Raccoons typically den in existing shelters such as hollow trees, ground burrows, or muskrat houses, but they can also enter chimneys, attics, woodpiles, and other buildings. This can cause various problems for property owners, including structural damage and costly repairs.
It will also cost you to clean and sanitize areas where the raccoons have been. This is necessary because raccoon feces and urine can contain dangerous germs that can pose a health risk to humans and pets. Contact Raccoon Removal Texas now!
If you have raccoons around your house or property, the best thing to do is hire a professional for an inspection. That will give you an idea of how many raccoons are there, how much damage they’ve already done and if there is a nest or babies that need to be removed. This initial inspection will cost you $100 or so.
Once the raccoons have been removed it’s time to clean up the mess. You’ll need to buy some very specialized cleaning equipment because raccoon poop is known to carry disease. When it dries up and becomes dusty, it can actually become airborne, and when inhaled, can cause serious illness. You’ll also need to wear protective clothing, masks and gloves – this will cost you some money too.
Depending on the size of your home and how far into your attic you can get, the cleanup cost will vary. If the mother raccoon left her kits in the attic, you will need to trap them and remove them. This can be a very disturbing situation, especially when the babies start to cry for their mothers. This yelping and chirping can be heard throughout your whole house, so this step is something that you don’t want to ignore.
You’ll also need to do some preventive maintenance, such as securing your garbage cans and trash bins. You can use bungee cords or padlocks to keep the lids closed. You should also put some motion activated lights on your property, as raccoons are easily scared by these things. If you do all this, then raccoons will find your property unattractive and will stay away.
Wildlife control professionals know how to deal with raccoons humanely. If you contact one, they’ll do a thorough inspection and make sure all of the entry points are sealed and repaired, so that the raccoons can’t come back. They’ll also offer some tips on prevention to help keep raccoons from coming back to your house in the future. Typically, they’ll complete the entire process of raccoon removal and exclusion in two or three service visits – under a week total.
Trapping
Raccoons are often found scavenging through trash, destroying gardens and yards, and they have been known to break into screened-in porches to steal pet food. They can also carry parasites and diseases that can affect pets and humans. Proper sanitation methods can help deter raccoons from your yard and home. Trash cans should be tightly closed and emptied regularly. Putting up a strong deterrent is also important. Raccoons are repelled by strong odors and can be scared away with commercial or homemade scent-based repellents.
During the winter, raccoons may move into attics and crawl spaces to give birth or seek shelter from cold weather. Blocking possible entry points with loosely wadded newspaper can be an effective way to deter raccoons from entering your house.
If you do find a raccoon living under your deck or in the attic, it is best to use humane harassment techniques to encourage the animal to leave on its own. Illuminating the area with floodlights and treating it with commercial or homemade scent-based deterrents can make the space uncomfortable for a raccoon and cause it to leave on its own.
For those who find that these methods are ineffective or simply do not want to deal with trapping a wild animal, it is recommended that homeowners contact a wildlife removal expert. A professional will have access to more advanced and efficient trapping equipment, and they can ensure that the raccoon is safely trapped and relocated.
Alternatively, a professional can utilize more proactive techniques that will prevent raccoons from coming around in the first place. Keeping yards and gardens free of food and shelter will discourage raccoons, as will regularly raking, cleaning up yard waste and trimming hedges and trees.
Many homeowners find that one of the fastest and most reliable ways to remove raccoons from an invading property is to hire a local wildlife removal specialist. These professionals can perform trapping and exclusion services, and they can also assist with cleanup and damage repair. Before trying to trap a raccoon on your own, homeowners should be sure to research the local regulations and laws regarding this process as some regions require a permit to catch and relocate wildlife.
Exclusion
Raccoons can carry rabies and other diseases that can be passed to humans. The best way to protect against disease and keep raccoons off your property is to take preventative measures, such as removing food sources that attract them.
A raccoon is a scavenger, and food waste from trash cans and dumpsters, as well as bird seed and other feeders will attract it to a property. A clean bird feeder with a lid will also help deter raccoons. Keeping garbage cans closed and trash disposed of at the end of the day is another preventative measure. Fencing around vegetable gardens and chicken coops is another way to prevent raccoons. If you have fruit trees, having pest control eliminate grubs and removing fallen fruit can also deter raccoons from skulking around your yard.
If a raccoon is in your house or attic, it may destroy insulation and electrical systems, which can be expensive repairs. If you suspect raccoons are accessing your home, look for signs such as knocked-over garbage cans, ripped down fences, and trails of droppings from the attic to the roof.
Using barrier screens to close off purposeful openings in the exterior of your home, such as the space leading into the crawl space, chimney opening, and side vents that aid with ventilation can help prevent raccoon entry. These screens can be purchased at a hardware store and installed with little difficulty.
Some homeowners use poison to get rid of raccoons, but this method is not ethical and does not always work. It may be a better idea to have a professional humane wildlife removal expert handle the trapping and exclusion process. A professional will be able to tell quickly if the problem is caused by raccoons or by a different species of animal.
If you have a problem with raccoons, contact a licensed and insured wildlife removal company in your area. They will be able to catch and remove the raccoons, and they can also repair any damage the raccoons have done. They can also recommend preventative measures to keep raccoons off your property in the future.
Cleanup
Raccoons are very common in urban areas and can cause a lot of problems. They raid trash cans, steal pet food and enter homes through open doors or even rip out the attic to make a den where they raise a litter of babies. They also dig up gardens, damage bird feeders and destroy sod. If you have a problem with raccoons, call a nuisance wildlife control specialist to help resolve the issue.
While raccoon poop may look harmless when it is dry and dusty, disease spores can become airborne and can be dangerous to humans and pets. Therefore, you will need to wear protective clothing while handling raccoon feces and cleaning up the mess that they leave behind.
This will include wearing eye protection, a mask and possibly even a suit. This is because the fecal matter can contain bacteria and parasites like roundworm and Hantavirus that can be harmful to humans, dogs and cats.
Once the raccoons have been removed from your property and the damage has been repaired, you will need to clean up the mess that they leave behind. This will involve scrubbing surfaces and removing materials that are damaged or contaminated by raccoon waste. The cost of this cleanup will depend on the amount of material involved.
You will also need to block the entrances that raccoons use to enter and exit your property. This can be done with a temporary cover while the raccoons are searching for food at night and then making a permanent seal later. You will also need to check frequently to ensure that no raccoons are still using the entrances you have blocked.
You can minimize the risk of raccoons returning by keeping your trash cans tightly sealed and storing pet food in containers with tight lids. You should also regularly clean up fallen fruits and other potential food sources on your property. Encourage your neighbors to do the same to collectively reduce attractants and discourage raccoons from entering your neighborhood. If you do have serious raccoon damage to your home, then contact a reputable nuisance wildlife control operator to trap and remove the raccoons and install an animal proof barrier for long term protection.