Raccoon protection

[Notat Home]

I live in a city, but love sweet corn so I grow a little in my garden.

Unfortunately, raccoons have discovered my corn and are eating it before it is ripe. The city frowns on killing them, and trapping doesn't work because you just get one at a time and they find their way back after being released.

So I am looking at building a fenced area, with wire fencing on the sides, and netting on the top. I found what seems to be an affordable welded wire fence material, but the openings are 2 by 4 inches. Is that small enough to stop raccoons, or do I need to find a material with smaller holes?

[David E. Ross]

If you place the mesh far enough from the corn that a raccoon cannot reach the corn through the mesh 2x4 should be good enough. Just make sure you anchor the mesh firmly to the soil so that the raccoons can't lift it. Try just a small area at first to see how well it works.

I have a cage trap for squirrels. The squirrels (or maybe rats) would reach through the mesh (1"x1") of the cage and steal the bait. I wrapped 1/4" steel mesh around outside the bait area; the critters tore it away to get the bait without entering the trap. I wrapped 1/4" steel mesh around inside the bait area; the critters shredded it and still stole the bait. Finally, I wrapped 1/4" steel mesh around outside and then 1/2" heavier mesh over that. Now the critters have to enter the trap to get the bait.

[mkr5000]

If your in a no freeze climate you can attach a 4 dollar sprinkle and an electric valve to a motion detector -- that's what I did this summer.

They come anywhere near and that sprinkler pulses madly, and like anyone else, nobody likes to get wet.

Only thing that's worked for me.

Rainbird makes a $15 valve but it's dc, so here's what you need --

motion detector light and a bulb 120 screw in socket

12v dc power supply valve sprinkler

[Brooklyn1]

electric valve to a motion detector -- that's what I did this summer.

nobody likes to get wet.

No need to make anything:

[j]

I've stopped them with around 4" x 4", in fact a bit bigger. I had a cat door that I kept shrinking in size until it worked! With that, if a wire broke, you would still be OK.

Someone here had mentioned folding some of the bottom of the fencing onto the ground. You may not be able to afford that with the height of the corn, but I think a bit of fence on the ground, under the fence line would be a good idea.

They are damn clever animals. I'd put little beyond them after they had no trouble unlatching my big cat food container.

Jeff

[Frank]

Neighbor came down one morning to find raccoon in his kitchen eating out of the cat bowl. It had come in through his cat door.

I've trapped raccoons in my Hav-a-hart. Should have bought the biggest one as originally I had bought for groundhogs which are smaller. I can catch a small raccoon but not a big one.

've never had one return from the park where I put them about 4 miles away.

What's weird here is that you are allowed to catch these critters but not relocate them but can kill them. Before I knew this, I released a squirrel in the county park with a county cop parked right next to me and he did nothing. The parking lot was near a county police substation and I told him I had come to release a prisoner.

[j]

They *are* big animals. Absolutely no fear of cats and not much of humans. The cats would swat them as they were going out the cat door, but not before. I'm not so sure that the raccoons didn't eat their fill before leaving, my presence didn't impress them much.

Cute.

Jeff