Tuesday
Linda
Last night as we closed the chicken coop up for the night we left five guineas resting comfortably in a tree just behind the pole barn. This morning we had three milling around the yard and two were MIA. The raccoons had attacked us with yet another midnight raid, but we were ready.
The night before last we put out a catch cage filled with savory delights to lure in a hungry raccoon, consisting of a can of sardines and a bowl of dog kibble drizzled with fish oil. That should make any raccoons mouth water. Unfortunately he was smart enough to figure out how to get the scrumptious delicacies out without tripping the cage door. I think he just stuck his paws in and pulled out what he wanted through the bars. It must have filled him up and probably his family members too cause they left the guineas alone that night.
Last night we reset the traps, putting out a marshmallow trail to entice the greedy little bugger inside. We also covered the back of the cage with a feed bag and pushed it against the wall. We only have the one cage right now.
This morning we found a prisoner locked inside. That was great, but we still lost two guinea casualties and the raccoons are up on us by seven. This guy had to have had a troop of raccoons with him to be able to kill two more guineas. There is absolutely no sign of the two. So tonight we will set the cage up again and try to place it in a little different location. We really need to get a few more cages. If things keep going this way we will have no guineas left.
Off-Grid in West Virginia 
Grrrr…I would be very mad if I was you. I am varmit-proofing our coop right now too. Would it be possible to put the guineas inside for one night and bait the coons?
I would love to do that, but these guineas are free spirits and it would be impossible to get them in the coop. You usually have to train them from peeps to roost in a coop and these guys were adults when we got them. The chickens have a pretty secure coop, but last year we had some predator, coyote? That would get them in late afternoon before they roosted. I’m just hoping we can hang on to the guineas we have left. Batten down your hatches, it’s that time of year again!
yep
inside a coon proof area only thing to do now that they got a fowl taste
i have used live trap baited with chicken feed to catch wild guineas to put inside till danger is over
bad thing its coon season till fall now
i always used can of fish flaver cat food
the extra cheap brand
and wired it to back of cage
put cage against wall and covered with feed sack, like u did
most effective way is 2 or 3 live traps
with openings pointed oppisite ways
they will go in ajoining trap to hopefully share
or i have small door between the 2 rooms of my chicken house
it is just size of live trap
i fasten all poultry in front room and leave outside door to back room open
catch every time
no other bait needed
I was just reading a Chicken magazine and came across this ad for predator control. You’ve probably heard about it and maybe know if it works or not. It’s called Nite Guard. http://www.niteguard.com
Our Predator control so a catch cage and a 22 pistol. As of this morning it is Raccoon 0 and Pot Hole Farm 2.
please no mention of 22
game wardens have no souls