Crop damage Raccoon hunting with my "New" Marlin 30/30

[Johnch]

Well new to me Marlin
In Ohio , if you are a farmer or land owner you can ask the local Game Warden for "Crop Damage" permits to control out of season game critters
Like Deer , Raccoons and Geese to name a few ( we get all 3 , but don't always use all 3 permits )

Well a month or so back I bought a used Marlin rifle and lots of Brass at a estate sale
So I used my friends shop and made a plain base , smooth sided 4 gang mould that is a Lee Soup Can knock off , but drops a .311 and 145 gr bullet

Long story short , cast out of range lead and powder coated ....well shoot great
I am loading them with Blue Dot to 1300 FPS
Slightly dirty , but 3"-4" groups at 100 yds using a scope .....might be better after I get a better scope ....and might be ME that is the problem

Well today my brother and I set 48 Dog Proof traps for raccoons and after I figured I would take a look for something to shoot along the creek behind the farm
Well I only had brought a 50 round box of reloads to "Plink" with
But as I looked up into the maple trees along the creek , I had lots of targets
As almost every tree seemed to have Raccoons sleeping on the limbs

Well other than the 1 plain Miss I had from shooting a branch 1/2 way to the "target"
I reduced the raccoon population by 24 and I only stopped because the deer flies and Sand Flies were doing a number on me

I will be heading back there to check the traps in a while
This time I plan on having a can of bug spray with me , along with at least 50 rounds of ammo for targets in the Maple trees ....err maybe I will take 100 rounds , just incase I get charged by raccoons :bigsmyl2:

I wonder how many other states let people control the pest population of raccoons ?
As I find it great off season hunting , with the forecast for Raccoon pelts to be real low ( $5 for a 2 or 3XL pelt in great shape )
It might be worth looking into
Our Game Warden gives me a call a few days after the crop damage permit expires ( the first day of regular season ) and asks me "about" how many we killed ....he just needs a number for his paperwork

Have fun
John

[Hickory]

Racoon's are really troublesome with sweet corn. I try to put out no less than 1\2 acre every year and found that fence charger is not very effective for dissuading racoon's from getting past the wire when the ground is dry. However, the wire charged directly from house current (120 volts) work very well in keeping them at bay.

[mold maker]

Charging with 110V becomes more than a coon determent. While I understand the frustration, it's like SSS, and not wise to advertise. Plus the possibility of causing a fire.

[Teddy (punchie)]

Fence will work but need barbed wire 3-4" off ground. Set a trap inside fence for the ones that make it in. Dry years (times) its allot harder to stop them.

If we catch them I think they (PGC) wants them dead.

John that a pile of coons.

Funny thing is I have not seen many goundhogs for years. We leave them alone if they stay out of the fields. Leave them make holes for the bunnies and other animals. Make a hole in the field and there days are numbered. We are seeing them every where this year ??? Deer look like they are doing okay just now starting to see the fawns and at good numbers. Maybe a year of plenty, make me think of what is coming!!!

[farmerjim]

Coons have gotten 90% of my last planting of sweet corn ( 2,000 plants) I am killing them, 15 so far, but they keep on destroying my crop. I have never had them this bad before. I will see a little damage, and I will kill 2 or three and all the damage stops. Not this year. I might have to get a coon dog.

[CastingFool]

That is a lot of dead coons, Johnch, good shooting! I found out my Henry BBS in 45LC makes a good varmint gun. two woodchucks, at 65 yds, 4 days apart, on the same spot. incidentally, those were my first and second kills with cast, and with the Henry. Had a chance at a raccoon, but it was getting a bit too dark to see.

[w5pv]

Brings back a lot of good memories,Coons will destroy more than they eat.When I was doing a large garden it was interestingfact that they never bothered any of my corn but would eat the melons,dig a little hole in the rine and hull out the insides.

[white eagle]

good work on the coons
a bit off topic but about how many baby's (coon's)
do they have in a litter?
I have a problem with them under my backyard shed
traps are filled every morning with little ones

[WebMonkey]

Coons kill our chicken, quail here in Missouri.
We kill all that come around.
:(

[Hardcast416taylor]

About 6 years back I finally reached my limit of being patient about `coons on our deck or destroying the flower pots or bird feeders. I installed a motion sensor deck light and sat at the kitchen table and waited. Over the month of July (30 days) I reduced the population by 32, mostly adults. An old 10/22 was all that I used with Win. HP ammo, the resident `yotes ate well around here that year.Robert

[Texas by God]

We've taken to calling them "tree pigs" because they are so destructive. We like to hunt them with spotlights and shotguns at night and I don't dodge them on the road, either! Best, Thomas.

[runfiverun]

what's a permit?
coons are S.O.S.
I doubt we have 24 in the whole valley, and it's rare to see a live one.
it's worth mentioning to your buddy's if you do see one, and they don't usually last long after the word gets out about a sighting.

[Beagle333]

You have seasons? For coons? The 30-30 is good medicine for em. All I catch in the traps here are the neighbor's yappy little dogs. So it's much less trouble than letting dogs go, just to shoot the coons and skip the trapping part.

[richhodg66]

From what I've heard about them, if you had that kind of population density, it was a rabies, distemper, parvo epidemic in the making.

We had a coon eating my outside tomcat's food a while back, he was always nervous and didn't hang around as much. Tried a trap, didn't work. Locked the cat up one night and missed most of a night's sleep but took care of the problem. I didn't realize they got as big as that one and it was missing one foot, obviously from a trap or something long ago. I gained a healthy respect for how tough they are too and after reading more about them, they are the only thing besides coyotes that are on the shoot on sight with whatever you got list. Wife saw one on the front porch steps the other night, looks like I might have to stay up again.

