tiffers
07-14-2007, 03:25 PM
Let me give you a bit of history first.
Since I moved into my mother's house to housesit while she's away...I've been battling an ENTIRE ARMY of raccoons. By army, I mean there's got to be atleast 15 or 20 of them. Why they chose this house as a victim?! ...I couldn't answer that.
There are two older raccoons, at LEAST 50 or 60 pounds a piece. Because of the way the laundry room is set up during remodeling, it does not shut. Well, they little darlings caught onto this really quick. We keep all the feed in that room: dog, cat, chicken, rabbit, duck, etc. It used to be that they'd eat the bottoms out of all the bags of food, so we bought containers for the food...well, now, they're taking the CONTAINERS! We always hear them, so we run downstairs and play tug of war with the feed. One coon on one side, and myself or another on the other side. At any time during an attack, you can pan a flashlight across the back yard and see a TON of little reflecting eyes. ...yes, they are precious. Terribly so, I'll admit.
Well, we finally braced the door shut to where they couldn't move it to get in. Well, that apparently was not as genius as we thought. We're in a REALLY old cedar sided house. ...the little darlings chewed through the wall just about the washer and dryer...and come in to eat, make a mess, and then leave. I could easily fit Chica through the hole they've made. My mother's fiancee is really, really, really MAD. Naturally, the things are eating through the walls...I'd be a little flustered myself.
Well, last night...Charles (my other half), Chica, Catillac, and myself are all downstairs. It's late and we're going about our daily human business when Chica goes to one of the doors (there are three that lead to the outside from downstairs)...she starts whimpering and crying. I told her that was enough and to zip it. A few hours later, I hear what sounds like a puppy upstairs. I may nurse a lot of babies, but I don't have a puppy at this point in time. So, just as I open the door to inspect I hear what sounds like a bag being ripped open. (The kitchen is upstairs, weird...I know.)
I yelled for Charles telling him we were under attack again, yes...I really said that. And he comes running up the stairs after me, at the time I didn't know it, but he'd stopped at the bottom of the stairs. (Our stairs are outside, by the way and we have a pet door for Chica and Catillac.) I reach the top, and there are three little darlings bolting up the rafters to hang out in the cieling, and three more shoot off the balcony. I did feel kind of bad for them, but...well, that's nature.
I get upstairs, it's an utter mess. Food, raccoon pee, trash...you name it. I gained my composure just as the big huge raccoon comes charging at me from under the dining room table, I screamed and jumped up and Charles finally comes running up the stairs and meets the raccoon and he squeals and the raccoon flies off the balcony off onto the ground as well. She zips off for the woods, and the three little babies are still staring at us having heart attacks, I'm sure.
I could hear this really, really weird noise from our bedroom. I go to inspect and one of the babies can see himself in the reflection of a door that leads to an outside balcony. He's attacking himself in the window! Well, I make myself look like an utter fool as I try to shoo him away, but he crawls under the bed, across the room, and snuggles up in Chica's bed. Good thing Chica didn't see this, she'd be completely upset.
I get a broom and try to sweep him out of the bedroom, and he climbs up the bookshelf, and latches on to one of Charles' favorite pictures. The coon falls, shattering the picture and the runs to the kitchen, I started to chase him and he's peeing EVERYWHERE. It smells awful...worse than anal glands almost.
We lock everything up. Seal off the pet door, and turn off the porch light because big mama-coon will be back for her babies soon. Lord have mercy on us when that time comes.
We start cleaning up, they've eaten ALL of the cat and dog food, eaten our loofahs in the bathroom, and totally dominated all my fish tank stuff.
I suppose, the best part is this. Charles doesn't really like animals, except for Chica, and that took a LOT of time. But, he loves Chica. Well, anyway...we finally get ready for bed, and as he sits down in his bed, his jaw drops and he freezes. He then proceeds to tell me that his side of the bed is warm. : ) Hahahaha! The little darlings were napping on his side...
