Having trouble with Racoons

Last weekend my daughter came in from trying to put the ducks in for the night. Two Racoons had gotten into the galvanized garbage can with a tight lid and were not scared when she went out there. We turned on the lights and they took off, the mother had to be the biggest Racoon I had ever seen. I built a 12' long coop with the ducks getting a 5' X 8' X 8' tall section so we can walk in and clean it out. a wall divides the last 4' where we keep the food with the end wall open to the weather. It's big enough to store the 2 cans for food and the bedding. I put the overhang 2' past the end and the weather doesn't affect it.
The last two nights I have sat outside for an hour with a pellet gun, but they didn't show up. I think they are under my yard shed. I also set out two humane traps so I'll see if I get anything that way.
I was thinking of using a 22Lr, but I'm too close for comfort from the house behind me even though it is separated by a small (100' wide) stream and 200' of land before the house. The elevation across the stream is higher and a garage blocks the house but I still know the "know your target and beyond" to use the 22Lr.
Any ideas on eradication ?

I caught a decent size one last night. Not sure if it is the bigger of the two. I take it up to the National Forrest up the road from me and go about 10 miles in before letting him go. Nothing but woods there, no homes.

Racoons are smart ... when I lived in Houston I had a pair of raccoons coming around that could open the snap type handles (the plastic cans where the handles snap over the lid) on my trash cans and get the lids off.... left a mess. I stopped putting the cans out the night before which took care of it.

I just returned from freeing one in the woods about 5 miles from home. It was then that I decided to read if there were regulating regarding this. There are! The states (most of them) want you to let them go near where you caught them so they don't intrude on another's area. They suggest you patch up hole they may have made to enter and let them go. They want my ducks and won't stop until they kill them all. On my plastic garbage cans, they eat holes in the lids.
When I let the racoon go, he ran due east towards my house down the middle of the road and was almost hit by 2 cars. He finally ran into the woods. I couldn't believe how fast it ran. NJ is endemic with rabies and racoons.

Take them out of town, step off in the woods with them and shoot em. Empty the trap and repeat.

I think that is the way to go. I'll take a 22Lr. with me and just head out a dirt road.

Hopefully you don't "accidentally" spill a mixture of fly bait and peanut butter inside the trash can. It could be lethal to the raccoons.

A friend told me a good trick. Have two garbage cans side by side and make it so the racoon has to cross the empty one to get to the one with the garbage. On the empty can, place a circular piece of plywood and cover it with newspaper. After a week fill the empty can 1/2 full with water and take the plywood out and tape the newspaper to to top. the racoon will fall in and drown. I can see it work but I can't make an animal suffer before it dies.

TheQuig wrote:

A friend told me a good trick. Have two garbage cans side by side and make it so the racoon has to cross the empty one to get to the one with the garbage. On the empty can, place a circular piece of plywood and cover it with newspaper. After a week fill the empty can 1/2 full with water and take the plywood out and tape the newspaper to to top. the racoon will fall in and drown. I can see it work but I can't make an animal suffer before it dies.

I concur, although a nuisance and health and welfare concern , I wouldn't make an animal suffer.

Caught another racoon in a humane trap that was next to the duck pen. I almost didn't notice it as it had snowed and the trap was pretty much buried. It could be the one I caught a couple of weeks ago, was about the same size. This time I took it out to the road and let it go. At first it made a bee line for the trucks, then ran into the Federal Reserve across the street. Maybe it will come back, I have a feeling sitting in the trap in the snow may deter it from wanting to come back. Hunger will drive anything to do something it wouldn't normally do. I didn't want to take it 10 miles into the woods with all the snow on the ground.