Hangar Intruder

[Wilfred]

A few years ago a feral tom cat appeared near the hangar. I began putting out water and dry food for it and every morning the food was gone.
After months the cat would come into the hangar. Months after that I was able to touch it. Old cat with one ear missing.

The cat has for the last two years lived full time in the hangar. He sleeps on a folded up quilt way up on a cabinet shelf under a 100-watt bulb that is left on full time in cold weather. He comes and goes as he wishes through a 'doggy door' I put in the wall.

The past few days all his wet and dry food is completely gone. He never eats that much, so obviously something else is getting into the hangar and eating the food. Could be a coyote, a skunk, or another cat. I can't figure out whch.

Some sort of motion detector that could somehow turn on my small video camera would solve the mystery, but I don't have the equipment on hand for that.

How would you solve what animal is involved here?

[steveinindy]

Trail camera. They are simple and inexpensive.

[steveinindy]

...or put baby powder down inside of the door and see what tracks show up.

[Joe LaMantia]

I have 5 cats, all chose us and we have several strays that visit our outside bowl. It's been very cold, for Ohio the past few days. Last night we had a raccoon at the bowl on the back porch, they will eat just about anything, including dry cat food. If your cat is old, he has probably seen all kinds of wildlife and given his age he will not challenge them. In addition, we got about an inch of light dry snow last night, and it is very easy to tell the difference between a cat paw print and a raccoons'. I like Steve's suggestion with the baby powder, it's cheap, requires no power, and will give you a clue as to the critters ID>

Joe
:cool:

[rosiejerryrosie]

Put the food inside a live trap and you need not interpret footprints. Just make sure the trap is big enough to hold anything you might expect.... :D

[Wilfred]

Thanks for the hints. I am going to look into getting a trail camera...food was all gone again this morning...whatever it is, it has a good appetite!

Wilfred

[cub builder]

Everytime I run into this it is almost always a coon. Get a live capture trap, bait it with the cat food and see what you get. If the cat gets caught, let it out. It won't go in there again. If you catch a coon, you need to either do a serious relocation or make yourself a coon skin cap as you only get one chance to catch him. He'll also never go in it again.

I currently have a weasel residing somewhere near my hangar. I see him in or near the hangar regularly. Captured him once in the live trap just to see what was in the hangar, then let him go. He keeps the hangar rodent free. Curious little creature, so is easy to capture repeatedly.

-CubBuilder

[prasmussen]

Thanks for the hints. I am going to look into getting a trail camera...food was all gone again this morning...whatever it is, it has a good appetite!

Wilfred

Make sure you post the video. Infrared?

[Frank Giger]

http://www.darts-page.com/images/ancient-aliens.jpg

[Joe LaMantia]

I have caught several groundhogs in live traps and placed them in the federal re-location program, if you get a possum, be sure and send him out of state...they are really dumb when it comes to traps. Whatever you catch, be sure and take care when you release them they are all wild critters, each with it's own personality. Be sure and let us know what you catch!

Joe

[Frank Giger]

I have caught several groundhogs in live traps and placed them in the federal re-location program, if you get a possum, be sure and send him out of state...they are really dumb when it comes to traps. Whatever you catch, be sure and take care when you release them they are all wild critters, each with it's own personality. Be sure and let us know what you catch!

Joe

You're a very kind soul. The fate of a wild critter I catch in my hangar is going to be much more dire. They'll be sent much further than out of state, I reckon.

[prasmussen]

My $1 says Wilfred catches it on the 2nd. And it's a possum in drag. Any takers?

[Green Goggles]

In my experience, when I begin to lose cat food... it is almost always a Raccoon.
They have big appetities and will eat any amount of cat food you put out.

As others have said, bait a live trap with more cat food and you will catch them easy.
My advice: Shoot them while they're still in the trap. Don't try to release the Raccoon and then shoot at it. Saw it tried once, hilarity ensued. Didn't end well. LOL

[steveinindy]

http://www.darts-page.com/images/ancient-aliens.jpg

My secondary theory is bigfoot. LOL

[steveinindy]

My advice: Shoot them while they're still in the trap. Don't try to release the Raccoon and then shoot at it. Saw it tried once, hilarity ensued. Didn't end well. LOL

My advice is not to shoot the raccoon but to relocate it a few counties away. You have an airplane after all, you could do a couple of STATES away and don't have to kill a raccoon who is just doing his or her thing. No offense intended but I just try to refrain from killing things that I am not going to eat or that are not going to eat me.

