Grim as it sounds, if something died in there, it has to be extracted.
So I, fearing for the neighborhood kitties, and worrying because I have seen what looked like cat tracks on the pond ice, don snow gear and go out to see what tracks can tell me.
Well, tracks immediately tell me this was not a cat, but a fairly fat raccoon. And that the visitation was before the last inch of snowfall. The pergola recorded really excellent tracks, but those beyond its cover were under new snow, which fell after 2 am.
And there was indeed an exit point. Raccoon fell in and broke the ice on the west side of the bridge, and had to swim under the bridge, breaking 3/4 inch thick ice all the way, to reach a shallow bank where he could climb out. There is a set of tracks departing…a very cold, soggy, fishless retreat.
Note to self: buy some black pepper before spring thaw.
But as you can see by the weather report in the last post, the pond should be well and truly frozen.
I’m glad your raccoon got out safely, but otherwise have very little sympathy for him!
does the netting work to keep them out of the pond, or is that just for eagles?
It presents them a problem. Much of the netting is now submerged because of the ice, but it’s there, and presents a drowning hazard for anything tangled in it. The critter, however, clearly got out, if I read the tracks correctly. Which is fine by me. They’re smart. Maybe he’ll give up on this place.b
BBRRRR! I am glad I’m not that raccoon, for many various reasons! A swim under ice in icy water? No, thank you! But I’m fortunate. I can go to the store for groceries. Er, that is, when my cabbie is not irregular.
Hmm, let’s hope the raccoon doesn’t develop a liking for hot/spicy foods. Heheh. — The mama dog I grew up with would eat leftovers from my mom, who was a chili head without knowing the term. She claimsd she was careful not to give our dog any of the portions she’d spiced up with extra jalapeños, salsa, or Tabasco. But I know at least the restaurant hot sauce was on there occasionally. Our mama dog either had developed a tolerance for it, or she liked it because my mom gave it to her. That dog was around two or three years older than I was, and lived to about 15 or so, when I was about 12 or 13. My one regret with her is that, at that age, I’d gotten complacent and a little bratty, and a few times, teased her when she only wanted attention. I got reproving, patient mama dog looks for it, each time, from a very aged, sweet dog. I learned better before she passed away, but still think back on that and wonder how I could’ve ever acted like that in the first place. Yet she, being a dog, could forgive me, even though she didn’t like it. Maybe she saw I’d outgrow it, I don’t know. It’s one of those things you look back on, either a little older or years later and think, you know, kid, what was wrong with you that you’d do that? But it went into my thinking ever afterward, not to be that way to any pet or person. Whoa, just realized, that’s over 35 years ago, now. It’s been a very long time since I’ve had a dog. We had our first permanent cat by then, for a few years.
It depends on the netting and the critter. If the netting is not strong or thick enough, a determined cat or raccoon could get through it.
I know this because one of my grandmother’s neighbors was a confirmed crazy cat lady. (No, really, over 10 cats.) To keep her cats in her yard, she put up netting past the roof of her house on all sides of her back yard. This was about like fishing line or less, and had a stretchy, wobbly quality which she believed would keep them from climbing it.
At least one cat, over time, worked through this at the base of the netting near the top of the chain link fence. Another solved the problem by jumping from her roof, likely to a tree, and then over.
Any determined raccoon could do likewise. I personally was surprised it took her cats that long to figure it out. She replaced the damaged netting and went blithely on. One cat, last I’d heard, had to be kept inside as much as possible, as the cat would otherwise use the roof escape method regularly. Of course.
Raccoons are a PITA. We have to bring in our bird feeders every night to keep the coons from tearing them up or making off with them. I’d never thought about them being fond of koi.
Since reading @Teegan’s post, I’ve had the mental image cropping up of a raccoon merrily walking along upright with a bird feeder swinging to and fro from one hand, and possibly a festive hat and parasol for extra effect….
To non-US readers: No, raccoons don’t normally walk upright, though they can stand up to look around and investigate, and sometimes will walk a few steps that way. — They’re tough and smart and very opportunistic. If nature gave them a nudge toward bipedalism, they’d be candidates for sentience down the line.
However, much like their human cousins, they seem to like partying and they’d probably fight at football matches ans such….