[labradigger1]

No coon problems here in the garden this year but the crows are just flat out detrimental this year.
Pulled 7 rows of field corn about 100 yds long. Took it all with no survivors. Now they are pecking huge holes in the green tomatoes and bell peppers. I'm sure the melons and zucchini are next. I've flung lead at them on a couple pop shots, installed scarecrow siting in a lawn chair with a shot gun, Pie pans, reflective ribbon and still they come!
The garden is on my farm about 4 miles from home and with my work schedule I just can't be there. This weekend I'm going over at daylight and see how they like a 22-250! If that doesn't work, fish hooks, antifreeze, steel traps.

[Geezer in NH]

A sign in Northern NH along the Connecticut river on a farm on rte 3 said

"Eat corn 50,000 raccoons can't be wrong." This was just before his farm stand.

Too bad as the farm was not even planted this year.

[Johnch]

Yesterday 10 in the traps and 14 more out of the maple trees
Today 16 in the traps and 11 fell from the trees , 1 was so big ...I was just able to drag it away ....maybe 45 or 50 lb a huge male

I have 4 uses for the pests
The young of the year , I have a number of people looking for them to eat
The Med. sized ones make decent turtle bait
Some of the rest are now bait ....I set 10 coyote snares today and dead raccoon ....well I hope are at least decent bait
And some are feeding the Bald Eagles that live in the woods behind my house ....I took the Eagle food out on the ATV and wasn't 1/2 way to the spot I dump stuff and 2 young eagles and the parents were setting in the trees waiting for lunch to be dropped off

Also I talked to the farmer that farms next to us , he has been reducing the population also
But looking at the mud along the creek bank tells me , we need to thin them out a BUNCH more

John

[richhodg66]

The infestation you have there is unbelieveable. Can't believe someone would eat them, talk about nasty.

[Johnch]

I live in a area of Ohio that used to be called the Great Black Swamp
But by selling the land cheap they added the new land owner had to dig ditches
So around where I live is a flat area that used to be under Lake Erie 10K years ago
But with lots of small creeks ( Big hand dug ditches ) now and woods lines we have a lot of Raccoons

The Hunters and trappers sometimes control the raccoons , but with the low prices they aren't

Oh , young of the year young raccoons are like rabbit ....last years batch have lots of fat and are nasty
2 year old and older ones just get more fat , more size and think they own the place

They are spreading out ...so if you start seeing many around your place
Think ....high speed lead and head shots


John

[richhodg66]

Had them coming around again, wife saw one a few nights ago, not as bold as the last time, but we don't always remember to bring in the cat food every night. I'm pretty fond of that cat, he's real friendly and we got him shots, but for the most part, he is exclusively outdoors. He comes and goes, sometimes he stays gone several days, but when he's here, he sleeps pretty hard in his bed on the porch and might be vulnerable. This is the article I read that made me not be indifferent to coons;

http://www.bear-tracker.com/raccoonpredationoncats.html

I see them close to the house now, they get shot. That cat food is the only thing outside that should attract them, but I don't want one deciding he's hungry enough to eat a cat. I also did some reading on how disease ridden they tend to be, mainly when they have very dense populations, which I don't think we have.

We see more possums than coons. Possums generally get a pass, but coons are on the kill list.

[Mauser48]

Didn't know coons were that plentiful and destructive, that's awesome! Good shootin!

[izzyjoe]

Nasty, no sir, if prepared properly barbecued coon is wonderful, but with as many as he killing I could get burned out pretty quickly! We have a coon problem in the shop at work, but our boss won't allow use to firearms. He said we could use air rifles, but that just won't work on a 25lb coon! We have caught a few in traps, but not nearly enough. Now here at the house is a different story, my property joins 25 acres of wood, and it's a target rich environment. Coons, opossums, armadillo, and snakes are fair game round here, and a few crows now and then!

[Uncle Grinch]

Coons are also notorious for eating wild turkey eggs. They can put a real damper on them.

[rodwha]

I've heard coon was good eating too.

[starmac]

I tried coon once, it was not to my likeing, not terrible, but nothing I wanted a steady diet of either.
To be fair the Cajun that barbequed it claimed he messed it up. I belive he did, as generally he could make anything he put on a grill taste good.

I was going to try baked coon one other time, I killed two one night and a cajun friend of mine baked them the next day with all the trimmings, I can't say it was good though as there was not even one bite left by the time I got off of work. lol

[trapper9260]

Fence will work but need barbed wire 3-4" off ground. Set a trap inside fence for the ones that make it in. Dry years (times) its allot harder to stop them!

Use the electric fence with 2 wires ,one 4" from the ground and then another 4" above that one and then you will be ok.It will take care of the young and the older ones also.

[nso123]

The crows and possums have demolished my garden this year. I had to set up a scouting camera to see what was getting me. Corn has been ripped off the stalks and tomatoes and beans stripped from the plants. I see a population reduction soon.

[richhodg66]

Nasty, no sir, if prepared properly barbecued coon is wonderful, but with as many as he killing I could get burned out pretty quickly! We have a coon problem in the shop at work, but our boss won't allow use to firearms. He said we could use air rifles, but that just won't work on a 25lb coon! We have caught a few in traps, but not nearly enough. Now here at the house is a different story, my property joins 25 acres of wood, and it's a target rich environment. Coons, opossums, armadillo, and snakes are fair game round here, and a few crows now and then!

The last one I killed was so smelly and gross, there's no way I'd try and I did eat a possum once. Maybe someday if I'm hungry enough, but until then, they'll be donated to the local scavengers.