Coons!

[papbouv]

Many big coon dogs have been killed by coons in water they drown the dog,coons would kill a Doxie in a heart beat. We have a cement yard behind our house where they make cement blocks it is a huge area then on the other side of that is a creek so their are all kinds of critters back there.That why I like to have a big dog in my back yard the critters never know if the big dog is out or the little dog.I do think the Bouviers were much more protective of the little dogs than this Doberman but of course he is still considered a pup at 17 months old.
I would go out with Hallie too at night with a big powerful flashlight you might consider big yard lights but  your neighbors might not like all the extra lights might keep you up too.Was thinking if you had lights on the critters might quit going though your yard & go though a darker yard. If your neighbors are leaving out cat food or dog food thats why the coons are looking for some free food.Maybe you need to have a neighborhood meeting asking everyone not to leave out any food,then maybe the coons might go elsewhere????
Papbouv

[Dee Dee and Hallie]

Yep, I agree, I hate that I can't feel safe with her in her own back yard anymore. :( Even if we catch more coons there can always be more out there. If the dang city would let me build a fence taller than 6 ft I'd go as high as I could go! I also worry about the diseases they might leave behind even if they aren't there at the time.

The lights are a good idea, I do flip on the lights to the back yard from inside the house when I let Hallie out (and go out with her) but I have to have her harness on too because she would be off like a shot if she saw a coon in her yard, even if I was standing right there with her. I dont have lights on the side though and have been thinking about doign that even before this all happened. I don't leave the back lights on all nightI probably should.

YES the neighbors to the side of me and behind me both leave out cat food. They aren't the "neighborhood meeting" kind, they are both decent but wouldn't take their cat food in and would think it's wierd of me to ask them to. Although they were happy to know we got 4 of the coons.  :thinik: I really do wish they would take in the food though. I am surprised the coons started coming into my yard when they could get cat food at the neighbors. They were after my blueberries at one point.

[papbouv]

If I were a Coon I would go for Blueberries over cat food anyday.
Papbouv

[Dee Dee and Hallie]

Everything i plant in our little garden is for Hallie, the blueberries, raspberries, carrots and snap peas. (I eat them too! But I wouldn't have them if not for her). So I hate to pull them all out, she loves to go out there and pick her own produce. But I might have to rethink that now. :(

Last night we caught cat #3...or was it 4? The new Burgerville hotdogs have been a hit with the cats and possums.

[Ruth in MT]

                                     

(We just wanted to use this emoticon )

[doxielady5569128]

Porky Pie here:  Dats nuffin we used to get 6 or 7 coons in an hour at our odder house.  Da weason dey like ta come ta town is a cuz dere is all da yummy twash to eat fwom da dumpsters!   Now, tell me if you knew dere was a westawant dat would gib you fwee food ebery time you go'ed dere, wouldn't you go dere all the time!!  If I knew what a westawaunt was I would!   Momma sez dat would be a good deal.  Also...you need ta be careful of dose possums.  My Fewine brudder Pete got attacked by one and had a pwetty nasty wound!   Dey are not harmwess!!    We eben saw Da "great white possum" at our house.  Dat fing was scawy and HUGE!!  Eben da park rangers were fraid of him!!   

I'm gwad you like to watch dem coons. Dey sure do funny fings, but be careful a'cuz i heard dey bite really hard.  Ask my fewine brudder abut dat one two.   He knows.  Anyway...I'm gwad you got da twapper coming and wewocating dem.   :apls:  Also bout dem gartner snakes?  Geez...my momma catches dem all da time!! She's been doing it since she was little so...it don't scawe her no more.

[Dee Dee and Hallie]

LOL Ruth I think you could find just about anything LOL!!  Too funny. :thumb:

No worries Porky Pie, we know how dangerous raccoons can be as well as the diseases they carry. I am a total freak about my back yard being safe for Hallie and this puts me over the edge. Even when they aren't back there, I am afraid Hallie catching something from them peeing (lepto!!!) or their poop and they eat off the blueberry bush where Hallie and I used to pick them. We got the four of them but now the neighbor said he saw two more huge ones, the four we caught must have been pretty young. They were much bigger than Hallie but the adults are huge!  So I'm setting out my own traps now hoping to catch a couple more of the buggars. Various people have told me of cats and a couple of small dogs who were killed by raccoons, so I don't even let her go out in the yard alone after dark now. In fact we just got in from the last pee of the day, :) we have a light out there but I take a flashlight and scan the whole yard first to be sure no little bright headlights are looking at us. I've never had this problem in the 24 yrs I've lived here. Hallie sat in my lap and watched them with me when they were in the traps and she was very calm and even wagged her tail at them. But if she saw one (or a group!) in her yard out of no where I know she'd tear off to them barking, she'd never bite anything but they could get her so fast...ack I can't even think about it.

I don't mind the snakes either, I grew up on a farm and have always caught them since I was a kid but this one snaked out on me so I flung him without thinking. He was a really big one and was gyrating and jerking himself and curling up striking at me and although my brain knows he cant' hurt me it was still a bit too much.  Normally they don't scare me. But I don't want them in Hallie's yard, I don't want any critters out there with her. I cant' imagine her biting a snake she's so non aggressive but you never know when that hunting instinct could kick in, I'm sure it's down there somewhere! I just never know what could give her something...

Our rains have come back so hopefully the critter numbers will dwindle now for the season.