Raccoons, how do you relocate them ?

[bj66]

Hey T.J. - you have trapped Skunks for relocation? How you do that with out getting stunk on?

 

Well Puc,

 

In one summer alone I trapped 21 skunks. It was so bad around here. I called the village and told them how many I had trapped and said maybe it was time to get an exterminator in the village. The kind and very funny lady said. "I think we already have one" Boy, I had that one coming.

 

Any how. A skunk can't spray unless they get there tails above there back. So in a trap they are not able to do that without a lot of trouble. I put a rug over the trap to calm them down and then pick the trap up and put it in the back of my truck. Out to the country I go till I run into state land. I take the trap and open the door with the rug still over the top and point it in the direction I want the skunk to go. Sometimes I have to shake the cage to get them to come out. They always go straight ahead and never have I had one look back at me. Tails are down dragging on the ground and away they go.

 

Every skunk has a different marking or pattern to the black and white. Some are very beautiful in the way they are marked. When you see as many has I have through the years up close and personal. You take notice of such things.

 

Tuna fish or peanut butter are the best bait for me to catch just about anything.

 

Out here on the farm if I see skunks I take care of them. Alot of the time they are sick. The exception is in the spring. Snow melt usually forces them out of their homes in culverts and such.

 

If I have a live trap out, I attach a wire to the trap and make a couple of revolutions around the trap, with the other end of the wire a safe distance away. If you catch a skunk you can stand a safe distance away, pull on the wire, and it will roll the trap upside down allowing the door to open and letting the skunk walk out. Once it is out and away from the trap I can dispatch it. The trap doesn't stink and I don't shoot a hole in it. I immediately bury the skunk. Of course I live on a farm and rabies is a concern with other animals.

[CaseyJ955]

We have mtn lions up here that turns them into poop. A shame, I like the wildlife and just starting to see the rabbit population come back. Havnt seen raccoons and very few fox for quite awhile and they used to be everywhere.

[cowpuc]

Out here on the farm if I see skunks I take care of them. Alot of the time they are sick. The exception is in the spring. Snow melt usually forces them out of their homes in culverts and such.

 

If I have a live trap out, I attach a wire to the trap and make a couple of revolutions around the trap, with the other end of the wire a safe distance away. If you catch a skunk you can stand a safe distance away, pull on the wire, and it will roll the trap upside down allowing the door to open and letting the skunk walk out. Once it is out and away from the trap I can dispatch it. The trap doesn't stink and I don't shoot a hole in it. I immediately bury the skunk. Of course I live on a farm and rabies is a concern with other animals.

 

Hearing that brother!! Would LOVE to ride shot gun in the cab of that great big gorgeous tractor of yours while cradling a 22/250 doing varmint control!! Would even be willing to wear a cloths pin on my snoot and doing the burying as we cleaned up the farm.. Had a little experience with doing that years ago.. Staying with a buddy at his parents farm (they were hog farmers), guieneies (funny looking birds) went crazy about 2 am,, grabbed the shotguns and ran out the door.. Heard the chickens screaming up a storm - first thought was fox.. Look at my buddy when we got to the chicken coup - could hear wrestling inside, said I'll open the door and you blast em. Shined the light in, animal took off running around inside the chicken coop = got half the word "SKU" out and buddy pulled the trigger.. OH MY GOSH - and I thought they smelled bad when killed onthe road!! TOTALLY different - instantly brought tears to my eyes - thinking like tear gas.. WOWZY!!

 

We have mtn lions up here that turns them into poop. A shame, I like the wildlife and just starting to see the rabbit population come back. Havnt seen raccoons and very few fox for quite awhile and they used to be everywhere.

 

You ever see em Casey? Have spent a fair amount of time in the Black Hills but not much riding at night. I do know I camped way back on that two track that leads west toward the waterfall away from that lodge down in Spear Fish Canyon. Rode Tweeks (my 1st Gen) thru there over to Devils Tower one time and camped on the quad trail not to far from the Wyoming State line (small sign way back in there). Lots of Elk all night long, then heard Cougar (mountain lion) screaming = chasing something.. Place is WILD for sure!! They are AWESOME animals! You guys got a wolf population? I always stop at that camp ground where the guys raises Wolves,, on Iron Mountain Rd - right at the intersection where you turn right to go to Needles Highway.. Always meant to ask him if there is a wolf population in The Hills but always forget to... Nice people - good place to camp if ya been long on the prairie or up in the mountains and need a shower... Do love your area!!! Hey,, if I make it out there this year for the Rally - would love to hook up - maybe Pie at the Pie Butt 26.2 in Newell at the Blue Line Diner if BJ puts it on this year??? Would love to say howdy!!

