Raccoons eating my corn-where are you experts

[catjac1975]

I wired a piece of plywood to the bottom of the trap, a few inches larger than the bottom. That stabilizes it and keeps anything from getting to the bait from the bottom. I built a box that fits over the trap and sets on that bottom plywood. The only opening is from the front, they can only come in or get to the bait through the front door. If they steal the bait they have to come in from the front. I put the bait all the way at the back.

With the trap totally enclosed I'll admit your heart can get to pumping when you are trying to peak in there to see what you got. If it happens to be black and white it will not spray while it is enclosed like t

My son has gone to getting the cheap cans of sardines at the dollar store... has a can now wired in the center just past the trip pan and dumps more in it when he sets it.
CATCH 'EM and KILL THEM. We have trouble with them tearing the plastic "bags" of silage and it causes it to spoil...
Also, hard boiled eggs work sometimes.

Run electric around the patch... 1 wire 6 inches and the second wire 12-18 inches above it. Keeps coons, possums, groundhogs out of the patch... run another wire about 3 ft to help to keep deer out... but they can be really tough... There has been some studies done to run 2 fences around a garden... 2-3 ft. apart... deer have a perception problem and cannot manage to jump 2 fences like that or jump in and out of the space between....

We may resort to that. We had not had a raccoon problem in years.

 

[digitS']

Raccoons show up each year in the corn. Their habits may be different from one area to another (and, it may be different this year in my garden ). Over a couple of decades and they haven't been very much of a problem.

Here is what has happened. They want the more mature ears. This isn't a big problem because we don't leave mature ears for them. The neighbor, over the last 15 years grows more corn than he has use for and leaves a lot. The coons mostly stay over there . They also go for the secondary ears that he tends to leave.

Now, I wonder how much "raccoon population pressure" we have. One thing, the garden is no longer on the property about a half mile away where it was right on the river bank. And, it's a good mile away from the nearest farm field of corn, which is also closer to the river. In 2022, the neighbor no longer has an abundance of corn right beside our corn patch. So far in '22 -- so good, with no sign of the coons ...

We want ripe corn and other vegetables at their prime but leaving the surplus in the garden is an invitation for pests.

Steve

 

[flowerbug]

Raccoons show up each year in the corn. Their habits may be different from one area to another (and, it may be different this year in my garden ). Over a couple of decades and they haven't been very much of a problem.

Here is what has happened. They want the more mature ears. This isn't a big problem because we don't leave mature ears for them. The neighbor, over the last 15 years grows more corn than he has use for and leaves a lot. The coons mostly stay over there . They also go for the secondary ears that he tends to leave.

Now, I wonder how much "raccoon population pressure" we have. One thing, the garden is no longer on the property about a half mile away where it was right on the river bank. And, it's a good mile away from the nearest farm field of corn, which is also closer to the river. In 2022, the neighbor no longer has an abundance of corn right beside our corn patch. So far in '22 -- so good, with no sign of the coons ...

We want ripe corn and other vegetables at their prime but leaving the surplus in the garden is an invitation for pests.

Steve

good luck! we're on two large drainage ditches and a treeline along the north all of which act as a natural corridor for raccoon and other creatures to wander along. i've plugged up and fenced as best i can to prevent easy access and that has really cut down on some activities but it doesn't stop it all. i need a few hundred more feet of good fence (i.e. not what we have in some spots) and i will be in a much sweeter spot with deer, groundhog and rabbit traffic, but Mom doesn't want any more fence so we're stuck where we are at until either i become the owner or i move someplace else.

once a raccoon knows of a reliable food source it will return and also teach the youngsters. yes, raccoons have culture...

 

[catjac1975]

Raccoons show up each year in the corn. Their habits may be different from one area to another (and, it may be different this year in my garden ). Over a couple of decades and they haven't been very much of a problem.

Here is what has happened. They want the more mature ears. This isn't a big problem because we don't leave mature ears for them. The neighbor, over the last 15 years grows more corn than he has use for and leaves a lot. The coons mostly stay over there . They also go for the secondary ears that he tends to leave.

Now, I wonder how much "raccoon population pressure" we have. One thing, the garden is no longer on the property about a half mile away where it was right on the river bank. And, it's a good mile away from the nearest farm field of corn, which is also closer to the river. In 2022, the neighbor no longer has an abundance of corn right beside our corn patch. So far in '22 -- so good, with no sign of the coons ...

We want ripe corn and other vegetables at their prime but leaving the surplus in the garden is an invitation for pests.

Steve

Oh, yes. They only eat them when they are perfect.

 

[majorcatfish]

had all 4 game cameras positioned around the main garden figuring it was racoons, we have 2 young ones all they would do is walk around the fence. never bothered to climb it too much other easy food close by.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=2641612032639377

 

[Carol Dee]

Oh, yes. They only eat them when they are perfect.

Exactly, we watched our sweetcorn and decided it was PERFECT and we will come pick it in the morning. That night they came and took 1/2

 

[Dirtmechanic]

I terminate them if I cannot run them off. Here the rabies risk is extreme and the disease has settled into the racoon population. I read that vaccinated bait is being dropped by air in a rabies control effort. It sounds like a smart plan.

 

[catjac1975]

I terminate them if I cannot run them off. Here the rabies risk is extreme and the disease has settled into the racoon population. I read that vaccinated bait is being dropped by air in a rabies control effort. It sounds like a smart plan.

My vet was very much against that. He said all it did was increase the raccoon population as they did not die from the rabies. Then when the state stopped the program, they got diseased and died .

 

[flowerbug]

My vet was very much against that. He said all it did was increase the raccoon population as they did not die from the rabies. Then when the state stopped the program, they got diseased and died .

if they can eradicate the disease in an area and keep on top of it that may not happen, but i think there are more than raccoons as disease carriers so it has to be a pretty comprehensive (and thus expensive and time-consuming operation). like trying to eradicate fire ants from an area - it is a very hard thing to accomplish, but i can be done.

 

[Dirtmechanic]

For a disease with such high mortality that could possibly jump out from under my deck and bite me or mine I am cool\down\have support with any effort. I have killed 5 over the last 20 or so years. Only one was a Opossum the rest were raccoon. The Opossum was dripping and coming at me. One raccoon wanted me, but the rest were wobbly at the feeding station where we keep fresh water, so they could have had something else. I get my hazmat gear and bury it in a deep hole at the edge of the property.