Racoon Rant!!!!

[Joey]

Well I just need to vent here for a moment.

 

The only upside is that we are moving on May 1, out of this racoon inhabited home that we have struggled to keep racoon free for 7 years now, to no avail. The landlord was no help at all, aside from giving us a homemade trap made from a small grocery cart.

 

Paul was getting the boat ready in the garage today and the *#@%^& Racoons somehow got underneath the tarp and chewed our GPS unit. They also knocked it off the dash which in turn hit the key into the on position and the battery is sucked dry and may be screwed.

 

I can't believe a homeowner would let them just stay put and not worry about the destruction they must be doing to his attic and possibly electrical wires.

 

All I can say is good riddance to the old place and old landlord.

 

 

Okay, rant over. Whew!!! I feel a bit better now.

 

Joey

[douG]

Nasty lil buggers ain't they, joey? Do you have a new place picked out yet?

[Roy]

Maybe if you let him swallow the map chip you'll have a fix on him and be able to blow his li' azz outta the house.

[ccmtcanada]

Wow...sorry to hear about the damage Joey!! I think it's lucky that the boat wasn't in the water...the fact that they key turned may have been them trying to steel the thing and not accidental. Those @#$% things are pretty resourceful when they want to be.

[Mike Pike]

Slumlords! You sure do hear about more bad ones than good ones. Too bad it's forcing you to move out Joey 'cuz moving is such a pain!

 

Better luck at your next place.

[Northhunter]

If they're in the attic that could be a health risk?

 

Those buggers cr@p where they sleep, if it's a family group it accumulates over time (years).

[Joey]

Roy and Cliff Thanks for the laugh, just what I needed.

 

DouG, yes, we found a place and confirmed it on the weekend. Just need to sign the lease and have them to the renovations they wanted to do before we move in and we're good to go. It's not too far from where we are now, but is racoon free. I'll have to make sure not to leave a trail for our old residents. Should have charged them rent, maybe they would have left then

 

Joey

[Headhunter]

I feel for yah Joey! The distructive power of a Racoon is not limited to breaking into boats and houses. I've recently learned that Raccon poop is extremely toxic, especially to young children. Many are infected with a parasite that is passed along, through their feces. If a young child picks up th poop, then touches their mouth, they can get VERY ILL. Brain degeneration, organ problems, all in all, really bad news.

I checked with the MNR about a year ago, to find out what I as a property owner can do to get rid of them. Here's what I learned;

-you can only move them one kilometre if you trap them

-you cannot kill them within the city limits

-you can trap them, move them out of the city to private rural land and dispose of them there, but you must first document the damage they have caused, to justify your actions.

-only the MNR has jurisdiction over these animals... the Human Society does not care (unless you break one of the above rules!)

-moth balls are not a favorite of Racoons! (bleach works well too)

HH

PS... I think Paul would look good in a Coon skin hat!

[Joey]

Yes HH, I did my homework on them when I found racoon feces in the solarium. It's called encephalitis and it is not good for you. But according to who you ask, both mine and Paul's brain's are fine

 

We did trap them at first and took them as far as we were allowed and let them go, but I imagine that only became someone else's problem. But every year they came back and just kept having babies, so you can't trap them after they have babies or the babies die in the attic. It was a hard battle and I got sick of it. I don't know why the landlord wouldn't just seal up the attic like I asked him too. A bit of chicken wire or even some plywood might have done the trick. Oh well, not my problem anymore.

 

Joey

[Terry]

I would kill the bugger

 

but as a slumlord landlord myself, I don't know if I feel responsible for the wildlife in the area

I would try to help, but I don't see me being financially responsible to kill, feed, catch, transport, spayed or neutered animals that I don't own

[Whopper]

But according to who you ask, both mine and Paul's brain's are fine

Joey

 

 

 

Sorry for your loss and good luck with your move.

 

Whopper

[Beans]

" PS... I think Paul would look good in a Coon skin hat! "

 

Yep...I think he would look good wearing one too

 

Good luck on the move...I'd volunteer but with my bad back it's "SAVE THE LAMPSHADES FOR ME ! "

[Joey]

Already did that Clampet, about 10 times. More just keep coming

 

Yep, maybe a nice coon hat before we leave

 

Joey

[lookinforwalleye]

Sorry to hear about your GPS Joey, Racoons and mice etc. can cause a lot of damage to personal property and that is the exact reason why i take everything out of my boat before it goes into storage.

 

Just a thought but could your insurance company help out?

[Greencoachdog]

Here's the answer:

 

 

 

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!!... 'Possum and cheese grits! MY FAVORITE!!!

[Roy]

Your landlord sounds like he doesn't want to hurt those critters. I agree with him. Maybe you should be a little more like him and be nice to the racoons. They might get hungry while you're gone....why don't you leave a few fish for them up in the attic?

[Joey]

Actually Roy, he told me he kills the ones at his place and suggested I do the same. I just couldn't bring myself to do that, besides the fact that its illegal (although the thought did cross my mind a time or two). Guess I just don't have it in me. But they are well fed. The neighbours beside us have an illegal chicken coop that the racoons go and steal feed from every night. Ain't livin in the city grand

 

Joey

[Daplumma]

Glad you are getting out of there.I remember a few years back you posting that they fell thru your cieling..or am I just having a senior moment?Around here we kill them on sight,if you see them in the daylight they are prolly rabid,at least here they are.

Joe

[Joey]

Yes Joe, you are right, one of the babies fell through the slats in the solarium roof and I had to built a staircase out of the beer cases and put it back remember It was so cute, but terrified and cried for two days until I did that, then it shut up!!

 

Joey

[Big Cliff]

Not that it matters now that you are moving but...... What about asking MNR for the name of a local trapper, find out if his licence covers the area you live in and if it does he might be happy to trap them for you. I'm not sure what a good coon pelt is worth these days but they won't be coming back again.

 

A friend of mine has a beaver that has been destroying trees on his property so I called MNR to find out if I could shoot it. Yup, no problem, I don't even have to worry about case time is what they told me as long as I can convince any CO that shows up I am not hunting deer.

[pikehunter]

Illegal to kill raccoons???

 

Are they not vermin? Are they not more or less a rodent? I think I would find a way to rid them from my home if no one else was going to do anything about it. I have no compasion for skunks, coons or possums!

[Terry]

many towns have strange laws..I had a real problem with squirrels..yeah tree rats..I couldn't shoot them. if I trapped them I couldn't take them very far..I couldn't poison them..some other animal could eat it....but you can poison animals/rodents if they get in your home

 

so I put enough poison ( the type that dehydrates them and they go outside looking for water) in my attic to kill 10 elephants....it cut the tree rat population by about 80%.....now that's selective harvest I should cut down all the black walnut trees down around my house , so the tree rats will leave for good

[easton13th]

Had a raccoon problem at our old house as well. Built a pond and a fountain and all the bells and whistles..filled it with Koi fish..well the raccoons loved it they ate all my Koi...brought on all there friends for dinner. They were living under our deck....we fed them, housed them, and they never said THANKS, they just hung around and enjoyed themselves. We showed them though we moved. I think in the long run they beat us. I am sure they are still living the good life somewhere.