Raccoon Hanging From a Tree

[Teegate]

All,

Today, Jessica found this raccoon hanging from a rope in a tree. Some looser had apparently caught a raccoon and after skinning it he tied it's head to a rope alongside a road near Old Half Way for all to see.

And I want you to see this, so I have uploaded the photo's to my website and the links are below.

NOTE: Make sure you are NOT offended by a raccoon hanging from a rope in a tree before you click on the below links. If you don't want to view it, don't click on the link.

Again, don't click if you think you may be offended.

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/03252006/IMG_6537.JPG

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/03252006/IMG_6539.JPG

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/03252006/IMG_6542.JPG

In a plastic bag they had "Coon Trail" natural scent liquid to attract them. I have never heard of that and it just seems so wrong if it works.

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/teegate/03252006/IMG_6540.JPG

I took it down and threw it into the woods so that it was not hanging along the road for all to see.

Guy

 

[Hewey]

very disrespectful to do to any animal, I think the coon sent is for training coon hounds, maybe it was put on the pelt and used for laying down a sent trail to train, but why would you hang it in the tree?

 

[uuglypher]

very disrespectful to do to any animal, I think the coon sent is for training coon hounds, maybe it was put on the pelt and used for laying down a sent trail to train, but why would you hang it in the tree?

...why would you hang it in the tree?

1. To provide the dogs with an end to their trail,
2. have the dogs end their hunt with a "treed" 'coon, and
3. ensure a known site where the dogs can be gathered by the 'coon hunters at the end of the "hunt".

Tho' not a 'coon hunter m'sel', I heard many a discussion on that particularly popular blood sport cum art form during the 11 years, 8 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days that I lived in East Texas.

Dave

 

[Teegate]

Why right along the road? They could have done it out of sight.

Guy

 

[LARGO]

Some years back I was taken on two Coon hunts by a neighbor in the woods behind me. I considered it an interesting evening expedition. I would say that in it's end I found it disturbing at best. Another time, I was riding late...late at night on my quad back by Tuckahoe Turf farms in Hammonton.
My friend & I passed a truck. I will never forget the insignia on the camper:
"THE PACK IS BACK" . Pennsy tags and Coon dogs.We found ourselves in a spot when we settled nearby to rest and actually were attacked...yes, no bull, by said dogs while pulling away. They actually threw themselves at my friends bike. No fear whatsoever of the bike. Pretty Damned scary!! We actually took our bikes home right on 206 to avoid the woods. The gun club across the street from me holds coon dog gatherings now & again. Baleful sounding buggers...disturbing, actually unrests my dog.
All that aside, I got no angst against coon hunters at all but what you showed in your photos...... disguts me!

 

[RednekF350]

...why would you hang it in the tree?

1. To provide the dogs with an end to their trail,
2. have the dogs end their hunt with a "treed" 'coon, and
3. ensure a known site where the dogs can be gathered by the 'coon hunters at the end of the "hunt".

All of the above are correct Dave.
Coon hunting is a gun dog sport that is very primal and brings on a deep respect for the night woods and the hunted as well.
I have hunted as a guest with the group (South Jersey Treehound Association) that Largo is referring to back before distemper decimated the coon population and I loved it.
Just as when beagling, there is nothing like the sound of working dogs and working dogs in the middle of the night in the pines is really something to experience.
If you think you know the woods, start following the pack through the cedars and have the dogs go cold . It gets real quiet, real dark, real quick.
Leaving a coon skin trainer hanging for the general public to see is dead wrong and does a lot of PR damage to any hunting sport.
While I don't find the photos disturbing at all , I know that 98% of today's society would find them appalling.
The timing of this post is uncanny since I just got back a few minutes ago from a gun club party in Mizpah where they had two different delicious raccoon dishes along with muskrat, snapper turtle, deer, rabbit and wild turkey and gator.
By the way raccoon doesn't taste like chicken.
It tastes like raccoon.
Scott

 

[ecampbell]

Late last fall I came across a man training his hounds at Hampton Furnace. I went over to say HI and saw a very stiff racoon in a tree. Of course the hounds were making a fuss. He keeps the racoon in a freezer for such occasions. His hounds were very timid, probably because kennel kept dogs aren't very well socialized to humans, and besides, all the hounds I have known were just plain dumb. My dog immediately went to that tree for weeks after.
I used to fox hunt (mounted) , my wife still does, with the Monmouth County Hunt in the Assumpink by Allentown, NJ, and it was not unusual to go out with 35 couple. They made a beautiful noise but like I said, dumb and timid. Invaribaly one or two would get "lost". We would spend hours looking for them only to find them hanging around close by, but they would rarely let us get a lead on them. The only issue I remember is once they went through someones yard and killed a cat. There was never much chance of them catching a fox unless it was sick. They just go to ground. We also had JRT's but rarely used them because there just not enough fox to keep the sport lively.

Ed

 

[Boyd]

He keeps the racoon in a freezer for such occasions.

Is there someone sitting in his yard playing a banjo?

 

[bobpbx]

Ed, what does that term mean..."go to ground"? Go in thier fox hole?

 

[ecampbell]

Yep, they go down their hole. They're really alot smarter than the hounds. They'll take a liesurely route over hills and through swamps, giving us a great run. We used to hold terrier trials at the club house. My last Jack Russel just died in February at 18 years, 8 months. We had 3 of these guys at once for 13 years, it was never dull.

Ed

Ed, what does that term mean..."go to ground"? Go in thier fox hole?

 

[ecampbell]

He wasn't very talkative, I just left him alone.

Is there someone sitting in his yard playing a banjo?

 

[LARGO]

I have hunted as a guest with the group (South Jersey Treehound Association) that Largo is referring to back before distemper decimated the coon population and I loved it.
Scott

Please make no mistake, I thought it was very cool as I love the woods at night and the way these fellows and their dogs worked together was admirable and fascinating.It got a little squirley at the end though.
I've no reason to judge... to each his own.
Leaving that fellow hanging in the tree though would tend to give the layperson an uneasy feeling.
G.

 

[Hewey]

...why would you hang it in the tree?

1. To provide the dogs with an end to their trail,
2. have the dogs end their hunt with a "treed" 'coon, and
3. ensure a known site where the dogs can be gathered by the 'coon hunters at the end of the "hunt".

Tho' not a 'coon hunter m'sel', I heard many a discussion on that particularly popular blood sport cum art form during the 11 years, 8 months, 3 weeks, and 2 days that I lived in East Texas.

Dave

thought of that after the fact, does make sense though.