[T.J.]

Out here on the farm if I see skunks I take care of them. Alot of the time they are sick. The exception is in the spring. Snow melt usually forces them out of their homes in culverts and such.

 

If I have a live trap out, I attach a wire to the trap and make a couple of revolutions around the trap, with the other end of the wire a safe distance away. If you catch a skunk you can stand a safe distance away, pull on the wire, and it will roll the trap upside down allowing the door to open and letting the skunk walk out. Once it is out and away from the trap I can dispatch it. The trap doesn't stink and I don't shoot a hole in it. I immediately bury the skunk. Of course I live on a farm and rabies is a concern with other animals.

 

 

Yup BJ,

 

If I lived on a farm:farmer: I would relocate underground also. Here in the Village of Lake Orion, they kind of frown on using a gun and my yard just ain't big enough to bury all them critters. I once took a BIG coon out in the country near a big, big corn field. When I opened the trap that BIG coon came right after me. That sucker was mad. I kept kicking the trap to keep him away from me and finally hit him with it before he took off. Did not have time to pull my pistol out cause he was coming after me. Lesson learned. Next time pistol will be out and ready.

[bj66]

We have mtn lions up here that turns them into poop. A shame, I like the wildlife and just starting to see the rabbit population come back. Havnt seen raccoons and very few fox for quite awhile and they used to be everywhere.

 

Seldom do we see a fox anymore. We have so many coyotes now that we never used to have.

[CaseyJ955]

Seldom do we see a fox anymore. We have so many coyotes now that we never used to have.

 

We've got a red fox coming close to the house, pretty brazen for a fox, the dogs go mental every time too. Over the last couple weeks I have heard coyotes and thats quite new. It's dynamic, the populations and wildlife varieties/numbers in this valley do morph slowly over time.

 

Heres a tidbit on chipmunks and those )(*&* squirrels. They suck. They made a nest between the heads of my car, under the intake manifold, they chewed through one of the knock sensor wires causing me to throw a code and kill power and MPG. Nearly had to pull the intake off (the starter is in there too so starter change means intake comes off, 8hrs flat rate) I was able to get it sorted with needle nose, cabinet screwdrivers, a claw retriever and a great deal of patience. The solution that is working is original Irish Spring bar soap through the cheese shredder and sprinkled around under the hood and in the intake valley. It works wonders.

[CaseyJ955]

[quote=cowpuc;999341

 

You ever see em Casey? Have spent a fair amount of time in the Black Hills but not much riding at night. I do know I camped way back on that two track that leads west toward the waterfall away from that lodge down in Spear Fish Canyon. Rode Tweeks (my 1st Gen) thru there over to Devils Tower one time and camped on the quad trail not to far from the Wyoming State line (small sign way back in there). Lots of Elk all night long, then heard Cougar (mountain lion) screaming = chasing something.. Place is WILD for sure!! They are AWESOME animals! You guys got a wolf population? I always stop at that camp ground where the guys raises Wolves,, on Iron Mountain Rd - right at the intersection where you turn right to go to Needles Highway.. Always meant to ask him if there is a wolf population in The Hills but always forget to... Nice people - good place to camp if ya been long on the prairie or up in the mountains and need a shower... Do love your area!!! Hey,, if I make it out there this year for the Rally - would love to hook up - maybe Pie at the Pie Butt 26.2 in Newell at the Blue Line Diner if BJ puts it on this year??? Would love to say howdy!!

 

Next time your in the hills feel free to hit me up, we're just outside Rapid up 44 West/Rimrock scenic highway and well off the pavement. You can grab a shower and some grub, and camp here where it's private and to beautiful for words. Havnt seen a lion in quite a while, not ours anyway. We know shes here, footprints in the snow are very telling, I occasionally see young ones along side the road but usually it's just deer. Night riding in these hills should avoided or done with extreme respect in regards to the presence of wildlife.

 

Havnt been to Newell in awhile, during the ralley I'm usually either out of town or hiding out here but I never ride and rarely drive during ralley week. If your here HMU and you can camp. Sturgis is about 25 miles. Outside tourist/sturgis season I'm all over these hills and MT, WY, ND as well.

