I hate varments.

I try to keep the kibble cat food in the woodshed to the point of nothing left to lay around for the night. Altho day can still be an issue. Like the other afternoon when I look and there is a coon sitting in the satellite dish I use sideways for bird feeder. And it is happily chowing down seeds. Of course by the time I get around the back way with rifle..long gone.
Then one night, go out to put wood on and there is an opossum eating kibble next to the cats. The week prior I shot one in the barn. Was able to shoot this one too. Deep snow out back so just toss out behind shed til thaw. Go out another night, there is another blasted possum. Shot that one, tossed into snow too.
Look out a couple days later and the last one if half eaten. Went out and tried to determine tracks. 4 toes, no 5, 4? Claws so not cat. Coyote, nah, would have hauled away. Fox?
That possum is all gone and something dug the older one out of the snow. My guy has idea...set up trail camera. Oh..yeah! Duh. And there when I looked thenext day were two coons.
I have learned that basically nothing eats possum except Southerners. And the way to prepare is to cage and feed clean food for a week since a possum eats anything, rotted, dead of any disease and more.
I also have grown up thinking of coons as a clean animal. Eats mice, chickens, eggs, fruit, veggies. Washes it food when available. Bread not tho.
But, dead possums? So researched it. They are scavengers, opportunists, omnivores. Eat anything. And to think I ate coon as a child. Tasty. Til mom refused to spend 2 hours making sure every bit of fat was off or it tainted the meat.
Set live trap. Apple and rotten egg. Both gone, trap not tripped. Blast those paws. So re-set with apple wired in a suet cage. Week and no coon. Nor sign of. Maybe smart and returned to river. But, soon snow will be gone and hens get to come out in daytime.
I know last coon was so big and smart, had to borrow trap from neighbor to catch. Bad part is cats around so can't bait with any food cats like. Did end up catching one lately before this episode. Boarder said he left her out when he did 5am wood fill. And it had sat in the shed for days with an apple. Dumb cat. They do learn tho to stay out after in once or twice.
I hate varmints!