On 8/16/2012 6:22 PM, wrote:
We were besieged by groundhogs last year around this time;

http://groups.google.com/group/rec.g...ground+hog%22#

Well, this year it's raccoons. They're tornadoes on legs and
completely thrash our garden and backyard whenever they pass through
during the night. Thinking that it was probably just one of them, I
set the trap one night and waited.

Decided to look out a few hours later after hearing a commotion
outside and saw not one but four of them. One was in the trap with the
other three pulling and pushing the trap around in an attempt to free
it. Had to turn the hose on them.

Here's a shot of the unfortunate one before taking it for a ride;

http://www.pbase.com/eldata/image/145385435/original

Yeah, they're cute and I can understand why some people have them as
pets.

"The most famous domesticated raccoons were Rebecca and Horace, owned
by United States President Calvin Coolidge, who served from 1923 to
1929."


I had a situation like this with a skunk where I caught the Momma and
the kids would not leave.

Raccoons are a PITA with garden and garbage and you have to be careful
with them, at least around here, because rabies is endemic. Nearby
nature center had one in a cage as a pet and after it scratched a few
people it was tested and found rabid.