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Raccoons

  • Thread starter Wesley
  • Start date
  • #21
Ok first of all I can't believe that most of you suggested to shoot or somehow kill these beautiful animals.It's not their fault that someone put food out,they're just trying to survive!And second WHY did you get cats in the first place if your dad is allergic to them???So they can never come inside??That's cruel
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My idea would have been to stop feeding them outside(duh!)but I guess you can't cause of your dad.Another one would be,once you put the food out leave it out for a bit and then bring it back in so it's not out all night,when the raccoons are most active.Your cats will eventually learn that their food is only out for a limited time and then it's gone,so they'll learn to come and eat between the time you put it out and take it back in.And please don't shoot these poor animals,it's not their fault,it's actually YOURS!
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*Niki*
 
  • #22
Glad you mentioned that. I'm hyper allergic to cats myself. We have 8 indoor only cats that are all from local shelters.  There are products out there that readily available that you can bathe cats with that considerably alleviate allergy symptoms. We put a few drops of olive oil in our cats' eyes (protects their corneas from the betadyne) and then bathe them with betadyne surgical scrub (anti-virucidal, anti-bacteriological, and anti fungicidal...did I miss anything?) and rinse real well. We follow up with an oatmeal shampoo. I've been dealing with the same allergist for years and he claimed that after a few years my body built up immunities to the cats we personally own. I'd still be allergic to yours but I'm fine with mine. Chances are pretty good your Dad has no issues at this point in time and doesn't even know it.

We only have five acres here and our cats are indoor only so they aren't an issue.  My girlfriend down the road has 40 acres.  You wouldn't want to fence in the entire area, only a small area extended beyond a patio or deck. Cats don't need that much space and many live their entire lives indoors with no access to so much as even a screened in porch.  Her cats soon learned to stay in the area she put the electric zap fence around. Total cost to her was under $50 and no more fdead frogs, dead chipmunks, or dead birds littering her yard. Her cats are now contained. Her biggest bonus was that she found out she wasn't running into many Fluffie poops in her flower beds anymore. The world was no longer their litter box.  Funny thing, half the time she claims she forgets to turn her wire on and her cats still stay within their area these days. Just a few thoughts of what has worked for me and friend.

Tee he, you probably have considerably more "Flowers, Clydes, and Rockies" than what you think.  Most of those are creatures of the night and truly try to avoid interacting with humans at all costs.
 
  • #24
Actually in Hungary(Where I'm from)they sell raccoons and skunks as pets.I would really like a skunk
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(descented of course)*Niki*
 
  • #25
If I had the choice between cats or racoons in my yard, I would take the coons ever time. They are native to the area, while cats are not.
 
  • #26
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]And second WHY did you get cats in the first place if your dad is allergic to them???So they can never come inside??That's cruel

Niki, trust me on this one... we are not cruel. They'll probably spend the whole weekend inside because my dad is outa town.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Another one would be,once you put the food out leave it out for a bit and then bring it back in so it's not out all night,when the raccoons are most active.Your cats will eventually learn that their food is only out for a limited time and then it's gone,so they'll learn to come and eat between the time you put it out and take it back in.And please don't shoot these poor animals,it's not their fault,it's actually YOURS!

I might try that one. I dunno leave the food outside most of the day and bring it in before the "night walkers" start walking.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]And please don't shoot these poor animals,it's not their fault,it's actually YOURS!
smile_h_32.gif
*Niki*

I'm assuming you don't want me to shoot them?
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Problem is around here they are pretty populous. No one shoots them anymore cause they can't profit off them. If you could eat them, or sell their furs or something, I'm sure people would still shoot them.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Chances are pretty good your Dad has no issues at this point in time and doesn't even know it.

Yep, he just starts itching REALLY bad and gets puffy, and sneezy(sometimes a little grumpy too
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. He's not deathly allergic but he doesn't like to have reactions to them.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Tee he, you probably have considerably more "Flowers, Clydes, and Rockies" than what you think. Most of those are creatures of the night and truly try to avoid interacting with humans at all costs.

That I am positive of! LOL

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Actually in Hungary(Where I'm from)they sell raccoons and skunks as pets.I would really like a skunk
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(descented of course)*Niki*

I've always wanted a skunk too. They just fascinate me.
 
  • #27
Wesley, set up a stage, put tables out, put food on the tables, and wait. When the guests arrive, do a really bad stand up comedy act. If you are really, really bad at it, the coons will leave, never to return. Nothing worse than a bad comic!
(Or do the ninja thing. I will lend you my sword!)
 
  • #28
Wesley, why on earth did you get your cats if your dad is allergict to them?
and to leave the poor animals 5 of 7 days of week is just wrong.
 
  • #29
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Trapper7 @ April 02 2005,12:04)]Actually in Hungary(Where I'm from)they sell raccoons and skunks as pets.I would really like a skunk
smile.gif
(descented of course)*Niki*
I KNEW IT!!! I thought you were from Bosnia or from one of the surrounding countries because of the way your name is spelt.
 
  • #30
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Wesley, why on earth did you get your cats if your dad is allergict to them?
and to leave the poor animals 5 of 7 days of week is just wrong.

I think you misread something, if we leave outa town we leave them in the care of someone. Otherwise we let them in as often as we can without bothering my dad. My DAD is outa town for the weekend, my mom and I are NOT.

We have cats because my whole family except my dad love cats(and my brother and I are allergic to them but not as bad as my dad). Technically they are mine and my mom's cats, but we also have to honor my dad's wishes that they not be around him.
 
