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Perfectly Imperfect Life..........

Monday, October 8, 2012

Please Not Again

I can't go through this again.
 
No, it's not what you think. Not the stuff I'm still going thru now.
 
The Raccoons are back.
 
B&T came to spend the night so I gave them my bed to sleep in. I slept on the couch. I had nightmares all night. The dogs had been barking like crazy. I kept shushing them thinking it was just stray cats in the backyard, like usual. This went on for a few hours....I would normally have gotten up quicker, but by having the nightmares I was terrified to "see who" was there.
 
I flipped on the light and flew open the door. Cyndar was like a runaway train, determined to get what was there...she knew what it was. Katie started nipping at Cyndar's side as they flew around the corner of the house. I heard a scuffle and figured they got into it, which still may have been what happened.
Or did they get the end of  Raccoon? Was Katie trying to stop Cyndar? Why was she nipping at her?
 
I didn't have my glasses on but noticed wet spots going across the deck. I went out to look and saw fresh wet Raccoon prints!!!
I was beside myself, pictures of Cyndar after the fight flew thru my mind. Once I realized what was going on I called for the dogs only to find them eating out of an over turned dog food container. I thought they must have knocked it over turning the corner. I got them in the house and replaced the the lid/feeding bowls on top of the food storage container.
 
I was so scared I was shaking. If anything were to happen to Cyndar or Katie there's no way I could afford any vet bill at this time.
I am so upset. The Coons have been gone since The Great Fight of 2009". Why come back now? This is about a month earlier than last time.
 
All these things are flashing through my mind as I get a cup of coffee ~ I will be on watch the rest of the night ~
 
With the warm nights we've been leaving the back door open in case the dogs or cats needed out,
what id it had come in the house,
why haven't I seen any evidence of them being there,
the dogs CANNOT go outside at night alone,
the cats either for that matter,
how can I get rid of them this time,
I know animal control is no help,
OMG! what if it had come in the house and headed for Tilly!
Sometimes she stays out on top of her cage at night,
that would have been just awful....
 
All these thoughts are running nonstop.
I sit down at the computer and realize I didn't warm my coffee up. So at 4am I'm at the computer drinking cold coffee, when the dogs start acting up again.
I look outside and there is the bandit into the dog food AGAIN!
It had just been scared off by dogs less than 30 minutes ago and it was already back! I started hitting the sliding door and yelling. I don't stop until it finally leaves, by that time I'm crying.
 
I can't  have the dogs hurt or killed by this marauder.
I have woken up C. He comes out and goes to check the backyard. T wakes up, as does B. None of us can believe they are back after all this time. Trying to figure out how to deter them...since we have tried everything before and had nothing work except a fight with Cyndar.
 
The dogs start barking again!!!!
Back in about 15 minutes this time!
Bold, brass balls on those devils.
We've decided to use wasp spray. It shoots 20 feet so we can do it from inside the house. It high tails it away. Did we hit it, probably not, scare it, hopefully. 
 
I know the police department recommends Wasp Spray over Pepper Spray due to the fact that you don't have to be close to the assailant. Praying it works on Raccoons as well as it does on humans.
 
The can has been by the front door for protection, it will now be moved to the back sliding door for a different kind of protection. I will replace the one for the front door ASAP.
 
3 visits in one night within 1 hour.
I'm sad and scared for my dogs and cats.
 
It's now 6am and I am sitting here drinking my cold coffee ~
 on watch.

6 comments:

  1. On no I hate that for you - with us it is squirrels.

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  2. Well, that's no fun!!! Calm down and start thinking....what is attracting them??? Food!!! You store the dog food outside??? Bring it inside or to the garage. Get rid of whatever it is that they like. And keep your doors closed, the pets will have to wait till morning to go out, they can hold it!!! My niece had squirrels come in at night through an open window in the kitchen, they tore right through the screen.....and what a mess they made, it was awful......so close those windows and doors.....you can do this....cleo

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  3. How frustrating...keep us posted.

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  4. We have had huge raccoon problems over the years... for example, I buy a new EXPENSIVE six foot magnolia... plant it... next day it's lying on top of the ground... happens to the same tree time after time. I spread wood mulch ... next day it's mixed with the soil as well as being all over the lawn. Virtually everything I plant is dug out the next day... costing me mucho dollars. I searched the internet all winter and finally found something that I suspected might work... it's called Nite Guard and is basically a solar laser light that goes on and off all night long which in turn sets off the raccoon's fear response when they see it from a distance. When several can be seen, they aren't bleeping at the same time, making it even more effective. It was developed in Mn to scare off coyotes and other critters. We bought 25 of them which was not cheap but we did have two acres to surround and put them closer than we had to, wanting to be as protected as possible. Things improved immediately for about two months and then the perimeter was purged as we found evidence of digging... I checked to see if the lights were all working and found one spot where the neighbor's hay had grown up over the light, I dealt with that and again we were critter free for quite some time. There was a period of time where we had some problems in August and I attribute this to the animals being desperate because of our terrible year of drought, and purging the border to our gardens that were "soft" due to constant watering... After some live trapping, we have returned to no problems for the past couple months.
    The lights have not bothered the neighbors at all or passing automobiles... they are at the critter's eye level, but we do look like an airfield from a distance at night. I've had several folks inquire as to what's going on, including a couple "shady" looking characters... to those dudes I simple say " it's the latest thing in hi-tech burglary protection developed by NASA"... I get twice the value for my money!
    I guess I would say that I have been quite pleased with them but the raccoons and possums, etc need to see them from some distance... if they get too close and realize they won't be harmed, the gig is up. They only work for deer for awhile and I'm told need to be reconfigured every so often to keep deer out... we've never had a deer on our property so that's not a big concern. It's recommended that they be within 50 feet of each other... we went with 25'.
    I don't know if this info is of any value to your situation, but I thought I'd share it... I will be doing a post at some point on this so will save what I've shared here at that point again! Good Luck! Larry

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  5. Hi again Deb... first off I'm really sorry to hear of what you're having to go through... it's so unfair. I don't know what your status is spiritually but I can tell you ours has pulled us through some pretty tough times... especially regarding my health. I have been at death's door many times with my very serious health issues, and have experienced and felt the power of prayer... I hope that you have many praying for you right now and I will certainly remember you in prayer as well.
    Regarding you're question about bait in the live trap... tuna has worked for me but I also have caught a lot of pretty mean cats... I've also had some luck with marshmallows... three for the raccoons, one for me.... three for the raccoons.... one... well you get the picture! Thinking of you, Larry and Sarah

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  6. Hi Deb, Oh I am so sorry to read about your night bandits. We had this too when we lived in the country in Indiana. We finally had to trap them safely inside a cage and then animal control came and took them safely away to another location. We had a huge Chinese goose and she fought them off too. I will keep you in my prayers for this problem to come to an end and quickly.
    Take good care my friend and give your fur babies big hugs from me.

    XO CM

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I'd love for you to leave me a comment. Helps me to know I'm not totally crazy...like my family thinks I am!
*hugs*deb

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