slowly (which you did in your alternatives to a gun) when unnecessary is cruel. Why kill and animal slowly and prolong it's suffering when it can be done more efficiently?

"Also, killing an animal is not kind, no matter how you do it. You are still KILLING them"

You must not have thought this through. Try thinking about what you said.

"Everyone knows that chickens do not die instantly after getting their heads chopped off."

When you cut a chicken's head off it's dead. Anything the body does after separation is just a neuro-muscular reaction.

You need to re-evaluate the way you think.

You need to re-evaluate the way you think.

No thanks, I don't want to think like you do. I prefer to be honest and reasonable. I'll leave the evasions and misrepresentations to you and your friends.

I also mentioned setting free. Oregon and Carol insist that setting free is cruel. Who needs to reevaluate their thinking again?

I also mentioned drowning. Oregon countered with suffocation by carbon monoxide. Answer the question, planteater. Is that kind? Which is kinder, drowning or the exhaust pipe?

Is oregon and planteater the same person? I suspect this since planteater defends oregons ideas as if they were his own.

Whoever they are, they are not very smart. They insist that a person can only dispose of a caged animal by shooting it, but that it is irrelevant that they know NRA gun safety rules or be able to hit the animal in the cage, but that it is also incredibly easy and kind to hit the animal right in the brain on the first try, every time, and the animal will die instantly, painlessly, and it will be kind. Make up your mind(s), there are some contradictory statements in there.

When you cut a chicken's head off it's dead
Wrong! Mike the Headless Chicken

Try thinking about what you said.
Are you saying that after you kill an animal, it is not dead? So you admit that you contradicted yourself about the chicken!

Well, the solutions are out there, now, for anyone who has an animal problem. I guess that once a gardener traps a varmint, it's up to them how they kill it, as long as it's legal. It's none of my business how they do it. I'll leave planteater and oregon and carol to worry and fret over the idea that somewhere out there, somebody might be setting a trapped wild animal free again.

Oh by the way, my friend was able to hit the animal in the cage, several times, and was able to reuse the cage afterward, despite the torn wire.

Is it legal to shoot baited deer in WV?

Everyone knows that chickens do not die instantly after getting their heads chopped off.

They die very quickly. It's just nerves that keep them flapping.

The only kind thing to do is to release it back into the wild. Be aware that an animal may travel many miles to get back to it's home territory (your garden).

What would be the point in trapping it or taking it miles away which is illegal is most states if not all? Take care of your own problems.

How many mice live in your home happyday? You don't sound very happy and you talk a lot about what's legal. Most laws made in the last 10-15 years were put in place just to take our $.
So do you belong to some animal rights group or are you just spouting off for some reaction? I've got a word for that!

I think that this is getting kinda silly.

The OP was from suburban southern CA. Where is he going to release the raccoons--into the desert? Would that be kind?

Let's shoot some common sense at this. One needs to consider one's surroundings and the impact of our actions on the other people around us.

If you live near a recreational area and dislike the folks who use it, then by all means, go set the raccoons loose there.

Kidding...
CarolinianNJer (exNJer)

I think that this is getting kinda silly.

Yes it certainly is that. It would appear that there are some childish persons here who only know how to misbehave to get negative attention.

LOL! Ignorance is Bliss, for some anyway.

"No thanks, I don't want to think like you do."
"Everyone knows that...."
"I doubt that you..."
"I don't believe you. Sounds too good to be true, you must be making it up"
"I bet that you..."

It's almost pointless to have a conversation with you here. You make too many baseless assumptions like the quotes above. I asked you to re-evaluate how you think, not to think like me.

"Is it legal to shoot baited deer in WV?"
"...as long as it's legal."

Does legality trump morality and ethics?

The United States passed a law called the "Fugitive Slave Act", mandating that people return runaways slaves to their masters. Many people refused to do this and harbored slaves. While this was a clear violation of the law it certainly was not wrong to do this. The law was wrong.

More recent and relevant: In 2007 California passed a law limiting the amount of hours you can tether your dog to 3 hours at time. This was done because some people keep their dogs chained up for their entire lives. They spend years on these chains and sometimes their collars become embedded in their skin. The fact that this was legal before 2007 and illegal now has nothing to do with whether it is morally right or wrong.

I bring this up because you stated "as long as it's legal" that options like poisoning, dehydration, and drowning are acceptable. Legality has nothing to do with morality. It is a self-centered view to purposely prolong an animals suffering simply because 1) it's legal 2) it's convenient. While humans are animals we like consider ourselves more sophisticated than the other species of the planet. Humans should be HUMANE. That means killing animals quickly and respectfully with the minimum amount of suffering possible.

I can't believe some of these posts. i guess there's no laws in torture where some of you live. There are areas where their is less wildlife why not move if you have a disgust for gods creatures. There are plenty of things to do to control them rather then kill them.I am just shocked by how low the value is for a life with some of you.. Yes sick or injured should be distroyed but thank god drowning is not in our laws.. Have any of you ever almost drowned or been gagged its not a very pleasant death but then again i'm sure some of you could care less.Having respect for wildlife should be a priority along with educating yourselves on humane removal and relocating rather then killing..

My only add is if you kill it, and it is eatable, eat it. We live in a food chain breaking a link hurts the chain.

Nancy, your concern for the animals is noteworthy. But it should be noted that it is illegal to relocate trapped animals in some states, my state being one of these. The concern is in part due to the possible transfer of rabies infected animals. Also, it should be noted that PAWS does not advocate relocating alimals as a means of control. See link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: PAWS Wildlife

As I stated above, take care of your own problems and don't make them someone else's. You armchair animal rights freaks take the cake. If you're so worried about them then open a shelter. Put your money where your finger tips are. LOL!
Nancy are you actively doing anything about animal rights or just being an armchair activist? It's easy to sit there behind your computer and act worried. Some people do it just for the activity or response.
Do you think it's humane to make animals dependent on your garden? Are you one of those people who take bread to the park for the ducks making them dependent on humans?
If animals are starving bad enough to come into dangerous territory (my garden) then the humane thing to do is put them out of their misery.
If it's an overpopulation problem (made by rights activists) then they need thinning. Raccoons are far from endangered.

How much money do you want to spend.In California it is illegal to have a steady current on the electric fence,You will find cats and other animals killed by biting down on the wire and not letting go.
I know a guy that traps the varmint in a havahart trap and to avoid the claws he throws it into a 55 gallon drum of water and he say's when the bubbles stop coming to the surface they fall right out!
Shoot Shovel and Shut-up is another option,Whatever way you decide to do it don't advertise it on this forum,Some people have very soft hearts.Hell California just spent $900,000 on a new lethal injection chamber !!! I could have saved the taxpayers alot of money by just purchasing a length of rope at the hardware store and trees are easy to find,But no that would be to harsh!!Go figure