Does anyone know how to scare off raccoons...

[chickweed]

Thanks Kefirmaven - I will get son-in-law to check out the local guys (he probably already knows them). I need to have something done next spring before the damage starts again,because I simply cannot afford the monetary loss to my market business, and gunshots spook one of the neighbor's horses so much he nearly goes beserk (sound echoes through this area so much that it is hard to pinpoint the origin, sometimes).

[Fiddler]

Well, my dear Chickweed, since you absolutely refuse to kill raccoons, then it would seem like you are stuck with them forever. Killing pest raccoons and their replacements is the only answer. Sorry, but that's just the way it is. They are way too smart to be deterred by any "deterrents" for long. Sorry, but that's just the way it is.
When I first started growing veggies and planting fruit trees, I tried to be "Mister Nice Guy", live-trapping and driving nuisance wildlife to "nature areas". Just as a precaution, while they were in the trap, I spray-painted their tails with orange paint before I exiled them.
I was truly shocked by the number of orange-tailed varmints I re-trapped on my property just a week later.
I didn't read this entire thread before I posted this. If you have come around to the majority way of thinking, then please excuse my criticism concerning your tenderhearted ways.
I'm not happy with all the killing I have to do around here. It just has to be done if I'm ever going to enjoy the "fruits" of my labors!

[Fiddler]

Originally Posted by Butterflylover

we have tried everything, what worked best was a .22 cal

For those of you unfamiliar with firearms, "tube-fed" repeating .22 rifles are designed to use any .22 rimfire ammo (except magnum). Shorts, Longs, and Long Rifle ammo all work.
My personal favorite .22 ammo for executing coons in the live trap is CCI Long CB's. Wal-Mart sells CCI "Short" CB's. They are just as good, only cheaper.
These rounds are very quiet. Especially when you poke the barrel through the mesh of your live trap at a coon's head six inches away.
The shot only makes a "thunk" sound. None of your neighbors will even hear it. Closing a car door is much louder.
For those of you who aren't hunter/sportsmen/accuracy freaks, but simply want to dispatch pests in a live trap, you don't need to buy a top-of-the-line .22 rifle. Just go to your local pawn shop, pick out the cheapest, most beat-up single-shot .22 rifle he has, talk him way down in price, and go shoot coons.
The only thing you need to make sure of is that this piece of crap rifle has a functioning firing pin. It doesn't even need sights or a decent trigger. Your target will be six inches away.
Just do it!

[kefirmaven]

Originally Posted by chickweed

Thanks Kefirmaven - I will get son-in-law to check out the local guys (he probably already knows them). I need to have something done next spring before the damage starts again,because I simply cannot afford the monetary loss to my market business, and gunshots spook one of the neighbor's horses so much he nearly goes beserk (sound echoes through this area so much that it is hard to pinpoint the origin, sometimes).

Chickweed, he will use traps that he checks often. The bad thing about the raccoon especially in this state is, they are a reservoir for rabies, so they need to be trapped, same for foxes. You're doing the local ecosystem a favor by keeping their numbers in check. Since we don't have wolves or other predators to cull the raccoon population.

[Darth Slater]

I could send you pictures of my ex mother inlaw in a bikini, hell that would scare the devil!

Darth

[stone]

Originally Posted by Fiddler

I tried to be "Mister Nice Guy", live-trapping and driving nuisance wildlife to "nature areas". Just as a precaution, while they were in the trap, I spray-painted their tails with orange paint before I exiled them.
I was truly shocked by the number of orange-tailed varmints I re-trapped on my property just a week later.

Lol!

[redneckplanter]

show em rockie and bullwinkle reruns...
or some barney videos.....

[chickweed]

Originally Posted by redneckplanter

show em rockie and bullwinkle reruns...
or some barney videos.....

Barney should do it! Or maybe just the barney song on a loop?

[redneckplanter]

Originally Posted by chickweed

Barney should do it! Or maybe just the barney song on a loop?

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeeeee eeeeee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[swamp man]

Originally Posted by Fiddler

For those of you unfamiliar with firearms, "tube-fed" repeating .22 rifles are designed to use any .22 rimfire ammo (except magnum). Shorts, Longs, and Long Rifle ammo all work.
My personal favorite .22 ammo for executing coons in the live trap is CCI Long CB's. Wal-Mart sells CCI "Short" CB's. They are just as good, only cheaper.
These rounds are very quiet. Especially when you poke the barrel through the mesh of your live trap at a coon's head six inches away.
The shot only makes a "thunk" sound. None of your neighbors will even hear it. Closing a car door is much louder.
For those of you who aren't hunter/sportsmen/accuracy freaks, but simply want to dispatch pests in a live trap, you don't need to buy a top-of-the-line .22 rifle. Just go to your local pawn shop, pick out the cheapest, most beat-up single-shot .22 rifle he has, talk him way down in price, and go shoot coons.
The only thing you need to make sure of is that this piece of crap rifle has a functioning firing pin. It doesn't even need sights or a decent trigger. Your target will be six inches away.
Just do it!

Dang...I didn't know there was such a thing as a Long CB. Where do you get 'em? I'd like to get some CB's that would feed through my bolt action, and would be delighted to find some that would cycle through my Ruger 22/45, but not sure if they'd have enough "pop" to operate the action.

Yep, I'm in agreement with the "you gotta' kill 'em" faction, and bein' as how they're so crafty and so...err...good at reproducing, it can be a constant battle. I can trap one or two here before they wise up to it, then have to put the trap away for a while. My best results have been with a pile of corn under a flood light about thirty yards outside the guest bedroom window....my indoor hunting blind.

I've never understood why 'coons are so under-rated as table fare. A coon stuffed with veggies, wrapped in foil, and cooked on a smoker for a few hours is 'bout as good as it gets.

Cuteness only goes so far when you lose your entire watermelon patch in one evening. Wonder if the OP has handled the problem.