Didn't sleep much after that.
Didn't want to get up this morning. Half hour after I got to work, I wanted to leave. Very busy day, lots of running about with waiting about, and lots of cases all over the place. Feet hurt, eyes tired, enough.
Raccoons. Guy at work tells me they tend to live in a small territory of just a few blocks, not crossing busy roads. Seldom seen by people, very good at hiding, as well as being nocturnal. Maybe these two jerks had been drinking.
Addendum: Perhaps they have taken up residence in the abandoned meth house, which also might explain their aggressive behaviour. Also, the peanuts have been out there more than a month, and the non-bird-like state of the remains I've only noticed over the last couple of weeks, worst the past two days. So I think they may be shifting their territory. Possibly disturbed by the activity around the derelict duplex.
10 comments:
Wow, what a close encounter! Are raccoons considered a pest in the States? I think the closest wild mammal we can equate them with here is the badger, and the government are killing them without valid scientific evidence. Raccoons look so beautiful, but are they troublemakers?
valonia,
Yeah, in urban areas, they cause a lot of damage, carry a number of diseases, and are very aggressive. They are very intelligent creatures, nocturnal, and persistent. The wiki article is linked above.
When we put certain leftovers into our compost bin, the racoons have come a few times and have managed to get the lid open and get in to eat. Once, soon after it had been emptied, a smaller racoon entered and was unable to get out; I had to roll the compost bin to the back yard, lower it slowly and then opened the lid to let him out.
I haven't seen them lately, but early in the spring I did see them. We've also had skunks in our yard as well as rabbits. The former I haven't seen in a year or two but the latter I am seeing more of.
Phil,
No signs of disturbance around the compost pile, nothing in the garbage bin that night, so I figure it's the neighbors who put out cat food, and provide attic space, unintentionally setting up a raccoon B&B. We contributed with some of the peanuts for the scrub jays, which will not happen again. Birds will be fed only during the day, nothing left out overnight.
There's really a lot of hidden wildlife in cities.
I read that our wonderful bike path of recent years, linking the river and the lakes, serves as a highway for animals, and has led to a huge increase in feral cats, among others.
It's really interesting to use a night-vision camera to see what goes on in your garden at night. I've borrowed one a couple of times and it's one long party out there - badgers, foxes, cats, rats and mice.
Fresca,
I knew there were various critters around, but I didn't expect two wrassling raccoons on our doorstep.
RR,
I would love to do that. Must figure out how to borrow one...
A couple of summers ago I was walking dogs behind a row of townhouses that had a dumpster in their parking lot. It was a convenient place for me to drop a bag of dog poop. One afternoon I threw a bag and watched as it landed right next to a sleeping raccoon. Sorry, bub.
Nimble,
At least it didn't wake up enough to take offense and retaliate.
Raccoons came in our cat door and were in our kitchen. When I turned on the light to see what was going on they freaked out and couldn't work out how to get out again. We played a scary game of Tag until I got the back door open. They live in the storm drains on our streets.
Best defense is to ask a neighbor with a dog to visit and spread dog scent around your perimeter.
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