  • #31
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Starman @ April 02 2005,7:16)]Wesley, why on earth did you get your cats if your dad is allergict to them?
and to leave the poor animals 5 of 7 days of week is just wrong.
You know some cats are perfectly happy and prefer to be outside. As long as they have a place to go when it rains they are perfectly fine outside and it doesnt sound as if he just got a bunch of cats then booted them outside forever, just when his dad is home. I am assuming that they come in while he is at work durring the day and out of town or whereever. Please dont anybondy start pointing fingers at him and calling him cruel for all we know it could have been his mom who got the cats and he had nothing to do with it.

By the way Im posting this as a member not a Mod.
 
  • #32
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Please dont anybondy start pointing fingers at him and calling him cruel for all we know it could have been his mom who got the cats and he had nothing to do with it.

I see where they are coming from, but you the nail on the head it seems. When our cats come in they want out when they need out(toilet). They are smart animals and eventually get tired of being inside, they love the great outdoors and I think it makes them healthier, but I'm sure many indoor cat owners would disagree but that is just my opinion.

Actually it was my mom, brother, and two sisters. One of our cats is part siamese(sp), the other is...... I dunno and I'm not about to dig up records same for the other one. Anyway, two of them were rescued from the animal sheltar, and the other one is a stray that we ended up adopting. All our cats are fixed because we hate seeing stray and feral cats because they are so destructive to local ecosystems and the such.

Thx UKC, at least that's one person who agrees with an outdoor cat.
 
  • #33
ok nevermind then , good to see that.
 
  • #34
Wesley I want to apologize for calling you cruel.That was very rude of me and I'm sure you are not cruel at all.I'm sorry.I've had cats before and they went outside too but they always ate inside,and slept inside so I just assumed that all cats were like that,which was pretty stupid of me
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I just got upset cause most of you said to kill the raccoons,cause I personally don't think that killing is the answer.If we were talking about snakes or crows or whatever I would have gotten upset over that too.I just love animals
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Yeah I have 3 ferrets and ever since I got them I've wanted a skunk as well(they're related)I saw quite a few people have them in the states,but they don't sell them here in Canada(I don't think)They just look soooo cool and they're friendly too.You know they even have pure white ones but their eyes are dark so they're not albino,those look cool!

LOL @ Starman
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*Niki*
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  • #35
Skunks are interesting pets. I both love and hate my mom's pet skunk with a passion. On the one hand he is one of the most intelligent pets my family owns and it's just fun to watch him work his way around the house. I'd say he is almost as smart as I am if not smarter because he can manipulate me. Case in point I don't like feeding him that's my mom's work since it is her pet primarily. Now when my mom is napping in one of the bedrooms the skunk will pester me until I throw him in my moms room who he promptly wakes up and gets food for him. Now keep in mind I also partially despise the skunk because they only get attached to one person i.e. my mom. There fore he tries to bite me at any opportunity I give him so we are constantly at war with eachother whenever I am back home from college. However he is one of my favorite pets (allthough my ferrets and dogs are cooler to me) it's just I don't like him when he is close to me because he is usually planning on biting me.
 
  • #36
Here is a pic of him when he is being docile
Dewey.jpg
 
  • #37
Here is my opinion on this subject:

I believe cat owners should have to follow the same laws as dog owners. You want your cat outside tie it up. Cats are the largest predator of song birds in the US.

http://www.wausaudailyherald.com/wdhopinion/283110016222044.shtml
A University of Wisconsin study of free-ranging cats - that is, cats that live in houses, barns or other structures but are allowed to roam at will - found that the animals do incredible damage.

One free-range cat alone can kill 200 birds and small animals in a year, and the study estimated that as many as 2 million such cats live in Wisconsin.

"Many cat owners believe that because they keep their cat well fed it doesn't need to kill," DNR wildlife biologist Nancy Christel said in a 2004 DNR newsletter. But studies have shown that well-fed cats kill as often as hungry ones. Domestic cats kill for play, not out of necessity, she said.

And that's to say nothing of truly feral cats - those that no longer have contact with people and kill to survive. If you've ever run into one, you know they are no more like Fluffy at home than are bobcats or lynx.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news....ts.html
Ron Jurek, a wildlife biologist for the California Department of Fish and Game, has kept a close eye on the impact feral and free-roaming domestic cats have on native species, like the California least tern, a federal endangered bird that nests along the coast.

"Cats do kill wildlife to a significant degree, which is not a popular notion with a lot of people," he said.

In urban areas, he said, there are hundreds of cats per square mile (1.6 square kilometers)—more cats than nature can support.

Exact numbers are unknown, but some experts estimate that each year domestic and feral cats kill hundreds of millions of birds, and more than a billion small mammals, such as rabbits, squirrels, and chipmunks.

Feline predators are believed to prey on common species, such as cardinals, blue jays, and house wrens, as well as rare and endangered species, such as piping plovers and Florida scrub jays.

For more than ten years, Jurek says, feral and domestic cats have been a persistent problem in California, killing one or two colonies of least terns each year. The small white birds are part of an intense monitoring program with a tremendous number of volunteers who watch the colonies throughout the six-month nesting season.

"If a cat finds the colony, it can destroy the colony in a few days, if not overnight," Jurek said.
 
  • #38
placing a collar with a bell that jingles will also solve the problem, as the prey will hear the bell and flee.
 
  • #39
That solves some of the problem, unfortunatly the eggs in nest haven't developed the ability to flee yet.
 
  • #40
Cats eat eggs? I have never heard of such a thing
 
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