HELP!! Sick raccoon on our porch!

Help! There is a sick raccoon laying next to the outside feral cats water bowl as I type this. Do I call animal control? And how will this affect the outside cats? I am behind on their rabies shots as it is so hard to re-trap them!

Please help me! I don't know what to do!

Thank you!

Well... The only thing you can do, is call animal control. Do not get close to the raccoon.

What will they do exactly? Will they then want to check my outside feral cats?
Just wondering how this all works?
Will they kill the raccoon right away or take it away to euthanize?

And will they come this late at night?

I am so worried about our outside cats! They live on my porch!

I know what you mean about animal control...

Before you resort to that, look in the phone book for "wildlife rehabiltator." If you can get one, they would come get him for you. that it is not rabies. Though... if they suspect rabies he will be put down, they have to look at the brain (something like that) to check for rabies.

You will probably have to call the police at this late hour, and they'll get Animal Control. In most areas. AC is part of the police department, anyway.

Ughh....He's gone. At least for now. I went to check before I tried to call someone and I can't find him. I can't imagine he has climbed the fence to leave, so maybe he's somewhere in the yard. At least he's away from the ferals.
Please say a prayer that if he is dying, that it comes swiftly and is not too painful. Also that is is not rabies. I can't stand to think of anything suffering, even a pesky raccoon. He just had such a look in his eyes, I feel so bad. I just don't want to deal with this situation.

I turned their water bowl upside down and put a smaller bowl of water out there for the cats.

I'll need a plan for tomorrow in case he shows up again, so please if you have any ideas or second the call to animal control, please let me know!

Thank you, as usual.

At this time of night, depending upon where in NY you live, you probably get an answering machine at animal control. ???????????

Rabies cannot be transfered by saliva unless the cats already have open wounds, and I have NO CLUE, but I think all you'd have to do is not tell animal control about the ferals. Or tell them you're sure none were bitten (if you're sure).

But you really do want this taken care of as soon as possible, even if it does mean animal control.

FYI - we put the food down in the morning and pick it up at the end of dusk specifically so we don't attract skunks and raccoons. They are reservoirs of rabies, especially here out East. You can also put the food up on a table - like a card table or something. We built a wooden table with slats to put the food up - the cats can jump, but the skunks and raccoons can't. Still helps to pull the food up at night.

I was writing while you posted.

for a quick death to the raccoon.

If you haven't already, take up the food for tonight. And like LDG said, only feed them while the sun is up. We have to do that too because of foxes and coyotes.

I hope it has a painless, fast trip to rainbow bridge and that it isn't rabies.

I do only feed them in the day and take the food up at dusk.
At times the ferals do leave a couple of crumbs or I've gotten home late and taken in the bowls then, but I always do my best.
I think that he started coming for the water. It was very cold here for a while and we have the plug in water bowl to keep it from freezing.

I was up all night alot of the night worrying about this. My friend knows a person in the pest control business so we are trying to contact him to see if he has come across this before and maybe he can help.

I am just really praying that he will not come back around anymore. But at the same time I feel guilty and sad. I'm sure that anybody who does come will put him to sleep which would put him out of his misery. Hopefully they would do it with care. Ughh...The whole situation is just sad.

Oh, didn't even think about the water. I remember that thread now.

I hope your friend is able to contact this person - that'd be a load off your mind.

Continued

Originally Posted by JIL05

I think that he started coming for the water. It was very cold here for a while and we have the plug in water bowl to keep it from freezing.

Click to expand...

Hmm, do you recall seeing last night if he was able to drink or not?

Uh oh, I don't like your hmmm.

No, I don't know whether he drank or not. I just saw him laying by the bowl. That's why I turned the bowl upside down and gave the outside cats a new one. I don't want them to get any illness. My friend could not get in touch with her pest control friend.

As the day progresses, I am getting more and more anxious. Soon it will be dark... I know I am being selfish but I don't want him to come back here, but I don't want him to suffer a slow painful death.
Oh, this just stinks!

Rabies can cause some issues with water, they'll be thirsty but unable to drink. It can also cause weird walking, paralysis, other strange behavior. But it can also cause no symptoms at all.
However, poisoned animals can act very strange, too. And raccoons are hardly an animal that most people like..

I hope it doesn't come back, honestly.

I found him. He's still alive and laying in one of the cat's winter houses off to the side of the house.

I have called animal control and they do not answer. I guess I found him too late. I am hesitating to call the police department as this doesn't seem to be their problem, but you are probably right. One of the sites says that they advise you to call pest control and get it removed that way, so I am thoroughly confused.

My friend's friend, the pest control guy, wants to charge me $450.00 to take it away and put it to sleep. Needless to say, I don't have that right now.

This stinks! I am so upset. So I guess all the neighbors who don't want me to feed the feral cats are right? Because this kind of stuff happens. I tell you...They see a truck outside marked animal control and hear that it was a raccoon found right next to their house- I will never hear the end of it until the remaining cats are gone! This is the worst thing that could have happened.

I will try calling again tomorrow. I am sure someone will pick up the phone during day hours. It is also raining now.

I really can't take this with all of my health issues. I really am not up to this.

Thanks for letting me vent. I really appreciate everybody's help.

Keep calling. It doesn't sound like it can go far. I really do wonder if it was poisoned if you're neighbors are causing problems already...

As for you feeding the cats creating this problem... Raccoons are common in a lot of urban areas, as are skunks. They'll find food. Often it's trash - your neighbors do put out their trash, correct? If so, they're part of the problem, too.

strange wings is right - a few years ago I saw a dead animal lying in the middle of my yard one morning. My heart stopped, as I first thought it was my cat, but I soon found it to be a raccoon. I made my husband bury it, I'm not entirely sure why. My point is, I never had any ferals or strays around to feed. Raccoons are everywhere these days.

I hope the poor thing doesn't suffer anymore & just passes, so you don't have to go through the crap with your neighbors.

Last year i found a sick possum on my porch by the cats water dish and i called the police and they came and shot it...

Originally Posted by ms cat love

Last year i found a sick possum on my porch by the cats water dish and i called the police and they came and shot it...

Click to expand...

That sounds scary. I wouldn't want anyone shooting around my house, least of all police shooting at an animal. A few years ago an Oklahoma police officer was trying to shoot a (harmless) snake out of a tree. One of the stray bullets killed a 5 year old boy.