And, Then There Was One + Identifying Raccoon Diggings

Remember this chicken?

 

For the last three days, there has been only one black chicken in my yard. Also, there have been no eggs, so I assume the hen has been caught and re-homed or a raccoon has gotten it. I have  seen evidence of a raccoon and heard one last night.

Last night when I went out, he was hanging out with my hens. As I approached with food for my hens, he squawked, ran, flew up on the six-foot fence and then into his own yard. From the way he was squawking in my yard, on the fence, and in his yard for a good ten minutes, you would think I had been beating him. It's progress.

I just keep going to the owner's house every few days and putting a container with a few hen eggs on the hood of her car. I suppose she is trying, or, like I said, the raccoons are helping me out.

How do I see evidence of raccoons? So far, I have not had to look for their scat even though I can recognize it. If I am out at dusk and later at midnight, and I see huge dug up areas of the yard, it is a raccoon. Squirrels dig small and different shaped places. Squirrels dig a hole that is about three inches across with dirt thrown out a few inches. So, the area is shallow and about six-inches across at the most. Raccoon digging is much larger and deeper, plus they have a trench-like extension on one side where their long arms rake through the lawn. Nice addition to the lawn when there are sometimes a dozen of these scars. My camera batteries are dead, so no raccoon digging to show. Maybe another day.

My neighbor down the block blamed these huge diggings on squirrels. Now, she knows.

Your turn
Do you ever find raccoon diggings, yet have seen no raccoons digging?