I Can't Beleive It!!!

cars · Post by **cars** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 6:55 pm

I really got upset yesterday when I saw the TV show "Animal Precinct". There was a segment about a homeowner who called those ASPCA Police to come & help rescue a Racoon that was stuck under the poarch of his house. When the Police got there, they looked and saw that a mother Racoon was not really stuck under the poarch, but in reality was living there with her young family of baby Racoons. The homeowner told the Police that his grandchildren ran up & down the poarch steps much of the time, & he was afraid that they would be bitten by the WILD Racoons. So he asked the Police to remove them, & the Police said that was not their job! So the homeowner said well OK, if that was their position, then he would take care of it! Now here comes the part that made me mad! The Police got the meaning of the homeowner when he said he would take care of it. They then told him that he could not "harm" those "WILD" animals when trying to remove them or he would be "arrested"!!! We're not talking "pets" like dogs, cats, horses on any other domesticated animals, we're talking "WILD" animals that could be carring rabbies or other diseases. So what do you think, do you have the right to remove "WILD" animals off your property as best as you can keeping your own protection in mind??!!! :-2

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:09 pm

I just re-read. How could they not be responsible?? Isn't that public safety?

chonsigirl · Post by **chonsigirl** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:10 pm

They should catch them, then drop them off at the police station.........anonymously...............

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:12 pm

I think they should have called Animal control and let them handle it. Police can't capture animals... Not sure about the legal issue of wild animals on your property, my guess is you can have them removed but you can't kill them. You can capture them and take them to your local Animal Shelter, or have them come get them.

It's a catch 22... no matter how it's handled..:-5 :-5

orangesox1 · Post by **orangesox1** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:13 pm

If we have a snake in our garden the police have to come and move it, it's great to protect wild animals, but we shouldn't have to live with them in our garden, my daughter would not step outside the door if anything like a possum or racoon was there. sombody would have to come and move it somewhere else.

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:14 pm

You are funny Chonsi --- I would absolutely destroy animals that are known carriers of rabies.. and were anywhere near a small child who would want to be their "friend".

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:15 pm

CARLA wrote: I think they should have called Animal control and let them handle it. Police can't capture animals... Not sure about the legal issue of wild animals on your property, my guess is you can have them removed but you can't kill them. You can capture them and take them to your local Animal Shelter, or have them come get them.

It's a catch 22... no matter how it's handled..:-5 :-5
If I read the first post right, they were animal control.... or at least the same dept.

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:21 pm

OMG! we must live in a small town.We had a HUGE and I mean MONSTER possum on our deck and the local PD had to come and get him..They took him out to the country and let him go....never said- anything but "Sure we can do that!".....Cowards! maybe they were scared! Hee hee:-5

nvalleyvee · Post by **nvalleyvee** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:28 pm

mominiowa wrote: OMG! we must live in a small town.We had a HUGE and I mean MONSTER possum on our deck and the local PD had to come and get him..They took him out to the country and let him go....never said- anything but "Sure we can do that!".....Cowards! maybe they were scared! Hee hee:-5

Ever try and scare a skunk??? :wah: :wah: DON"T!!!!!!!!!

mominiowa · Post by **mominiowa** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:42 pm

LMAO!!!!!!!!! No -but my X shot one in the barn once!

:-2 DUHHHHHHHH!!!!!:-2

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:49 pm

I got sprayed while on a paper route when I was 15. :yh_sick

CARLA · Post by **CARLA** » Sun Oct 09, 2005 7:59 pm

Whoops AC your right .. I thought they called the police.. Dang !!:D

Bothwell · Post by **Bothwell** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 4:26 am

MONSTER possum whaat is this some other man eating creature that inhabits the USA that I have not been told of, just how big is a monster Possum, is it poisonous, does it bite, I need to be told

lady cop · Post by **lady cop** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:31 am

Bothwell wrote: whaat is this some other man eating creature that inhabits the USA that I have not been told of, just how big is a monster Possum, is it poisonous, does it bite, I need to be tolddon't worry honey, the monster poisonous monitor lizard will get it first.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 5:33 am

Bothwell wrote: whaat is this some other man eating creature that inhabits the USA that I have not been told of, just how big is a monster Possum, is it poisonous, does it bite, I need to be told

Not poisonous, Bothwell, but the teeth are really sharp. They're our contribution to the marsupial family. You see Nomad examing an adult possum on the right.