Since I moved into my mother's house to housesit while she's away...I've been battling an ENTIRE ARMY of raccoons. By army, I mean there's got to be atleast 15 or 20 of them. Why they chose this house as a victim?! ...I couldn't answer that.
There are two older raccoons, at LEAST 50 or 60 pounds a piece. Because of the way the laundry room is set up during remodeling, it does not shut. Well, they little darlings caught onto this really quick. We keep all the feed in that room: dog, cat, chicken, rabbit, duck, etc. It used to be that they'd eat the bottoms out of all the bags of food, so we bought containers for the food...well, now, they're taking the CONTAINERS! We always hear them, so we run downstairs and play tug of war with the feed. One coon on one side, and myself or another on the other side. At any time during an attack, you can pan a flashlight across the back yard and see a TON of little reflecting eyes. ...yes, they are precious. Terribly so, I'll admit.
Well, we finally braced the door shut to where they couldn't move it to get in. Well, that apparently was not as genius as we thought. We're in a REALLY old cedar sided house. ...the little darlings chewed through the wall just about the washer and dryer...and come in to eat, make a mess, and then leave. I could easily fit Chica through the hole they've made. My mother's fiancee is really, really, really MAD. Naturally, the things are eating through the walls...I'd be a little flustered myself.
Well, last night...Charles (my other half), Chica, Catillac, and myself are all downstairs. It's late and we're going about our daily human business when Chica goes to one of the doors (there are three that lead to the outside from downstairs)...she starts whimpering and crying. I told her that was enough and to zip it. A few hours later, I hear what sounds like a puppy upstairs. I may nurse a lot of babies, but I don't have a puppy at this point in time. So, just as I open the door to inspect I hear what sounds like a bag being ripped open. (The kitchen is upstairs, weird...I know.)
I yelled for Charles telling him we were under attack again, yes...I really said that. And he comes running up the stairs after me, at the time I didn't know it, but he'd stopped at the bottom of the stairs. (Our stairs are outside, by the way and we have a pet door for Chica and Catillac.) I reach the top, and there are three little darlings bolting up the rafters to hang out in the cieling, and three more shoot off the balcony. I did feel kind of bad for them, but...well, that's nature.
I get upstairs, it's an utter mess. Food, raccoon pee, trash...you name it. I gained my composure just as the big huge raccoon comes charging at me from under the dining room table, I screamed and jumped up and Charles finally comes running up the stairs and meets the raccoon and he squeals and the raccoon flies off the balcony off onto the ground as well. She zips off for the woods, and the three little babies are still staring at us having heart attacks, I'm sure.
I could hear this really, really weird noise from our bedroom. I go to inspect and one of the babies can see himself in the reflection of a door that leads to an outside balcony. He's attacking himself in the window! Well, I make myself look like an utter fool as I try to shoo him away, but he crawls under the bed, across the room, and snuggles up in Chica's bed. Good thing Chica didn't see this, she'd be completely upset.
I get a broom and try to sweep him out of the bedroom, and he climbs up the bookshelf, and latches on to one of Charles' favorite pictures. The coon falls, shattering the picture and the runs to the kitchen, I started to chase him and he's peeing EVERYWHERE. It smells awful...worse than anal glands almost.
We lock everything up. Seal off the pet door, and turn off the porch light because big mama-coon will be back for her babies soon. Lord have mercy on us when that time comes.
We start cleaning up, they've eaten ALL of the cat and dog food, eaten our loofahs in the bathroom, and totally dominated all my fish tank stuff.
I suppose, the best part is this. Charles doesn't really like animals, except for Chica, and that took a LOT of time. But, he loves Chica. Well, anyway...we finally get ready for bed, and as he sits down in his bed, his jaw drops and he freezes. He then proceeds to tell me that his side of the bed is warm. : ) Hahahaha! The little darlings were napping on his side...