# Raccoons and Tortoises question



## JohnnyB65 (Oct 6, 2014)

It was mentioned earlier in another thread that Raccoons will eat Tortoises and now I’m very concerned about the safety of my tort. There is no chance of anything happening during the day, but the night time is another story. Now that my tortoise is larger his tunnel to his burrow is also larger and I’m wondering if a raccoon would try to squeeze down the hole after him.

Here is a video of a large raccoon walking across my patio and he was so quite that he walked right past my dogs sleeping without them waking up.


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## Maggie Cummings (Oct 6, 2014)

The answer to your question is, yes. I also have 'coons in my yard nightly. My 150+ pound Sulcata goes into his 20'x12'' shed every night at 6:30, I close his doggie door and lock the bigger door. An independent pet shop owner here in town had a 100 pound Sulcata who slept in a box outside all summer, a raccoon ate off his head as far into the carapace as he could get. Now that you know you have raccoons, *DO NOT* leave your tortoise out at night unprotected. A raccoon *WILL* kill him...cover/close his burrow at night
You can buy a motion sensor sprinkler that shoots out a stream of water, I think it's called a Scarecrow, but I don't remember anymore...


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 6, 2014)

maggie3fan said:


> The answer to your question is, yes. I also have 'coons in my yard nightly. My 150+ pound Sulcata goes into his 20'x12'' shed every night at 6:30, I close his doggie door and lock the bigger door. An independent pet shop owner here in town had a 100 pound Sulcata who slept in a box outside all summer, a raccoon ate off his head as far into the carapace as he could get. Now that you know you have raccoons, *DO NOT* leave your tortoise out at night unprotected. A raccoon *WILL* kill him...cover/close his burrow at night
> You can buy a motion sensor sprinkler that shoots out a stream of water, I think it's called a Scarecrow, but I don't remember anymore...


Oh Wow! Thanks, I think I'll go out right now and put a couple of blocks in front of the entrance to his burrow until I can find something better. I hope it doesn't cause too much turmoil if we forget about opening it in time for him to come out.


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 6, 2014)

OK I put a concrete block in front of the opening for tonight and I hope a raccoon doesn't figure out how to open it.
After looking at the entrance to the burrow, I realized that it is big enough for a raccoon to climb down there.


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## ascott (Oct 6, 2014)

Ugggh....I really detest those critters....


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## bouaboua (Oct 6, 2014)

You need to do this........




And use this......................


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 7, 2014)

I thought about buying a trap, but I need to talk to my neighbor about that because I remember they tried that and discovered that there are rules that must be followed. I don't remember the details but they gave up after being threatened with fines.


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## Maggie Cummings (Oct 7, 2014)

Then don't tell anybody, just catch and move the 'coon...


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## Tyanna (Oct 7, 2014)

Ugh...darn critters.  Keep your dude safe!


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 7, 2014)

I talked to my neighbor and she doesn't remember much. I was her husband that doing it and he passed away. The only thing she remembers was that they couldn't get rid of it if they did catch it. I wouldn't know what to do with it either and I wouldn't want cause someone else a headache.


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## Yellow Turtle01 (Oct 8, 2014)

I have raccoons, but my sulcata stays in her house at night, and my russian comes in. I NEVER leave him out, they are just nasty about what they can and WILL eat! 
They make sprays/pellets to deter them... don' know whether they work or not.


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## Yellow Turtle01 (Oct 8, 2014)

maggie3fan said:


> The answer to your question is, yes. I also have 'coons in my yard nightly. My 150+ pound Sulcata goes into his 20'x12'' shed every night at 6:30, I close his doggie door and lock the bigger door. An independent pet shop owner here in town had a 100 pound Sulcata who slept in a box outside all summer, a raccoon ate off his head as far into the carapace as he could get. Now that you know you have raccoons, *DO NOT* leave your tortoise out at night unprotected. A raccoon *WILL* kill him...cover/close his burrow at night
> You can buy a motion sensor sprinkler that shoots out a stream of water, I think it's called a Scarecrow, but I don't remember anymore...


Wow my gosh, really?? I feel a nice big chomp from a big tortoise and the racoon would've been outta there??


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## Maggie Cummings (Oct 8, 2014)

*MOST* Sulcata are shy. They sleep at night and are kinda groggy and unthinking when awakened from a sound sleep. So, they don't have it together enough to defend themselves against a vicious attack while sleeping. 
Look at how they use their front legs to protect their heads. A Lion, for instance, has whats called a brakecephalic


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## Maggie Cummings (Oct 8, 2014)

Evidently, my 10 minutes passed and I was shut off again....So here is my post...TFO's program can be as much as a jerk as Bob...
Why do I have a time limit? I'm a slow thinker and slower typist...crap!!!