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 7:30 am

I've seen the episode Cars is referring to, and the folks that were called are ASPCA agents. Not police, and not equipped to handle wildlife. The San Francisco area has an agency specifically designed to deal with wildlife.

What I found outrageous about the whole thing was, the possibility of a FELONY for killing racoons. This is NOT a bald eagle we're talking about here. Not only that, the 'coons brought with them a nice batch of fleas, which quickly infested this man's house.

What would I do? Everything I could to convince mamma 'coon to leave with her babies. If she didn't leave? I'd smoke or flush her out. If I still couldn't get her out? Sorry, a .22 for the whole family. No way am I going to allow my kids to get bit up by fleas just because someone thinks it's wrong to shoot racoons. Bury the furry little corpses and just try to prove I killed 'em.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 8:12 am

Coonskin cap for the son and little coon caps for the son's GI Joes. :p

minks · Post by **minks** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 8:19 am

cars wrote: I really got upset yesterday when I saw the TV show "Animal Precinct". There was a segment about a homeowner who called those ASPCA Police to come & help rescue a Racoon that was stuck under the poarch of his house. When the Police got there, they looked and saw that a mother Racoon was not really stuck under the poarch, but in reality was living there with her young family of baby Racoons. The homeowner told the Police that his grandchildren ran up & down the poarch steps much of the time, & he was afraid that they would be bitten by the WILD Racoons. So he asked the Police to remove them, & the Police said that was not their job! So the homeowner said well OK, if that was their position, then he would take care of it! Now here comes the part that made me mad! The Police got the meaning of the homeowner when he said he would take care of it. They then told him that he could not "harm" those "WILD" animals when trying to remove them or he would be "arrested"!!! We're not talking "pets" like dogs, cats, horses on any other domesticated animals, we're talking "WILD" animals that could be carring rabbies or other diseases. So what do you think, do you have the right to remove "WILD" animals off your property as best as you can keeping your own protection in mind??!!! :-2
Oh yeah and skunk

We have the right to shoot them here, ahahahaha ok no only if you are a rancher, we too have animal control officers, and they are the ones that the police should have advised those folks to call. They do their best to keep animals and people safe while the extract the WILD animcals. Ours here deal with everthing from moose, deer, coyotes, porcupines, bears and cougars to name a few critters this city sees often hehehehehe

minks · Post by **minks** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 8:43 am

Far Rider wrote: You have got to be kiddin me!

Oh I am with ya to some extent, however we really have to make sure we don't cause any animals to become extinct. As well some animals are down right pests.... it ground squirrels/gophers, and we can afford to loose some of them. As well we have to make sure we are not upsetting the food chain balance. We have a horrible coyote problem in our inner city park but if we clear them all out, we gain a huge deer population now the trouble with the deer, they are always on roads getting killed so you see it is a delicate balance as well. Ok yeah we could doo without so many skunks ahahahaha we don't get racoons in our part of the world.

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 8:53 am

That's right! Only kill if you have a recipe handy. That's my rule. :yh_sungla

valerie · Post by **valerie** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 9:01 am

The animal control officer did give the guy a remedy for getting them out,

and then told him to board up the area so they couldn't get back in.

The one that bothered me on that same show (I think it was) was the

one where the cat got up in the wall of the house and they couldn't

get at it from the basement or garage so the officer traced it up to inside

the house and told the homeowner they'd hafta tear through her bookshelves

to get at it... I was practically yelling at the tv I was so mad... beautiful

redwood shelves in this 100 year old or so house... call the fire department

who proceed to take axes to the wood, and yup, you guessed it, the noise

scared the cat back downstairs where they were finally able to reach it.

