Behind the Badge - Family of Raccoons
Family of Raccoons
District Game Warden Zachary Biberdorf
When game wardens get calls about trapping animals, they typically refer them to wildlife services.
Sometimes that is not an option depending on the animal and what the animal is doing.
This summer I received a call from the local police department asking if I would help an older couple trap some raccoons in town.
The police officer explained that someone called him and said that he had caught a sow racoon with one kit in a live trap.
The officer asked if I would be able to help them out.
I called the man that had the problem raccoons.
He explained to me that he had caught a sow raccoon and a kit in a live trap.
He also said that six other kits would not leave.
I told him that I would give him a call in a couple hours and come and help him.
I went over to their house to see what I could do.
What he described was 100% correct but, I did not expect the racoon kits to be so friendly.
They were climbing all over the deck, garbage cans, vehicles, and anywhere they found to be fun to play.
I went to the local police department and grabbed a catch pole and kennel.
I asked if any of the local police officers wanted to help catch some baby raccoons.
Since this is not something they typically do they were excited.
I explained what the plan would entail.
When we got to the residence the owners were waiting there with anticipation to see what was going to happen.
I explained to them we will try and catch them all to put in the kennel with the animal catcher and release them outside of town.
I was able to catch two of them and put them in the kennel.
Then I caught a third one by the leg.
I did not have a good grip and lost it.
The kit then took off after the police officer, who had to dance out of the way.
He thought the racoon was going to bite him, climb his leg or both.
After this moment we looked back and the rest of the kits took off and got in an old shed.
I explained to the owners that we would set live traps to catch them.
Then I went out of town and released the sow and three kits.
Two days later I finally caught the rest of the family.
I brought the rest of the racoons to the same spot I released the others.
When I opened the live traps the first two ran out into the grass and waited for the others.
The last two did not go as smooth.
I had to pull both racoons out of the live trap very carefully.
When the last one got out of the trap, he decided he wanted to come at me.
He was small enough that I was able to hold my foot out and not worry about him biting through my boot.
Then he took off underneath my truck and climbed into my engine block.
I used the catch pole to try and get him out with no luck.
I opened the hood of my pickup to find the kit standing there on top of the engine block like he was caught coming out of the shower.
He then dived down into the engine where it was tough to grab him.
I was able to grab him from under the pickup and toss him into the ditch.
He then tried again and hop up onto my tire, but I was able to grab him with the catch pole and take him farther into the ditch.
When I was driving home, I thought to myself that sometimes critters don’t realize you are trying to help them so they do not always cooperate.