OT - Nocturnal Trash Can Raiders

[Jim2034204]

I've got some sort of critter feasting on my trash can scraps. Can ends up on its side with the trash scattered. 6 or 7 times in the last 2 weeks. Last night I put a patio block on top. Buffet time again. Clearly a meat eater by the conspicuous separating of bone from the rest of the trash. Sometimes 5-20 feet down the sidewalk. I guess that could be byproduct munching by other creatures. I would like to trap it but I would be afraid of nabbing a skunk. I live in a heavily populated portion of Northern New Jersey. I was going to try poison (anti freeze) but what if its a cat? Any ideas?

[RB]

It's probably a raccoon and they're smarter than most people. They frequently work in pairs. We have a garbage can that is buried. One raccoon holds down the foot pedal to lift the cover, the other goes down in the can and hands out the garbage.

It's inexpensive entertainment.

RB

Jim2034204 wrote:

[John‰]                      Â]

There are commercial critter repellents available from

but I've had good luck with homemade pepper spray. A bottle of Tabasco in a spray bottle filled with water. Shake well and spray on the trash inside the can. The scent is so powerful that sometimes they will get a whiff before they even tip over the can and go elsewhere. Try not to spray the outside of the can as you don't want this stuff on your hands when you handle the can. Plan B is a mix of red pepper and water but it will clog a spray bottle immediately so mix it in a jar and pour/sprinkle it on.

WASH YOUR HANDS!! immediately after using this stuff.

John

[rosie read and post]

great idea john..................thanks!

[m Ransley]

strap the lid on with a bungie cord

[Doug Kanter]

Does the can have handles? If yes, assemble a piece of chain that reaches from one handle to the other, with a latch at one end. Boat supply stores have hardware that's made to be difficult to open, lest it open by accident at the end of an important rope.

[Lawrence Wasserman]

I don't believe most cats could cope with a concrete block. A dog would be my first guess, though it could be a skunk, raccoon, or ? Try a metal trash can with the spring or chain lid retainers.

[rck]

Out here in rural Tennessee, we use a product manufactured by Smith & Wesson. Works well, they never come back.

Bob

[Doug Kanter]

I'd like to do the same to about a half dozen neighborhood dogs, and frankly, the local dog catcher guy probably wouldn't mind my help. But, with houses 25-75 ft apart, using my model 25-2 would probably cause a bit of a ruckus. Bass season opens Saturday. I'd rather not spend it in jail. :-)

[HA HA Budys Here]

Geez, do they still make those?

[Dan Hartung]

Most probably a raccoon. What you need primarily is a trash can that has a lid that locks down, and better yet one of those large Rubbermaid outdoor trashcan closets (you can open the top to throw stuff away, and the front to roll the can out to the street). Friends of mine in the Chicago suburbs near a forest preserve use that (as do most of their neighbors) and it works very well.

[Jim Yanik]

RB wrote in news: [e-mail]:

That's something you should videotape and sent to America's funniest home videos. ;-)

[JerryMouse]

You may be trying to solve the wrong problem. Try separating the edibles (at least to a critter) from the paper and plastic. Leave the edibles outside the can.

It's called "Organic recycling."

[Des Perado]

You are fortunate indeed that you can still shoot varmints in your area. Most of us have to try to outwit the pests. Des

Sometimes

skunk. I live