Adopt A Raccoon

Spike is a cat owned. When he was given human society in its Adopt-A-PET, his name was Lonnie. I could not in good conscience continue to use that name for a cat, so I renamed Spike. I know it seems more appropriate for dogs, but I think Spike has always appreciated the new handle.

As cats go, Spike is a good example of the species. He sleeps almost all day on a warm spot on top of the sofa or the table on the veranda when the sun is out. He chases squirrels in the front yard when the mood comes and fixes lurking in the back for any chipmunk that would be stupid enough to cross his path.

It keeps the house when I'm gone and it keeps the garage free of vermin in the night. Well, this might be a stretch. Let's just say it must have a quota for the amount of raccoons that it will at any time in my garage.

It is a little crowded out there when there are more than four at a time ravaged my garage, so he stoically observes the situation from his perch on top of the old fridge. He learned his lesson about getting involved in chaos when a large raccoon around just outside one of his legs.

Spike is an indoor / outdoor cat. When the weather is cold, it comes around the rear sliding glass door, meowing pitifully it freezes. He had to move somewhere lessons he came to us.

Just a few days ago, Spike was the cousins came to visit him, to destroy my garage in the process. I do not know where raccoons go in winter when they hibernate or what, but it's rare for them to visit my garage during this time of year.

If only they could stay a short period of time and leave, I would not mind them hanging around the garage from time to time. Unfortunately, they manage to destroy everything in their path in their insatiable quest for food. The first thing to do is dish of cat food Spike. If there is food remaining in the bowl, they fight among themselves for him, often drag the bowl in the garage as if it were a toy dog.

Spike watches the scene from the box on the bench. I slipped around the outside of the garage and looked out the window and looked quietly observing the chaotic scene being played out before him.

It's like a scene from Gremlins, where all creatures find themselves alone in the kitchen and they start tearing everything they find to tiny little pieces. Snarling, hissing and biting, gnashing of teeth trying to open containers that might contain food, the raccoons have even succeeded in overturning a pot of paint out of the plateau. I have little paw prints all over my garage door by the company, and on the sidewalk.

Last year, as a last resort I hired a guy who proudly presented the company's name on his van, "Critters Be Gone". Unfortunately, when he was a great brand name, it was not much better than me in removing the raccoon. After three weeks, he made his traps and left, complaining that if I kept my cat locked up and out of his cage, he could take the animals he was paid to fish!

In defense of Spike, the aroma of canned cat food cheap was used as bait was very tempting. It is difficult to keep it out of the cage when he knows that heaven is just a few gourmet meters, bordered on the back of a metal cage.

Last night, for the first time I had a good overview of one of raccoons that tore my garage. It was the biggest coon I've ever seen in my garage. I opened the door and stood looking at me, one foot in the bucket that holds five gallons of cat food tips. After stuffing a handful of Meow Mix in his mouth, he sprinted to the door for pets and disappeared.

For several years, no.