[Wilfred]

I purchased an infra red trail camera today and will set it up later this evening. Will post photo (if I can figure out how) as to what critter I have.

Wilfred

[prasmussen]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RbugqfpZhM

Never can tell.........

[Frank Giger]

My advice is not to shoot the raccoon but to relocate it a few counties away. You have an airplane after all, you could do a couple of STATES away and don't have to kill a raccoon who is just doing his or her thing.

Uh, Steve, what do you think is going to happen to the racoon if we use the suggested method of releasing them from an aircraft several states away?

Fun fact: they'll achieve terminal velocity from just 500 ft. AGL.

;)

[rwanttaja]

Uh, Steve, what do you think is going to happen to the racoon if we use the suggested method of releasing them from an aircraft several states away?

Fun fact: they'll achieve terminal velocity from just 500 ft. AGL.

;)
They'll just have to do a good RLF (Raccoon Landing Fall).

Ron Wanttaja

[steveinindy]

Uh, Steve, what do you think is going to happen to the racoon if we use the suggested method of releasing them from an aircraft several states away?

My point was that there is no reason to kill something that is not palatable nor a threat. I've live trapped several raccoons over the years and never encountered a problem releasing them. I see enough death and destruction in my professional activities so I try to avoid it in all other aspects of my existence.


They'll just have to do a good RLF (Raccoon Landing Fall).


That's funny....funny in a way that only a military history geek would fully appreciate but then again, I am one. LOL

[prasmussen]

they'll just have to do a good rlf (raccoon landing fall).

Ron wanttaja
aircoon sergeant!!!

[rwanttaja]

aircoon sergeant!!!

Ohhh, great. Now there are THREE of us here*.

"If the raccoon is in range, so are you."

Ron Wanttaja

[Edit] * Military history geeks, I mean.

[steveinindy]

"If the raccoon is in range, so are you."

"STAND UP! HOOK UP! WASH YOUR FOOD IN THE CREEK UPON LANDING!"




Ohhh, great. Now there are THREE of us here*.
This thread went from practical and useful to rather ridiculous in nothing flat.

*walks off to compose "Possum in the Risers"*

For the rest of you who don't get that last joke it's a reference to the first song in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKqt79FXlCA&feature=share&list=PL008F07687 F19FABF (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKqt79FXlCA&feature=share&list=PL008F07687F19FABF)

"Gory, gory, gory...what a helluva way to die and he ain't goin' jump no more!"

[Mike Switzer]

If it is a coon - kill it!!! this time of year that is what it probably is, as groundhogs & possums will be hibernating, but if it is any of the 3 KILL IT!!! they will do nothing but cause property damage (least case) and damage your pets(worst case) - If what is in your hangar is not stray / lost cats or dogs KILL THEM !!! Coons, groundhogs, & possums cary rabies & do a terrible amount of property damage, I had to pay well over $1,000 to get my cat taken care of when a Coon tried to take his food & he fought back. And Coons aren't worth eating. Too greasy. Gotta boil them for a day before you can BBQ them.

[rwanttaja]

"STAND UP! HOOK UP! WASH YOUR FOOD IN THE CREEK UPON LANDING!"

This thread went from practical and useful to rather ridiculous in nothing flat.

*walks off to compose "Possum in the Risers"*

He was just a southern possum, looking like a great big rat
He wandered into the hangar and Wilfred caught him flat
They stuffed him into a gunny sack, and headed for ramp
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

Gory, gory what a helluvaway to die,
Gory, gory what a helluvaway to fly,
Gory, gory what a helluvaway to die
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

The Champ was sitting idling, and they shoved him through the door
The throttle was shoved forward, and they took off with a roar
An "X" was painted on the runway, for the possum 'toward to soar
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

Gory, gory etc....

Ron Wanttaja

[steveinindy]

He was just a southern possum, looking like a great big rat
He wandered into the hangar and Wilfred caught him flat
They stuffed him into a gunny sack, and headed for ramp
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

Gory, gory what a helluvaway to die,
Gory, gory what a helluvaway to fly,
Gory, gory what a helluvaway to die
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

The Champ was sitting idling, and they shoved him through the door
The throttle was shoved forward, and they took off with a roar
An "X" was painted on the runway, for the possum 'toward to soar
And he ain't gonna jump no more!

Gory, gory etc....

