Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Are Racoons a Problem at the pond?

Are racoons a problem in the pond environment? I have one that has been surveying the pond every night. Not sure if he is looking for fish or frogs. I dont think the fatheads are afraid of him. No frogs this time of year, unless they are frogsicles.

I wouldn't think he'd be a threat to your fish. Not fast enough for healthy fish and the healthy and larger fish wouldn't be up next to the shore even in summer I don't believe.

Now if you have a feeder that could be a different story.

When we were planning our pondsite environment, we summoned our state wildlife biologist for opinions and guidance. One of the numerous food-chain balances he mentioned was raccoons visiting the pond in search of frogs for dinner. I believe crayfish are also on the menu.
(edit: I assume that a hungry 'coon wouldn't mind digging up hibernating frog'cicles...maybe?)

No problem. I believe I have more coons than any other kind of wildlife.

Note: Raccoon droppings may carry a parasite that can be fatal to humans. Do not handle or smell raccoon droppings and wash your hands if you touch any.

Boy am I happy you said not to smell any raccoon droppings...Like Mom used to say - if it smells like poop and tastes like poop, it is probably poop.

Raccoons may not be a problem for the pond, but they sure can get under our dogs' skin. I mean, these two creatures were born to hate one another. They got the scars to prove it.

We get about one raccoon a year moving into one of the barns. Then it's time to break out the live trap and/or gallery ammo (for indoor shooting) until I get him.

This was a bulletin put out by a city in California

Stay away from
raccoons !
Do not leave food out for the wild animals to eat.
Heavy lids have been placed on the trash cans in County Parks to keep
raccoons, and other animals, out of the garbage. Park users should throw
their garbage in these trash cans before leaving the park. Remember to
put the lid back on the trash can.
Parents, watch your children !
Don’t let them put dirt or other objects in their
mouths when playing at the park.
Keep their hands clean.
Do a visual check of the area where your child
is playing to make sure no animal feces ("poop")
can be found nearby.
A parasite commonly known as Raccoon Roundworm (Baylisascaris
procyonis) lives in the digestive tract of raccoons. The microscopic eggs
of the parasite are shed in their feces, and a single defecation may carry a
large number of eggs. The eggs must mature to an infective state (2-4
weeks) before they can cause illness. Young children and toddlers
may be more likely than adults to ingest the eggs due to their
behavior of putting dirt and other objects in their mouths.
A very small number of Raccoon Roundworm infections in humans have
been reported, despite the large number of raccoons living in close
association with humans. This suggests that the risk of infection is rare
and remote. Nevertheless, parents should be informed about the potential
for infection and the need for proper precautions.
Do not touch raccoon feces.
Stay away from area and materials that might be contaminated by
raccoon feces. Raccoons typically defecate at the base of or in raised
forks of trees, or on raised horizontal surfaces such as fallen logs, stumps,
or large rocks. Raccoon feces also can be found on woodpiles, decks,
rooftops, and in attics, garages, and haylofts.
Feces usually are dark and tubular, have a pungent odor (usually worse than
dog or cat feces), and often contain undigested seeds or other food items.
Do not keep, feed, or adopt raccoons as pets! Raccoons are wild animals.
Discourage raccoons from living in and around your home or parks by
removing access to food. Clear brush so raccoons are not likely to make a
den on your property. To eliminate eggs, raccoon feces and material
contaminated with raccoon feces should be removed carefully and sent to
a landfill. Care should be taken to avoid contaminating hands and clothes.
Prompt removal and destruction of raccoon feces will reduce risk for
exposure and possible infection. Newly deposited eggs take at least 2-4
weeks to become infective.
Santa Barbara County Public Health Dept.
http://www.sbcphd.org/alert.html

What about Grey Squirrel poo, can I at least smell that?

Dang what is this world coming to. Can't eat this, can't smell that, can't mix the other with baby oil and ........ oh never mind.

Gray Squirrel poo is still safe. It' those danged red ones.

Bski stay out of this, you are afraid to stay at your place after dark so I know you don't know anything about Bandits and pond activity.

I grew up in the shadows of Chicago. We have a very special, highly skilled breed of Bandits that work the shoreline of our big pond. You'd lock the doors at night, too.

Ok I apologize Bski for my pre judgement.


Here's a bandit story for you as was told to me. True or not decide for yourself.

I have relatives that live in the outer limits of the houston metro area. They told me they had been feeding their cats in a large stainless steel bowl in their garage. They left the garage door cracked open so the cats were free to come and go. Every evening the coons would come in and clean up house. The story goes that one morning the stainless bowl was missing. They assumed the coons had took it. They replaced the stainless bowl with a small plastic dog bowl they had laying around. The smaller bowl didn't hold as much food as the stainless bowl so the cats pretty much cleaned the bowl every day. Now here's the weird part. The stainless bowl turned up back in the garage a week after it went missing. As they tell it they figured the coons brought it back so they would be getting fed again.

Grey Squirrel pooh is fine. Very tasty in fact. Where do you think Grey Poupon comes from? And why do you think it's so expensive? Because it takes a lot of squirrels to fill up that jar!

Heee heee heee, I wonder if all those Rolls Royce owners know they are eating Squirrel poo.

Don't you love it when a thread breaks down to it's basic element------------POOP!

Ok,
I was back in the woods by my pond this morning and I found some racoon poop (I think) maybe fox. Let the bidding start at $1.00. Well preserved at 15 degrees should have long shelf life.

Sorry there is no market for Racoon poo as it has the potential to kill you.

Grey Squirel poo however is valuable. But even then it must be 100% organic, free range poo and only from happy squirrels.

Put the Racoon poo back Brian and wash you hands thoroughly.

Squirrels, I got them little bastars all over the place. The little buggers keep coming up on my deck and eating apart the lid on my garbage can. I think I may be having squirrel for supper soon. I might have to eat along not sure the wife would dig in on that meal. I love watching the redtail hawk in the summer pick them suckers off in the back yard.

...unless you are a terrorist, assembling an I.P.D.

So you guys are saying that Gray Poopon is not all it's crapped up to be?

-
search "hawk squirrel" on youtube.com...this one is for DD1

Look in the side bar on you tube and ck out the hawk taking down a deer.

Mom's gonna take you out of the will.

Scatologic threads tend to deteriorate over time.