Dog and a raccoon in a fight last night

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

As some of you know that i have big problem with coons this year. Last night my jack russell was around the yard doing her thing. The next think i know i hear growling and my dog yelping. My husband and i were outside admiring the rainbow after the rain. Did we ever run to see what was going on. Then my husband said she is fighting with a coon. They were both were rolling on the ground together. Then he took a board and hit on the ground beside them to break them up. It worked, the raccon ran up the tree. I checked the dog over. I thought OMG, no,my dog. To make a long store short. It turns out my husband shot the coon in the tree. And the jack russell is sore and has 3 bites on her front leg. She was very lucky that she was fast. She is hopping around today.

He set the live trap with a hotdog and this morning they put there arms in the trap took the hot dog and the trap went off. so i have to protect my dogs. Another small fence is going up and a electric fence is going up also. And we are picking up some canabear traps. THose are wicked traps and i dont care how we get them anymore. No more moving them. All about killing now...My dog could of gotten killed by one of those things. Jack russell are a small dog. She is sooooo lucky.

 

[Secuono]

I've always read a JR is one of the best dogs for a coon fight, they won't quit and will look bad in the end, but that coon won't be breathing no more and the dog will bounce back to the house like nothing happened.

Does your dog have current rabies? Just asking cus sometimes people forget or do it late.

When I read that he hit the ground and not the coon, I was thinking what noooo, it will get away! I would of gotten it with a sharp stick, but none of my dogs would go head to head with a coon and not be traumatized after...lol.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

yes, she has her shots. When you have a coon and a dog rolling on the ground and you cant take a chance on stabbing your dog or hitting it. So he used the board to hit the ground beside them hoping that would work and it did. Then shot it when it was up the tree.

 

[grumpy]

Mary Ann,

Be super, super careful with those conibears.....They'll kill ANY animal instantly if they happen to get in it. PLEASE be careful. I'm not trying to "preach" to you. But those traps are strong and they are final!

I've trapped for over 50 years and I've seen those bodygrips do some wicked things!! I would rather see you use a "Griz-Getter" or a Duke "Dog-Proof" I've caught litterally thousands of coon with them over the past 7 or 8 years. You cannot catch a dog with either one of them. A conibear, is a different story altogether. When I'm going to be using them on beaver and otter sets, I always do my best to have another person along with me, just in case I slip and get into one.

What "size" conibear is you're husband going to get? A 220 is a good size for coons. A 280 or 330 is too big and too dangerous if you've never handled them. A new 220 will break your wrist if you get into it.

You can go to this website I moderate, and check the archives for various options on how to set up with a conibear. You don't have to join. The information is for everone. http://evertrap.proboards.com/index.cgi?

Good luck with eliminating your problems. JUST BE CAREFUL!!

Something else: This is summer and some coon carry a virus. I don't know the proper name for the "bug" but if a dog gets bit by one that's carrying it, they'll come down with a disease we call "coon-fever" here in the midwest. I don't know of any known antidote for this malady. He##, I don't even know if there's a test to see if your pup's been infected!! Just keep a close eye on it. Maybe even call the vet to see if it's a problem for your part of the country.

Grumpy.

 

[6riversfarms]

Mary Ann,

Be super, super careful with those conibears.....They'll kill ANY animal instantly if they happen to get in it. PLEASE be careful. I'm not trying to "preach" to you. But those traps are strong and they are final!Grumpy.

Grumpy is right on. You could easily kill yours or your neighbors pets with these traps. If your hubby is inexperienced with them I would at the very least do some research before using them and/or find someone with experience to help set them up.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

thanks grumpy. I am going to call the vet right now. As goes for the traps. Yes it is a 220. I think he is going to put it in a barrel so only what climbs in will get it. We are also blocking that area from my dogs as i do have 2 beagles also. THey are coming from the barns and under my back fence .I can see the trail that they are using. Hubby is working right now. But later the fence is going up so the dogs cant go near that area. The trap is going in a barrel. I hope he can set it ok. I dont want him getting hurt. I have to admit you are scaring me on this. I am going to show him this so he is very aware.

 

[JessicaR]

yes please have the dog tested! My BIL's collie got bit by a coon and got coon fever, they had to put him down, he became paralysed (they didnt take him to the vet right away).

 

[Random Rabbit]

Please consider getting Your dog a rabies booster shot !!! We did that for a few years ... at our vets recommendation... at Any time a raccoon / or skunk was even "only" close to our animals. Rabies came thru our area a few years ago..pretty much wiped out the coon population... and Many stray dogs and cats. We still err on the side of caution !

 

[fuzzy9]

Wow, this is just crazy. Be very careful! Hope the dog will be ok after all of this.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

I just called the vets. Waiting on a call back. Hubby just called. He bought the 220 plus the sissor thing that helps to set the spring in it. For saftey reason.

 

[ollitos]

We used a can of cat food to attract the raccoon.

I'm so glad your dog is okay. Hope you hear from the vet soon.

