Caution Sign...

[Reynard]

 

 

 

[rocketraider]

An angry 'coon is nothing to be trifled with! I've seen them tear a dog up more than once.

 

Couple years back I was having a lot of trouble with squirrels raiding my bird feeders so I set a humane trap. We won't talk about what happened to the squirrels once they were trapped but squirrel gravy and biscuits is good eating. And buzzards have to eat too.

 

Anyway, I would disarm the trap overnight so I wouldn't risk trapping the odd wayward skunk and have to deal with that.

 

One night I forgot to disarm it and next morning I looked out and the trap was stuffed full of something, and I thought hoo boy.

 

It was a fat raccoon and it wasn't happy. I didn't want to shoot it because it had done nothing wrong except get caught up in bad circumstances. But I knew if I tried to dump it out of the trap it would likely have come out and climbed up me, biting and clawing the whole way. I felt really bad about it but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. 

[Jack Bennett]

McNeil Island Corrections Center, Steilacoom, Washington, now closed, was a Washington State medium security prison, located on an island in the Puget Sound.

This institution has direct lineage back to the earliest settlers in Washington state and is still recognized as a tribal hunting ground for a Native American tribe.

Even while occupied by the prison, the island retained the identity of a wildlife preserve, and is home to some species of animals not found elsewhere in the state.

One animal which has flourished on the island is the raccoon, and these creatures have grown both in size and population which could only be described as explosive.

For over a century the prison provided milk and meat for other Washington State penal facilities by maintaining its own dairy herd, a meat packing plant, and, at one time, its own milk pasteurization plant.

These activities were all operated by inmates, and the facilities used for their operation was located outside the prison perimeter fences.

This necessitated that inmate work crews, sometimes consisting of 25 or 30 convicted felons, and I do mean “worse of the worse” our society has to offer in “bad” guys, were formed up into a military style formation, and marched (?) the 1/2 mile to the meat plant.

Inmates have a soft spot for animals, and they form affections for critters ranging from the islands hundreds of feral cats to deers which have became domesticated through daily contact with humans.

This affection includes the resplendent raccoon population, and 1200 inmates feeding the racoons a healthy helping of pancakes, peanut butter and Zoom (prison malto-meal) makes for some ginormous racoons in a very short growth period.

Inmates also have a affection for prison brewed wine, called “pruno”, which bends their minds in ways a person who has never drank pruno on a, years long, regular basis, could never understand.

Anyway, one morning as the Correctional Officer marched the inmate formation past a guard tower, located near the intersection of two roads outside the institution, the officer in the tower made the following entry in the tower log book…….

At approximately 0700 hours, the inmate work crew, supervised by officer *********, approached, and began crossing the intersections of *** and *** roads. In an instant, and without any indication of their presence, a gang of 8 or ten raccoons materialized out of the fog and formed a barricade of their bodies across the road. In front of, and confronting the inmate formation was a raccoon which, sanding on its hind legs, stood at least three foot tall, and with it fore legs spread, was at least 2 foot across.

Hissing and baring its teeth, the raccoon seemed to be demanding food, and refused to let the inmates proceed across the intersection.

Several of the inmates had food, which was stolen from the kitchen, and secreted in their clothing, and spontaneously began withdrawing the food from their pockets and offered it to the raccoons”.

However, institution policies clearly makes feeding wildlife a violation, and can leave the offending inmate subject to some severe penalties. So, “The officer in charge stopped the effort, and the inmates quickly stuffed the food back into their clothing.

But, the senior, and apparent leader of the raccoon gang, having seen the food, began a purposeful approach toward the inmate close to the front of the formation, and, snarling and baring its teeth, made it perfectly clear it intended on taking the food, even if it meant taking the inmate apart to get it.

It should be noted here that the “guard tower” is also called a “gun tower” by the inmates, and it is a well known fact that the tower is armed with a fully loaded AR-15 rifle and a Model 870, 12 gauge shotgun, and, being outside the institution perimeter, has the standing authority to fire at escaping inmates without requesting further permission.

Disregarding every natural instinct which must have screamed the warning not to run, “The inmate formation instantly dissolved into a gang of panicked inmates, and turned back toward the protection afforded by the rear gate of the institution”. The supervising officer was in close pursuit, and the tower, seeing their panic, held fire and requested (radio) permission to open the gate.

”With the inmate formation safely re secured within the institution perimeter, and the supervising officer back in control, the incident was concluded and this log entry was closed at 0712 hours.

Not added to the entry was the amount of noticeably extra bounce to the step of the inmates as they regained their composure, and boasted about their heroic stand against a attacking raccoon hoard, as they strutted back toward their housing unit for a day off work, but safely secured inside the prison fences.

Jack

 

 

 

Edited February 29 by Jack Bennett (see edit history)

[Twisted Shifter]

14 hours ago, Reynard said:

 

 

 

Not to belittle the potential dangers of angry raccoons, but this warning was the result of a local prankster finding the signboard controls unlocked and unsupervised and entering a message he thought was funny. Road maintenance personnel quickly restored the proper message and locked the controls. Obviously, they had no sense of humor.

 

 

[rocketraider]

RJ "Over the Hedge".

[Reynard]

[Jack Bennett]

My comment too, is a little off base

Actually, the raccoon problem on McNeil Island is also a result of a prankster.

It seems that the settlers on McNeil Island recognized that an uncontrolled raccoon population, on this little eleven acre island, could be disastrous.

So, in about 1856 they hired a wildlife veterinarian to come to the island and “fix” all the raccoons they could trap.

But, as the story goes, a young prankster stole, the vets spay/neuter kit, and the vet stormed off the island without touching a single raccoon.

Jack

[John Kelso]

Twice I have attacked by raccoons during the day , both carrying rabies. In our area they are nocturnal.  Working in Jacks area a few years ago I was surprised to see them during day light hours, my first reaction was find a weapon. During this same period one entered the kennel of some hunting dogs

and caused a lot of damage.

[wayne sheldon]

Racoons can be sweet and friendly, or they can be mean and vicious! And they can be both in the course of a couple minutes.

They are usually nocturnal, but can come out and forage early or stay later into the daytime if they are hungry. Generally speaking? If they are out during the daytime? Suspect rabies! Same thing with skunks.