Often times a rat will "hallow out" fruit. But, if he was rough with your plant...it was that damn coon or a opossum. Coon skin caps are in style right now....

Havaheart traps work well, even for repeat offenders when baited with dry cat or dog food. Depends on if you have a place to haul him away to far enough away. I assume the neighbor didn't do that.

Dave

Squirrels were robbing me blind. I bought about 30 wooden mouse traps and coated the wooden part with marine varnish to make them water proof. Then I put 4 traps set without bait around the base of each plant. Almost every day some of the traps are triggered. Some I find 20 ft. away. It seems to be working. My intent is to inflict pain without physical injury. It should also work with raccoons. If not, use rat traps.

Incidentally, I also have possums and occasionally raccoons, but the traps are never triggered at night, so I know that they are not the thieves.

Some I find 20 ft. away.

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Haha . I have seen rat traps gone , in the past. I think squirrels were caught in them and took them away.

"Haha . I have seen rat traps gone , in the past."

Are you laughing because somebody was too dumb to tether them?

A rat trap typically costs $2 and a mouse trap $0.50. I don't bother tethering mouse traps because, so far, I have lost only one, and can afford it. But, just in case I need to use them, I drilled a hole in each of my two rat traps before I varnished them just so I could tether them.

I was laughing because It also happened to me. I can imagine squirrel's tail caught in the trap and it was running with it. That is funny.

Sey

.22 caliber works awesome. Raccoons are a little greasy, but very tasty. Squirrel is my 2nd favorite wild game next to a rabbit. I live way out in the sticks. I plant 3x's more than me and my extended family and friends could ever eat because of wild life losses. I usually let the raccoons, deer and ground hogs go. I have a doe deer that has had her babies the last 3-years behind my garden. I can almost pet her when I am in the garden. The minute someone else comes within ear shot...she bolts. They get a free pass. But every so often the population gets up there or they start telling each other that Brian's tomatoes, cabbage and corn are ripe...then I have to break out the Henry w/scope. But then again my nearest neighbor is probably 1/2 mile from me...

It is the circle of life.

Nobody answered the question about deer/rabbit spray. I have been using it, and it seems to be working if I repeat every so often. Does anyone else have experience?

John A