 

[grumpy]

yes please have the dog tested! My BIL's collie got bit by a coon and got coon fever, they had to put him down, he became paralysed (they didnt take him to the vet right away).

This is what happens with coon-fever. I hesitated telling Mary Ann. She's had enough happen to her.

Mary Ann: A 220 is a good "coon-trap" on the trapping website you can get directions on how us use a "bucket-set" for coon. If you can see where they are going/coming under your fence, a "cable-restraint" might be another good option. It's a snare that relaxes when the animal quits pulling against it. It's not a lethal set with a locking device like most typical snares are. The animal cannot get out of it. BUT, if your pup or other "non-target" critter gets in it, you can let it go.

I want to tell you something: I'm "scared" of those bodygrips!! Any person that uses them, had darned well better be halfway afraid of them. The bigger ones take a special pair of setters to even get them set!! THEY ARE THAT STRONG! There's been horror stories of trappers getting into them when they were alone and they were far back from the roads. They were found, "frozen-in-the-ice"!! DEAD!

By themselves, a trapper cannot get out of them!! You've got about seven to eight minutes to get that thing off of you before lack of blood starts damaging the tissue. It's easy to lose an arm or hand or foot if one of them suckers getcha!! So: Yes! It's good to be afraid.

Grumpy.

 

[MamaSheepdog]

At the very least get your little girl on antibiotics- I am sure the bites will become badly infected otherwise. I'm glad you got the coon. One more down. Good luck with the traps- I like the sound of the cable-restraint that Grumpy mentioned- it sounds like a safe option, and you could set several on the coon's trail.

Good luck with your dog- I hope she will recover quickly.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

I got the call back. They just suggested to me was to put her on antibiotics as a procaution. So i am doing that.I have an appointment for 4 today. She is doing ok. When hubby comes back from work. We will start to put up a fence for the dogs and set traps. The coons start around 7pm. I know they climb my rabbit cages ,opem the lids of the feeders and help them selves. I have my californian in quarntine right now from my new zealands which are in a close ,covered pen. I cant do this with the others. So they are open to any critters right now. ...<br /><br />__________ Fri Jun 22, 2012 12:20 pm __________<br /><br />

You can go to this website I moderate, and check the archives for various options on how to set up with a conibear. You don't have to join. The information is for everone. http://evertrap.proboards.com/index.cgi?

where is that on there Grumpy... I looked, There is allot on there. Can you send me a link on that please.

 

[6riversfarms]

I certainly hope that you can get rid of the little boogers. Your husbands sounds like he can handle it if he already thought of barrels. They hit my corn and melons pretty good but my blue heeler has her bluff in on them so they havent messed around with my rabbits yet, but....This morning I found a coon track tht was made last night in the mud from the sprinkler runoff right under the eave of the rabbit barn. I am installing a hot wire after lunch and gonna set a couple of live traps as well. I'm gonna try relocating them to our trapping grounds and hopefully catch em this winter when their coats come in.

 

[curlysue]

My mom caught a lot or racoons in live traps.the old racoon wouldnt go in it.my brother stayed up all night and shot him.he chewed the feet off of several baby rabbits.

 

[toastedoat37]

coons sleep all day, wake up in the evening before dark and usually have a tree they go up in and hang out in till dusk ,,,sometimes you can watch and find where they are,,,you might be able to catch some up in the trees before dark and shoot them.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

Well my husband took back the cannibear trap. I didnt want any accidents with it. So he set the live trap again. And i put some of the rabbit grains in a small pain and i also dumped two packages of rat poison in it. So last night there was a large coon in the trap. My husband shot it. And there was 5 coons taking there turn eating out of the bucket. There could of been more. But it was midnight and that is what i can see when i used a flashlight. I wonder if the rat poison will kill them or do i need to get a different poison.? Is there something that i can coat the grains with that will kill them but still taste good for them. ?

 

[toastedoat37]

Mary Ann, i understand having to protect your animals from preditors, poison may or may not be a legal alternative. Somethings are best not mentioned in public. I myself would raise hell if i found that my neighbor was poisening raccoons, that can affect a lot of other animals, maybe even your own if a mouse or a rat gets the poison and then your dog or cat eats the mouse or rat. Myself , i would indeed trap and kill coons if they were messing with my animals, but i sure wouldnt say what became of the coon after i trapped it.

 

[Mary Ann's Rabbitry]

My neighbours has the same problem that i have. I am not worried on them. And beside i am way out in the country with only 3 houses. There is allot of fields and barns around . Coon country. I will get them one way or another. :evil: We just finished building a dog pen for the dogs that they can go out at night and do there business. and i am hoping it will stop the coon coming on my deck.
as goes for poisoning the rats. You darn right i will. THere is no other way to do that. Been there. It is all in the barn anyways. If the neighbours cat eats it. OH Well...Nothing is going to get the poison in the bucket other than coons as it is on my property. And no cats come near my yard with the dogs. NOthing will eat coons. I wish there was. lOl.