Our visitor at our reunion this past weekend
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
SierraCook
Master Chef
A friend of mine had a raccoon for a visitor in the middle of the night. It has been hot here lately and she left the door open with just the screen door closed. The little pest pulled the screen door off its hinges. Luckily, she had a baby gate up to keep the dog from getting out and for some reason the raccoon did not climb over it.
Raccoons are cute until the get into your ice chest and eat all your food. This happened to me and some friends on a camping trip when we made the silly mistake of leaving the ice chest outside the car at night.
Raccoons are cute until the get into your ice chest and eat all your food. This happened to me and some friends on a camping trip when we made the silly mistake of leaving the ice chest outside the car at night.
Shunka
Head Chef
Raccoons are very smart and can be pests that do damage. My Mom had one for a pet many years ago and he was a real handful! They are also one of the biggest carriers of rabies, so please be careful around them.
jkath
Hospitality Queen
Cute guy!
We've got a big one around here. He never bothers anyone, and he's never shown up in our back yard, so we leave him be. I like the fact that they'll eat bugs out of your yard.
We've got a big one around here. He never bothers anyone, and he's never shown up in our back yard, so we leave him be. I like the fact that they'll eat bugs out of your yard.
Barbara L
Traveling Welcome Wagon
Same with skunks. A lot of people don't know that they will eat bees. If you have skunks in your area and you don't want them in your yard, make sure you don't leave dry cat food out on your porch or in your yard (I would assume dog food too) because skunks like it too. (I love skunks!)jkath said:
Barbaraurmaniac13
Executive Chef
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2005
- Messages
- 4,764
Awww, how adorable!! I wish a cute visitor like him would come to see us now and then!!
Speaking of skunks, that brought me back a funny memory we had at Borders where I worked back in San Antonio, the unforgettable "Operation Pepè le Pew"... one little guy just roamed into our shop and made himself comfy at the foyer one day. He was just minding his own business but our store manager didn't take to the idea of having a skunk hanging out in the foyer. Therefore she ordered one of our colleagues "Ken" to coax this little offender into a box and carry him outside. Well... "the inevitable" happened, and it was just incredible how such a tiny guy could stink up the entire Borders in an instance!! (if you are familiar with them, it is a very, very large store!!)
Now "Ken" had to go home immediately to take an intense shower, then to have the inside of his car professionally deodorized, the store manager had to call in a proper animal control (which she should have done in the first place), who whisked him away and took him to a safe forest area. Then she had to close the shop for the rest of the day "for an unexpected emergency" to have the shop deodorized, however we could still smell the faint waft of skunk for the next several days....
The little guy was really cute and adorable and I could imagine some people get them "fixed" and have them as a pet, and surely we owed it to him for an unexpected half day off, too!!
Speaking of skunks, that brought me back a funny memory we had at Borders where I worked back in San Antonio, the unforgettable "Operation Pepè le Pew"... one little guy just roamed into our shop and made himself comfy at the foyer one day. He was just minding his own business but our store manager didn't take to the idea of having a skunk hanging out in the foyer. Therefore she ordered one of our colleagues "Ken" to coax this little offender into a box and carry him outside. Well... "the inevitable" happened, and it was just incredible how such a tiny guy could stink up the entire Borders in an instance!! (if you are familiar with them, it is a very, very large store!!)
Now "Ken" had to go home immediately to take an intense shower, then to have the inside of his car professionally deodorized, the store manager had to call in a proper animal control (which she should have done in the first place), who whisked him away and took him to a safe forest area. Then she had to close the shop for the rest of the day "for an unexpected emergency" to have the shop deodorized, however we could still smell the faint waft of skunk for the next several days....
The little guy was really cute and adorable and I could imagine some people get them "fixed" and have them as a pet, and surely we owed it to him for an unexpected half day off, too!!
SizzlininIN
Master Chef
Cute pics!
Since we've moved in town I haven't seen any. In our old house in the country we saw them all the time. In fact, I looked forward every year to see big momma with her new litter trailing behind her.
One year one got into our garage and we didn't know it. DH and I were heading out there. Our garage was attached to the house and you had to go up a few stairs from the family room to enter it. Anyway, DH was in front of me.........opened the door....got one foot on a stair and immediately turned to me and shoved his hand into my chest shoving me back and he slammed the door and said, "There's a freakin raccoon hanging onto the door. Well needless to say I fell to the floor laughing my xxx off and about peed my pants from the whole thing. One of my sons and I ran outside and peered into the garage window and sure enough there he was hanging onto the outside door right at the top of the stairs. Had DH not noticed and taken another step that raccoon could of whacked him in the head. Or beater yet he could of waited and jumped on his back. I'll never forget the look on DH face as long as I live and I still get to snickering when I think of it. Thanks for the reminder and giggle.
Since we've moved in town I haven't seen any. In our old house in the country we saw them all the time. In fact, I looked forward every year to see big momma with her new litter trailing behind her.
