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July 25, 2009 at 4:28 pm #591675
TDeParticipantThe best tomato growing weather in years and now the raccoons have discovered the vines on my deck. Any ideas for protecting my crop?
July 25, 2009 at 6:04 pm #672908
jwwsParticipantJuly 26, 2009 at 3:00 am #672909
JeffSavoieMemberBird netting is, well, for the birds. :)
Actually keeping a determined raccoon from his quest, can be a difficult task.
An average raccoon has about 10-12″ of reach, opposable thumbs, about 8 hrs of the night shift to work unabated, and little or no fear of humans.
They’re extremely powerful, and good diggers, too.
You’re, basically, dealing with a 25 pound bear.
Hardware cloth (1/4″ wire mesh) is preferred over bird netting, with part of it laid on the ground and staked in place (12 to 36 inches out, to prevent tunneling), and all of it attached to a sturdy framework. We’re talking a whole new kind of tomato cage, now….
Hazing (yelling, scarecrow sprinklers, and in rare cases just a motion detecting flood lights) can often times be the most cost effective, and efficient, means of deterring the raiding of your garden.
If it’s no fun at your place, they’ll move on to easier pickin’s. So make it no fun.
Removal (via live trapping), is also an option, since there is damage to property (crops), and an inherent health risk in having raccoons in around and handling your food.
Jeff Savoie
All City Animal Control
July 26, 2009 at 3:08 am #672910
TDeParticipantThanks for the advice! I’ll get to work tomorrow on “caging” my tomatoes and making my garden no fun at all for raccoons.
July 26, 2009 at 3:20 am #672911
JoBParticipantJuly 27, 2009 at 6:35 am #672912
ellenaterMemberraccoons are tasty!
July 27, 2009 at 4:50 pm #672913
JoBParticipantellenator..
my dogs think so:)
but they are really more trouble than they are worth to kill.. they put up quite a fight.
July 27, 2009 at 5:02 pm #672914
flowerpetalMemberTake it from one who knows; raccoons hunted during the summer are not so tasty. Wait until fall; late fall.
Raccoon roast with that year’s sweet potatoes. Now you are talking gore-may!
July 27, 2009 at 7:59 pm #672915
JoBParticipantflowerpetal..
i will keep your gore-may advice in mind…
roadkill hasn’t featured on our menu yet.. but you never know.
July 29, 2009 at 12:55 am #672916
JeffSavoieMemberSome friends of mine BBQ’d two raccoons, I caught, just last weekend… no problems with summer taste.
They, actually, were delicious.
Proper care and handling are important, especially in summer. For best flavor the meat must be cooled quickly.
One thing to keep in mind when preparing raccoon for the table, is the two small glands in each armpit. Removing these will significantly improve the taste.
I doubt I would ever cook roadkill, too much chance for contamination due to internal injuries.
If anyone is serious about trying it, I’d be glad to help, I hate to see them go to waste.
(*The law doesn’t allow me to utilize the fur or other valuable parts of nuisance trapped animals, for profit, the same way as a fur trapper could… I am basically required to dispose of them.)
Jeff Savoie
All City Animal Control
July 29, 2009 at 10:08 pm #672917
flowerpetalMemberYou are certainly right on about the glands needing to be removed. That’s a must! Or is it a “musk?”
Maybe I’m too old fashioned. I wouldn’t have thought to have raccoon in the summer. And I have never had it BBQ’d.
As Julia Child used to say (I think) ‘Coon Apetite!
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