Ron Wanttaja

That's funny as heck. You'd be a fun guy to sit down and chat with!

Now let's see you do the "A25 Song" now (second song on the video) although the traditional version contains the best verse ever in a song about flying:
"I fly for a living and not just for fun,
I'm not very anxious to hack down a Hun,
And as for deck landings at night in the dark,
As I told Wings this morning,'B**w that for a lark.'"

http://sniff.numachi.com/pages/tiA25;ttVILDINAH.html

[prasmussen]

2765 Gentlemen, we are not amused!

[Wilfred]

I set up the camera and overnight it caught 11 movements. I plugged the camera into my laptop and it won't transfer the photos.

I got a TASCO camera. The instructions speak of pushing the SETUP button. No such button exists. Instructions say no driver is needed, yet when plugged in the computer wants a driver called SPCA1528...which I found on the internet, but it still won't work.

Will have to call the TASCO folks Monday and see if they can help.

[Wilfred]

The intruder is another cat. 276727672767Photo not too clear, but it IS a cat. No possums.

[Wilfred]

Sorry for multiple photos of the cat and the airplane...lots of problems trying to use the TASCO camera/software.

[rwanttaja]

The intruder is another cat.
Damn. All those jokes wasted. :-)

Ron Wanttaja

[prasmussen]

Nice looking airplane tho.............

[Frank Giger]

It could be a racoon in disguise - look at that ringed tail.

I'd ask it who is married to Mickey Mouse to make sure.

[steveinindy]

So are you going to put out extra food for Cat #2?

[rwanttaja]

That's funny as heck. You'd be a fun guy to sit down and chat with!
Ah, but a Heinlein fan like you would know the problems of meeting Rhysling the reality vs. Rhysling the legend. :-)


Now let's see you do the "A25 Song" now (second song on the video) although the traditional version contains the best verse ever in a song about flying:
"I fly for a living and not just for fun,
I'm not very anxious to hack down a Hun,
And as for deck landings at night in the dark,
As I told Wings this morning,'B**w that for a lark.'"

http://sniff.numachi.com/pages/tiA25;ttVILDINAH.html
Thanks much for that. I've done some studying of the songs of the Air Force, but this is the first Fleet Air Arm song I've heard.

I wrote up a series of articles on the old Air Force songs for our Chapter newsletter:

http://www.bowersflybaby.com/stories/songs/index.html

Ron Wanttaja

[Mike Switzer]

So are you going to put out extra food for Cat #2?

Hope so. As long as they get along, more cats = less mice. His cat probably invited the other one by. "Hey dude, we all know we are the real rulers of the universe, I have this human giving me food all I have to do is kill a stupid mouse now & then, stop by for dinner if you are hungry"

[Tom Downey]

If you feed feral cats they won't hunt.

[Joe LaMantia]

Hey Wilfred!

I'll trade you my five cats for that airplane! I've got one that looks just like "Sylvester" and another with a ring-tail, of course you'll have to pay my court fees for the divorce!

Joe
;)

[prasmussen]

2769

[rwanttaja]

Worst case of 'varks I've ever seed.

Ron Wanttaja

[Mike Switzer]

???

I think someone is out of his natural habitat...

[Frank Giger]

Could be worse...

Sure they're cute when they're young, but wait until it grows.

http://www.darts-page.com/images/hangar_dino.jpg

Or it could be really, really worse:

http://www.darts-page.com/images/hangar_xeno.jpg

[Mike M]

http://www.reptilechannel.com/images/species/yellow-rat-snake.jpg

borrowed this photo off the internet, don't have one of "my guy", but he's my hangar rodent protection. no pet food to buy, no cat urine smell, no cat poop, my wife doesn't mess with my stuff, she won't even let her chihuahua in the place so no dog piddle/poop, either. cold-hearted killer, he is. 'bout four feet long.

[WLIU]

Do you fly a tailwheel airplane? It would be great if your could post a photo of your face when that guy appears between the rudder pedals when you are on a cross country flight!

Best of luck,

Wes
N78PS

[prasmussen]

Wonder just how many Young Eagles have been eaten by pythons. Bet they don't publish that.

[CraigCantwell]

We had a problem racoon one year at work. Security was finally able to trap him after numerous trys. They took him out and dumped him on an island on the other side of the lake from the end of our runway. Flippin coon beat the security guys back to the plant.... When they finally caught him again many months later, I belive they dumped out in a state park about 90 miles away.