*MOST* Sulcata are shy. They sleep at night and are kinda groggy and unthinking when awakened from a sound sleep. So, they don't have it together enough to defend themselves against a vicious attack while sleeping. They'll just protect their head.
Look at how they use their front legs to protect their heads. A Lion, for instance, has whats called a brakecephalic (I can't even find spelling in the dictionary)....what that is; is a flat pushed in face like a bulldog, or...St Bernard or lions. With a big Sulcata protecting his head with his front legs those animals can't get them.
But a raccoon or rat or Doberman, or my favorite, German Shepherd, has a sharp long snout, pushes in right past those protecting legs and chomp chomp. Do not ever leave a tortoise unprotected outside at night if you have predators. I have seen Bob get mad, he ram's, then uses his gulars to flip the irritant. I am 5'7" and abt 122 lbs and he has rammed me a few times and knocked me off my feet twice.
They are very dangerous in the right situation...but not against raccoons or rats. Bob one time used his gular to flip a rat terrier I was dog sitting. Bandit was barking at Bob and Bob got mad, cornered Bandit, rammed him, then flipped him in the air. It was very impressive. Bandit had a sprained leg from the landing, but that was all. Except, even now, about 4 years later, Bandit won't go into my back yard at all. Even tho Bob is kept fenced off. Bandit is VERY afraid of Big Bad Bob...
_*Domesticate dogs and raccoons are the biggest predator of captive tortoises.*_ Protect your tortoise at all times against these animals....


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## ZEROPILOT (Oct 8, 2014)

If you truly don't know much about raccoons, They are very smart and very strong. They have thumbs on their "hands", Have sharp claws and teeth and can get into and pry open just about ANYTHING. I had raccoons living in my roof in a previous house. I boarded up and nailed shut all entries and they just yanked off the boards like nothing. I screwed in sections of steel expanded mesh and within another day or so, they had ripped away the wood from around the edges and still got in. I ended up trapping and shooting every single one of them and cutting down every tree in my yard. They defeated me! I'll give you a good tip. In a trap, if you ONLY want raccoons, use an apple as bait. That way you wont end up with a trapped cat or anything else. It seems only a 'coon likes apples. I don't advocate killing raccons, or anything else. Just know that if you DO trap them, carry them MILES away. Their homing instinct will bring them back, otherwise! They destroyed my attic, wiring and A/C vents....and crapped all over the place to boot. If I see any in my new neighborhood, I'm ready to go "postal" on them too!


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## Yellow Turtle01 (Oct 8, 2014)

We feed the birds here, and we've got this big metal garbage can with the seeds inside (mice chewed through plastic cans) and nowadays there has to be a bungee on the kid because the can open it!
They are smart, like everyone's sayingg!


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 8, 2014)

I've been thinking about it and I'm not too motivated in buying a trap because for one; I’m not a hunter and I really don’t even know where to buy one and two; I just don’t want any more stuff around to store. I might be interested in renting one if I could find someone to get rid of it for me. I wish I could just call someone like animal control to have them put up a trap and also remove it because I just don’t want to handle it, but I’ve been told they will not do it.

I think I’ll have to come up with a solution on my own to automatically close off the entrance at night and then open it in the morning with a timer or something. I could also install a motion detector alarm that would wake up the dogs although that would also wake up the neighbors.

I had my house and roof sealed up against intruders years ago when pigeons found their way in to my attack and did a lot of damage. I did have a raccoon climb up a tree to my roof and I actually had security video of it. I since removed the tree and all other access to the roof, but I really don’t think it could get in at this point.


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## bouaboua (Oct 8, 2014)

JohnnyB65 said:


> I've been thinking about it and I'm not too motivated in buying a trap because for one; I’m not a hunter and I really don’t even know where to buy one and two; I just don’t want any more stuff around to store. I might be interested in renting one if I could find someone to get rid of it for me. I wish I could just call someone like animal control to have them put up a trap and also remove it because I just don’t want to handle it, but I’ve been told they will not do it.
> 
> I think I’ll have to come up with a solution on my own to automatically close off the entrance at night and then open it in the morning with a timer or something. I could also install a motion detector alarm that would wake up the dogs although that would also wake up the neighbors.
> 
> I had my house and roof sealed up against intruders years ago when pigeons found their way in to my attack and did a lot of damage. I did have a raccoon climb up a tree to my roof and I actually had security video of it. I since removed the tree and all other access to the roof, but I really don’t think it could get in at this point.