Me, I woulda pounded on the wall a bunch upstairs and scared it back down

without ruining irreplaceable beautiful antiques!

:-5 :-5

Accountable · Post by **Accountable** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 9:53 am

To a guy with only an axe, everything's a tree.

cars · Post by **cars** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 11:31 am

BabyRider wrote: I've seen the episode Cars is referring to, and the folks that were called are ASPCA agents. Not police, and not equipped to handle wildlife. The San Francisco area has an agency specifically designed to deal with wildlife.

What I found outrageous about the whole thing was, the possibility of a FELONY for killing racoons. This is NOT a bald eagle we're talking about here. Not only that, the 'coons brought with them a nice batch of fleas, which quickly infested this man's house.

What would I do? Everything I could to convince mamma 'coon to leave with her babies. If she didn't leave? I'd smoke or flush her out. If I still couldn't get her out? Sorry, a .22 for the whole family. No way am I going to allow my kids to get bit up by fleas just because someone thinks it's wrong to shoot racoons. Bury the furry little corpses and just try to prove I killed 'em.

Actually BR those folks do carry badges, handcuffs, & a GUN. (They are a branch of the ASPCA Police) The Police officer on the scene, told the homeowner that he would be arrested if he "harmed" the Wild Racoons. On some episodes, where people "were found guilty" of cruelty to aminals, these Police have actually arrested those "people" for cruelty to animals, like dogs, cats, horses. But my point was that these were WILD animals- Racoons, that we're talking about!

The Police officer suggested to the homeowner to use the "smell of amonia" to try to coast them out from beneith the poarch. But to then where does he make them go? And what if the Racoons didn't like the amonia smell & they attacked the homeowner, then what? It was a nasty situation all around!!!! :wah:

BabyRider · Post by **BabyRider** » Mon Oct 10, 2005 12:19 pm

cars wrote: Actually BR those folks do carry badges, handcuffs, & a GUN. (They are a branch of the ASPCA Police) The Police officer on the scene, told the homeowner that he would be arrested if he "harmed" the Wild Racoons. On some episodes, where people "were found guilty" of cruelty to aminals, these Police have actually arrested those "people" for cruelty to animals, like dogs, cats, horses. But my point was that these were WILD animals- Racoons, that we're talking about!

The Police officer suggested to the homeowner to use the "smell of amonia" to try to coast them out from beneith the poarch. But to then where does he make them go? And what if the Racoons didn't like the amonia smell & they attacked the homeowner, then what? It was a nasty situation all around!!!! :wah:
I was following you Cars. :yh_bigsmi Different cities and states and different agencies have different levels of power for their officers and agents. In New York for instance, the animal cruelty agents have full police powers, whereas here in Detroit, our agents have to go through the DPD to get subjects arrested.

I fully and totally agree that the home owner should have been able to take whatever steps he felt necessary to protect his property and his family. I'd encourage people to take certain steps to prevent any harm to the animal, but if it's an ultimate decision between the 'coons or the people, the coons will lose every time. Like I said, it's not like we're talking about bald eagles or a newly re-discovered dodo bird! :yh_bigsmi

valerie · Post by **valerie** » Tue Oct 11, 2005 9:20 am

I think the whole story seemed just a TAD fishy to me... I just wonder if

the old guy was "blaming" a flea infestation on the raccoons. They were

downstairs and away from the real living area of the building. Yes, I do

know fleas can go anywhere and hop on anything to travel but I still feel

we didn't quite get all the info on what was going on.

And the animal control lady said nothing to him (Unless they edited that

part out which is possible) about the raccoons being nocturnal, so when

they leave at night to forage it's a good time to board that spot up. You

can even put flour in front of the place they enter/leave from and look at

the tracks to be sure they are "out"!

Didn't the guy also say they'd been there 2 weeks? Wrong, buddy, you

don't wait to take care of a situation like that. Nip it in the bud.