There’s nothing quite like the satisfaction of completing a DIY project. But when it comes to keeping raccoons away from your feral cat food, you may be wondering if it’s even worth trying.
After all, they’re crafty creatures and can be very difficult to deter. However, you can keep those pesky raccoons at bay with a little bit of effort on your part – and some helpful tips! This article will discuss how to keep raccoons away from feral cat food. So get started today and protect your furry friends’ food supply.
Many people believe that if they construct a solid and sturdy fence around their property, it’s enough to keep raccoons away. While this is true for the most part, raccoons are not afraid to try their luck with making an entrance into your yard. Of course, this isn’t surprising since they’re intelligent creatures, after all!
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Why Do Raccoons Like Cat Food?
Raccoons and cats are pretty similar in many ways. They’re equally playful, they like fish and other meat-based foods, and both species can be found throughout North America. The similarities between these two mammals make feral cat food a delicious meal for raccoons.
The raccoon’s body is very different from that of a cat, however, so it’s no surprise that they sometimes have trouble digesting the same types of food. Additionally, while there may be plenty of cat hairballs out there clogging up your feline friend’s digestive system, you won’t find any hairballs in the belly of a coon – but what you will discover after overeating feral cat food is an upset stomach and diarrhea.
However, one thing that both cats and raccoons have in common is their excellent night vision. This makes it easy for them to find feral cat food at night while patrolling the neighborhood for other tasty snacks. According to The Humane Society of the United States, raccoons can even see in color, making it possible for these masked critters to snatch up a meal with ease.
A Step by Step Guide on How to Keep Raccoons Away From Feral Cat Food
Step 1: Feed Cat Indoor
The first thing you should do is keep feeding the feral cats indoors. This might seem obvious, but it is essential because if the food is close to your house, raccoons will find out about it, which could be a problem.
In addition, raccoons are known to climb fences, so if your cat’s food is outside, these animals could come over and even break into your house. Keeping the food inside can also protect your cats from illness transmitted by other animals.
Step 3: Feed on an Elevated Platform
Another great way to keep raccoons away from cat food is by placing it on an elevated platform. Raccoons are known for their intelligence, so if the food is on the ground, these animals will find a way to access it. Some cats stand up on their back feet and pull at the top of the feeding station, but this doesn’t always work.
By setting your cat’s food on some elevated platform or stump, you can discourage them from getting too close because they won’t be able to jump that high, and they might not even attempt it in fear of falling and getting hurt.
Step 4: Avoid Leftovers
Sometimes, when people put out cat food, the animals won’t finish it all, leaving what’s left behind. This is an open invitation for raccoons to come over and help themselves. If your cats aren’t finishing their meal, take the dishes back inside.
Otherwise, raccoons will get into them and eat anything that remains and potentially get sick because of something your pet could have eaten or gotten into. Plus, if you don’t remove all of the food before putting it outside for other animals to eat, there might not be enough for your cats which isn’t fair to them.
Step 5: Stay Around While Cat Takes Meal
After doing all of this and your feral cat is eating, stay around and watch. This will help prepare you for any raccoon problems in the future and teach your cats not to be afraid of people.
Some animals might even try to steal food but don’t do anything because it’s not worth it. However, by staying around while your friend takes his meal, he’ll learn that people are on his side instead of being afraid of them, which can make things better in the long run for him on a personal level.
Step 6: Raccoon-proof Pet Feeder
Another great way to keep raccoons away from your cat’s food is by getting a pet feeder that has been manufactured to be specifically “raccoon-proof.” These containers are very narrow, so raccoons can’t get inside.
These feeding stations also have lids that close all the way so no animals will be able to pry them open or climb inside. Of course, cats should always eat indoors but if you don’t want them doing this, then getting one of these containers would be an excellent idea.
Step 7: Remove Outdoor Food Sources
If you are worried that raccoons are coming over because they are starving, this is not the case. Raccoons might be attracted to your yard if there are grills out, garbage cans with food remnants inside of them, or even bird feeders around.
You will need to remove any of these things from around your house so that you aren’t attracting these animals in the first place. If raccoons don’t have what they want somewhere else, they won’t come looking for it on your property.
Step 8: Invest in Fence
You can always benefit from having a fence around your house. This is one of the most effective ways to keep these animals away because they won’t be able to climb it, so that they will go somewhere else.
Even though raccoons are known for their intelligence, they can’t get over an 8-foot tall fence, so this should work well in most homes. Of course, if you have more than one story on your property, another barrier might not be possible. However, fencing is still worth it, especially if you don’t want other animals coming into your yard and porch area when you aren’t around.
Step 9: Scare Away Raccoons
Another great way to keep these animals away from your property is by scaring them off whenever possible, which are two ways of doing this. For one, you could try shining a bright light at them whenever you see them on your lawn from either inside or outside. If the raccoon will run away from it because of how intense this light is, then that’s precisely what you want to happen.
Plus, using a loud sound to startle these animals would also be very effective as long as they are close enough to hear it. This might include setting off fireworks or even making noises with some object that makes a lot of noise every time it hits something else.
Step 10: Try Motion Sensor Sprinklers
One of the best ways to keep raccoons away from cat food is getting a motion sensor sprinkler. These work by detecting when warm-blooded animals pass by them, and then they will start spraying water in that area, scaring any animal off of your property.
Raccoons might not be afraid of the sound, but this type of aversive conditioning can work well on these wild animals because they don’t want to have anything to do with being sprayed with water. Plus, since most people have their sprinklers set on timers, you can find out which times raccoons are coming around so you can take more steps toward keeping them off your property even after dark.
Step 11: Get a Professional
If the raccoons are still coming over to your property, no matter how many times you try what’s in this article, then it might be helpful for you to speak to a professional about it.
A company that does wildlife removal usually has a lot of experience getting rid of different types of animals from homes and businesses, which could help them work with these pests more effectively than someone who doesn’t have any training in dealing with them already.
They also know a lot about these animals from being out there in the field, so they can let you know if there is another type of problem going on or something simple like food getting too close to home. These steps will help in how to keep raccoons away from feral cat.
You can check it out to Keep Birds From Eating Cat Food
Conclusion
We hope you have gone through the article on how to keep raccoons away from feral cat. As we have seen, there are many ways to keep raccoons away from wild cat food. While some methods are more effective than others, it is essential to remember that no one solution will work for everyone or in every situation.
However, by trying a variety of tactics and using common sense, you can keep these pesky animals from ruining your hard work caring for feral cats. Have you had success keeping raccoons away from your food? Let us know about your experiences!