[saddlebum]

My buddies solution is to eat them. His mother would parboil the hind quarters then they would either roast or BBQ them. Never tried it myself but he insists done right they are good eatin.

 

Oh dont grab them by hand, did that once got the bugger and tossed him in a cage but also got saliva in the eye (apperantly worse than a bite if it is rabid) and got a nice round of rabies shots. Apparently I am good for ten years now but when I asked for a tag like my dog gets they threatend me with more needles.

 

FYI they dont give it to you in the stomach any more. I'll tell you I was re-leaved when I got to the hospital and found that out instead it is by body weight and they spread out by giving you so many in each shoulder and each hip. and you only have to go back six times instead of fourteen, in the stomach.

 

over the years I have got lots of raccoons, skunks and opossums. Once got a skunk that I fed hard boiled eggs to for about four days before I had time to relocate him. by the third day I could feed him out of my hand. When I carried him into a wooded forest in the cage I had no issue and passing hikers were amazed. However when they wanted a closer look I would not allow it on chance that my little friend got scared and sprayed all of us.

[M61A1MECH]

So I continued to find fresh digs in the yard and paw prints, so I set the trap again last night , baited it with a can of wet type cat food.

This morning I found the raccoon's neighbor in the trap, a very healthy looking opossum, normally I only see them flat on the road.

I will take him down to the same spot I relocated the raccoon to and they can live happily ever after.

 

Never realized how similar raccoon and opossum paws are, so I suspect I was mistaken when I though the original offender had come back a few weeks ago.

 

Now to find out what has started a burrow in my neighbor's yard and heads under my fence towards my yard. Could be an armadillo or a gopher tortoise, got to be careful if it is a gopher tortoise for two reasons,

1) They are classified as an endangered species and you definitely need a permit to relocate them. I have seen entire construction projects stopped and abandoned because gopher tortoise communities are present.

2) Rattle snakes like to share the dens the tortoise digs, I am not to keen on getting bike by a rattle snake.

 

OK on to the next adventure.

[Dragonslayer]

Cars tires at a sufficient rate of speed will generally relocate them to the ditch and I have never seen one find it's way back from there.

[Dragonslayer]

So I continued to find fresh digs in the yard and paw prints, so I set the trap again last night , baited it with a can of wet type cat food.

This morning I found the raccoon's neighbor in the trap, a very healthy looking opossum, normally I only see them flat on the road.

I will take him down to the same spot I relocated the raccoon to and they can live happily ever after.

 

Never realized how similar raccoon and opossum paws are, so I suspect I was mistaken when I though the original offender had come back a few weeks ago.

 

Now to find out what has started a burrow in my neighbor's yard and heads under my fence towards my yard. Could be an armadillo or a gopher tortoise, got to be careful if it is a gopher tortoise for two reasons,

1) They are classified as an endangered species and you definitely need a permit to relocate them. I have seen entire construction projects stopped and abandoned because gopher tortoise communities are present.

2) Rattle snakes like to share the dens the tortoise digs, I am not to keen on getting bike by a rattle snake.

 

OK on to the next adventure.

my earlier technique works equally as well on the other species you've named.

[bj66]

My buddies solution is to eat them. His mother would parboil the hind quarters then they would either roast or BBQ them. Never tried it myself but he insists done right they are good eatin.

 

Oh dont grab them by hand, did that once got the bugger and tossed him in a cage but also got saliva in the eye (apperantly worse than a bite if it is rabid) and got a nice round of rabies shots. Apparently I am good for ten years now but when I asked for a tag like my dog gets they threatend me with more needles.

 

FYI they dont give it to you in the stomach any more. I'll tell you I was re-leaved when I got to the hospital and found that out instead it is by body weight and they spread out by giving you so many in each shoulder and each hip. and you only have to go back six times instead of fourteen, in the stomach.

 

over the years I have got lots of raccoons, skunks and opossums. Once got a skunk that I fed hard boiled eggs to for about four days before I had time to relocate him. by the third day I could feed him out of my hand. When I carried him into a wooded forest in the cage I had no issue and passing hikers were amazed. However when they wanted a closer look I would not allow it on chance that my little friend got scared and sprayed all of us.

 

My wife has been a vet tech for 31 years. Came in contact with animal last fall and had to get shots as a precaution. Let me just say this......NOT CHEAP (in the thousands)