You may ask your local pests control company to set us trap for you and take away what ever they are trapped.


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 8, 2014)

bouaboua said:


> You may ask your local pests control company to set us trap for you and take away what ever they are trapped.


Now thats an idea, maybe I can get "Billy the Exterminator" to remove the raccoon. LOL


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## ascott (Oct 8, 2014)

JohnnyB65 said:


> Now thats an idea, maybe I can get "Billy the Exterminator" to remove the raccoon. LOL



LOL...I believe Yvonne is a "Billy the Exterminator" fan....


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## Roseendale (Oct 10, 2014)

We had coon problem in our community couple of months back and these decoits have incredible sense of possible food source that they will find ways to reach it. I was aware of the rising troubles and I took the babies, red ear slider and eastern box, tank inside our home. That very night the coons came and made a mess of the pond; Ate the plants in the pond and it was clear that they were searching for the turtles. 
We had to call up environment pest control in Mississauga, Hawkeye Bird & Animal Control Specialists, to get rid of the raccoon problem. They relocated the coons away from our locality and since then we haven't face the same issue till now.


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## JohnnyB65 (Oct 10, 2014)

Coons have gotten into my pond and ate about 5 fish over the years, but I haven’t seen any signs of them lately for about a year. I think they may have also raided my garden a few years back because whatever it was, it was pretty big.

I’ve talked to the neighbors around me to see if anybody has seen them lately and everyone thinks they may be gone. Either someone else has already trapped it or it could have been taken by a coyote. Lately we have had a large problem of coyotes roaming the streets at night looking for food although I don’t know if coyotes eat raccoons.

Last night the neighbors two dogs sounded like they had something trapped in their yard by the way they were barking for 2 hours. My wife has seen a cat teasing them from the block wall before and thinks it might have been the cat.

Anyways I have been using a heavy concrete block in front of the entrance every night as a precaution. I’m also working on a design for an automatic door at the entrance that will close at night and open when the sun comes up in the morning.

I’m undecided whether or not to use a timer or a photo switch. The timer would allow me flexibility for exactly when to open and close the door while the photo switch is solely dependent on the sun. I’m leaning toward the photo switch because it will not be affected by any power outages causing the clock time to change although photo switches have their own reliability problems and don’t always work as they are supposed to.


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## Linda A Perez (Dec 8, 2014)

This is new to me, I didn’t know that raccoons eat tortoises.You got to take care of your tortoise.At night, you can keep your tortoise indoors,but it is essential to remove the raccoon away from your house.There are a few tips to get rid of these creatures like set up live traps in your garden and release the animal at least 3 miles away , keep a dog or even grind up garlic and mix with equal quantity of chilly powder and spread it around the garden frequently.And if you still cant get rid of them, then hire the services of a professional to remove them.


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## enchilada (Dec 10, 2014)

a good coon is a dead coon


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## G-stars (Dec 10, 2014)

enchilada said:


> a good coon is a dead coon



Agreed. Well only if they try to mess with my tortoise. If they leave me alone I'll leave them alone. Besides those of us who have dogs don't have to worry much about them.


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## Tyanna (Dec 11, 2014)

This makes me nervous. I'm building an outdoor enclosure this summer. I've never seen raccoons around my house, but I don't know if they're there or not.


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 11, 2014)

Tyanna said:


> This makes me nervous. I'm building an outdoor enclosure this summer. I've never seen raccoons around my house, but I don't know if they're there or not.


If you have trash cans outside and the trash is still INSIDE them in the morning. You likely don't have any.


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## Tyanna (Dec 11, 2014)

ZEROPILOT said:


> If you have trash cans outside and the trash is still INSIDE them in the morning. You likely don't have any.



Oh good.  So I probably should worry about completely securing the top (raccoon "securing" LOL) of an outdoor enclosure?


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## ZEROPILOT (Dec 11, 2014)

Anything extra that you do would be a good idea. I have no protection at all and have not for over eight years. (On the other hand, I don't think that most screened tops would even slow down a determined raccoon. Much less stop them.) I'll bet you're just fine. Lucky like me.


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## stinax182 (Dec 11, 2014)

There's a reason you have a raccoon around (stream nearby, plentiful food) so removing one will only make place for another. You need to make sure your tortoise is safe from them and let them be. I rehabilitate raccoons and they are incredibly smart. They will live where the food is so if you live in a nice patch of woods near a stream, it's inevitable. If you live in a more urban area, don't leave trash out.


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## JohnnyB65 (Dec 11, 2014)

I have lived here for 20 some years and had no idea that I had raccoons in the desert. It wasn't until I installed security cameras that I saw them and even then nobody believed me.


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