Get rid of raccoon, and being pet friendly? (jaguars, cam, Florida)

[tamiznluv]

Originally Posted by Fat Freddy

When the Coons started visited us, I fed them dog food a kibble at a time.
They were pretty gentle as they took it from my fingers.

But there was one guy who would slap his hands together with my fingers between them.
I don't think he was being mean, I think it was his idea of a joke.

So I started feeding them out of a bowl.
Over the years their families grew and their little bowl grew from 4 inches wide to 16 inches.

I fill it several times a day.
They eat about 150-200 lbs of high protein dog food a month.

We have known some of them for years.
They are not pets.
They are wild animals.
But they are part of our extended family.

This year, three mothers had three kits each.
Then there are the males, and some younger females.
I don't really know how many there are.

We bought the forested lot next door for them.
A bunch of them moved in there.
We call it Coon Town.

We also have a little swimming pool for them, a large fountain, and a big bowl of clean water.

When the food runs out, they look in the windows and stand up in front of the glass door to get our attention.
I mounted a bell out by their dish with a cord they can pull.
They haven't caught on to it yet.
But I know they eventually will.

We used to have one that would get a rock from the yard and knock on the door with it.

Wow, Freddy, you are so good to your coons! "Rocky" gets kibble too and whatever is leftover from supper. Beggars CAN be choosers! She is getting pretty picky!

[Fat Freddy]

Our coons are really picky.

A couple of times we ran out or couldn't get their regular brand so I got one that had different colored kibbles.
They picked out all the red ones and threw them all over the porch.

Yesterday I fried up some fish. I put some skins and other pieces in their dish.
They dragged it out and just ate the kibble.
I threw it out in the yard and somebody ate it.

I also put out a bowl of left over egg batter.
At first they didn't like it. Probably because of the spices.
Then the babies got in the bowl and made a mess.
So I put it out in the yard and the next morning it was licked clean.

They really like it when we put grapes or cherries in their dish.
They don't throw those out.

Whenever I find an egg with a hole or crack, I give it to the coons.
They eat everything, including the shells.

[Steve McDonald]

Originally Posted by djf863000

I would like to know if there is a safe way to get rid of a raccoon, that comes in the house and steal cat food.

Every year around this time, for now the 3rd year in a row, a big raccoon comes in the house through the cat door. I am surprise that thing can even fit through it. I don't know if it is the same one, cause the last one I really scare that one off, that i didn't see him around anymore after that, until now. The cats use the cat door to go out when i am not around, so I can't close it. I am not often around, cause I am a very busy person. So I am only home for only a few hours a day, to sleep or rest.

I don't want to put poison, cause i have cats and there are a number of pets in the neighborhood. Same reason for traps.

What I can I do? I live in an area where it is common to see wild animals in the neighborhood.

You need to do something, as raccoons carry a deadly parasite. Look up "Baylisascaris procyonis" on Search and learn the bad news about it. Your pets and you, especially small children, can contract these roundworms. I'd contract your local branch of the State Wildlife Dept. and ask them for advice. They might recommend a professional service that could legally eliminate individual problem animals, like you have.

[Fat Freddy]

Originally Posted by Steve McDonald

You need to do something, as raccoons carry a deadly parasite. Look up "Baylisascaris procyonis" on Search and learn the bad news about it. Your pets and you, especially small children, can contract these roundworms.

That sounds terrible!

I think I have caught it.

Probably explains why I enjoy climbing trees and coming down the trunk head first.

I started climbing trees when I caught Kitty Worms scooping the litter box.

But I always had trouble getting back down.

[tamiznluv]

Originally Posted by Fat Freddy

That sounds terrible!

I think I have caught it.

Probably explains why I enjoy climbing trees and coming down the trunk head first.

I started climbing trees when I caught Kitty Worms scooping the litter box.

But I always had trouble getting back down.

LMAO, I can hardly type, I am laffing so hard!

[Fat Freddy]

Originally Posted by tamiznluv

Wow, Freddy, you are so good to your coons! "Rocky" gets kibble too and whatever is leftover from supper. Beggars CAN be choosers! She is getting pretty picky!

Our coons don't leftovers, at least not when were looking.
They pick them out of their disk and throw them on the porch.
Now we throw them out in the yard and somebody always eats them.

They will be happy when they come back this evening.
I cleaned up their swimming pool and filled it with fresh water.
It's really just a big plaster mixing tub, the same kind I use for litter boxes.

There was a statue of St. Francis beside it that they like to climb on and jump in the water.
They always kept knocking it over, so I took Brother PVC Pipe, and drove him into Sister Earth.
Frankie was hollow so I knocked the bottom out and put him over the stake.

Now the baby coons can climb and jump off his head all they want, and he can still stand there welcoming and blessing everybody who comes down the trail from the woods.

[RocketDawg]

This is just a racoon experience ... has nothing to do with the other posts.

A month or so ago my wife looked out a back window, and a racoon was laying near the base of a tree. It was well after sunrise, a time when you don't usually see them. I was all set to call the city and see if they could come get it (I assumed it was dead, and worried about rabies), but looked out once more and he was gone! Must've either been taking a nap, or more likely, had fallen from the tree and been knocked a bit too hard until he recovered.

I have read that racoons, when they come down a tree headfirst, will turn their paws 180 degrees (in the same position as climbing) but I've never been able to actually see one doing that.

[Fat Freddy]

When it's sunny here, coons come up on the porch and sleep in the sun with the cats.
One of them likes to sleep on her back with her legs sticking up in the air.
She looks like road kill.

This year we had nine baby coons.
We watched their mothers teach them how to climb trees and come back down by turning their claws around.
It took them a couple days to learn, but now they run around in the trees like monkeys.

They like to get on a branch about thirty feet off the ground and have a wrestling match.
It makes me nervous watching them.

As far as I know there is only one species of cat that can turn their claws around like a coon.
It's a tree cat that lives in the jungle.
I forget where it lives.
Maybe Malaysia.

[kukumjacka]

Wife and I hand fed a family of coons in a VRBO rental once. Dogs were with us but we locked them in one of the rooms, went to the back yard and the coons looked at us with anticipation. We first put some food on the ground and they'd take it but then we became brave and was handing them the food. They'd take it from our hands... very VERY gently. And patiently wait for more.
go coons!

[tamiznluv]

Just thought of a cute story you guys might enjoy.....

Our African Grey, Igor, can't tell what kind of animal Rocky is because Rocky does not make any sound when she comes. So, Igor covers his bases by going "arf, arf", then "meow, meow"! Smart birdie!!!