One year one got into our garage and we didn't know it. DH and I were heading out there. Our garage was attached to the house and you had to go up a few stairs from the family room to enter it. Anyway, DH was in front of me.........opened the door....got one foot on a stair and immediately turned to me and shoved his hand into my chest shoving me back and he slammed the door and said, "There's a freakin raccoon hanging onto the door. Well needless to say I fell to the floor laughing my xxx off and about peed my pants from the whole thing. One of my sons and I ran outside and peered into the garage window and sure enough there he was hanging onto the outside door right at the top of the stairs. Had DH not noticed and taken another step that raccoon could of whacked him in the head. Or beater yet he could of waited and jumped on his back. I'll never forget the look on DH face as long as I live and I still get to snickering when I think of it. Thanks for the reminder and giggle.
AllenOK
Executive Chef
Years ago, one of my friends had a big ol' masked bandit take up residence in their front doorway. Needless to say, they had to call animal control to get it, as it just wasn't acting quite right. Now that I'm older, and more experienced, I believe it was in the early stages of Rabies.
Even though I currently live "in town", I'm just on the outskirts of town, and there are open and wooded areas practically on all sides of me. I've seen raccoons, skunks, possums, and rabbits. I'm surprised that I HAVEN'T seen any deer, as deer are everywhere here. We even had a deer jump through a plate glass window downtown (about a mile away) a couple months ago.
Skunks actually make very good pets, once they have their scent glands removed. Raccoons, however, will often turn mean as adults.
Even though I currently live "in town", I'm just on the outskirts of town, and there are open and wooded areas practically on all sides of me. I've seen raccoons, skunks, possums, and rabbits. I'm surprised that I HAVEN'T seen any deer, as deer are everywhere here. We even had a deer jump through a plate glass window downtown (about a mile away) a couple months ago.
Skunks actually make very good pets, once they have their scent glands removed. Raccoons, however, will often turn mean as adults.
Constance
Master Chef
Raccoons show up around here now and then. One of them got so tame that he'd sit on the back steps with the cats, waiting to be fed. Animal control does a good job of trapping and re-locating them, though.
They are cute and very smart, but they can tear you up if they take the notion.
But then, any wild animal can be dangerous. Even bunnies carry disease and can give you some nasty scratches with those hind legs.
They are cute and very smart, but they can tear you up if they take the notion.
But then, any wild animal can be dangerous. Even bunnies carry disease and can give you some nasty scratches with those hind legs.
buckytom
Chef Extraordinaire
AllenMI said:
that's because they're afriad you'll take something else the next time.
i've had raccoons walk right across me while i "slept" in my sleeping bag, trying to get to food in the corner of an open trail shelter. i just stayed still until they left. (they didn't touch my cadbury fruit and nut bar, or it woulda been a donnybrook.)
one thing i can say for raccoons: do not try to get them out of your attic by yourself.
i had one try to take up residence in the attic above my old apartment. he got in thru a small hole in the eaves caused by ice damming.
well, one day i decided to chase him out, them hammer the eaves back into place. i crawled around the attic on my belly, armed with a fishing pole and a flashlight, eventually cornering him near the hole. i slid the pole into the tiny corner of the eaves, and started poking the stubborn little bandit to get him to leave. but, he just turned, glared at me, and dissappeared in an instant.
i wasn't sure which way he'd gone as i couldn't see around the rafters very well. but lying there prostrate, unable to move more than an inch at a time, i heard a sound directly behind me at my feet.
i think it was snickering at me.
i can't tell you how uncomfortable i felt, as i pictured him standing behing me with a large hammer, cartoon style.
eventually, i wiggled out of my predicament, and outsmarted him (it took a while to complete both of these things...lol
)i left some peanuts outside the hole on the roof, and when he went out to chow down, i closed up the eaves.
Shunka
Head Chef
I can just picture that Bucky!!!
sparrowgrass
Head Chef
Not cute. Nope, not cute. Besides being a terrific rabies vector, they also carry a kind of roundworm that, in humans, encysts itself in the eye (treatable) or the brain (untreatable).
And, they kill chickens. Many more chickens than they could ever eat. And some of the chickens they don't kill, they just eat half their heads off and I have to kill them, as they flutter and make ungodly noises with the half of their heads they have left.
Not cute. Nope.
And, they kill chickens. Many more chickens than they could ever eat. And some of the chickens they don't kill, they just eat half their heads off and I have to kill them, as they flutter and make ungodly noises with the half of their heads they have left.
Not cute. Nope.
We have had a racoon visit us quite often since we moved here three years ago. He likes to share Lily's food. We know it's the same one because he doesn't have a tail. It must have lost it when it was a baby. Last year it was pretty ill looking... it was very skinny and it's eyes were always dripping. Wasn't so cute then. It's much healthier this year though.
Lily jumps up on to the roof when it comes and the two of them just ignore each other UNLESS he's outside and she's inside where she's safe. Then Lily sits in front of the glass door and hisses and screams and tries to act big and strong. It's really funny. The coon just looks at her likes she's crazy.
Lily jumps up on to the roof when it comes and the two of them just ignore each other UNLESS he's outside and she's inside where she's safe. Then Lily sits in front of the glass door and hisses and screams and tries to act big and strong. It's really funny. The coon just looks at her likes she's crazy.
