Suburban Raccoons

A wild raccoon is just as smart and nosy as urban raccoons. The one major difference is that urban raccoons have fewer enemies than wild raccoons do and urban raccoons are pretty tolerant of all of the urban noises and even are not really that afraid of humans. Wild raccoons will quickly run in the other direction when they see humans while urban raccoons can be seen walking down the middle of the street from time to time during the day or night. Either way they are animals that will take your food and break into your home to find food or build a den.

Wild Raccoon – Den in Your Attic

Given a suitable looking den, wild raccoons will take up residence in any location where there is food, water and protection from the elements. This can be the hollow of a tree or it can be your attic if they wander into suburbia or if suburbia encroaches on their regular hunting grounds. If there are a lot of green areas or forests close by to new homes being built, you can be sure that these wild raccoons will be curious and will take up residence in your home if there is shelter to be found.

Dealing with raccoons that have entered your attic can be a troubling for many people. They cause a mess, they damage your home, they may even tear a hole in the wall getting into the attic. This can cost thousands in repairs, but first you have to get rid of the wild raccoons and keep them out on a permanent basis. There is a right way to get rid of these raccoons and there is a wrong way to go about getting rid of them, which we will discuss in the following paragraphs. Note that they can gain access to your roof, by climbing the bricks up the side of your home or perhaps crawl along a branch of a tree that overhangs your roof. Either way it does not really matter too much how they get there, the trick is to stop them getting inside your attic.

Getting Rid of Raccoons

The best way to stop them is to install a one way trap door which allows them to get out of your attic, but not back into your attic. You need to also make sure that if they have babies, they can get out as well. If the young cannot travel on their own and cannot get out through the trap door, the wild raccoon parents are very protective and will want to rescue them if they can. This could include ripping another hole in your roof or your sidewall to your home which can be quite damaging and cost thousands of dollars to repair after you get rid of them finally.

Loud noises do not work, mothballs do not work, even trapping them with a humane trap does not work. We tried them all and found that the only sure way to get rid of them is to use the one-way trap door as explained above. The loud noise did not bother them at all, and the mothballs also did not work other than to smell up our attic. they just totally ignored them. I guess I do not have any moths in the attic now. We are not sure if I did have any in the first place, but they sure did not work on the raccoons.

Trapping does not Work

Even trapping did not work. They are just too smart to go inside to get the food in the trap. They actually reached though the wire mesh from the outside to get at the food. I was feeding them more than just trapping them. The younger less experienced raccoons were easy to catch, but the adults who had obviously been caught before were not going into that trap regardless of how much food was available. Anyway hope this all helps.

Wild raccoons are very resourceful, so take them seriously and ignore the self-help articles about using loud noises, spraying various odors etc. They just do not work. They are a waste of time and money. Use the one way trap door approach.

We have talked about what to do with raccoons in your attic. Or someplace that you really do not want them to be. But we have not really spent a lot of time discussing what to do with a raccoon once you have caught one in a trap. We are assuming that most people will use live traps like the one in the picture. They have the intention of removing the raccoon from another location once it has been caught.

What is really surprising to many people and myself included is that in some cities and towns there are bylaws about what you can and cannot do with a trapped raccoon. First of all, you can only use what are called live traps. Live traps basically capture the raccoon in a live trap without hurting the animal. This is by far the preferred way to remove animals of this type. However, what do you do with the raccoon when you catch one in this manner? Another point to remember that if you do catch one, it is important that you act quickly.

Wild animals are not used to being in a confined space. Left in a trap for any length of time and they will become very stressed and possibly go into shock. Left too long and they will die of shock. If you do catch one, be prepared to move it to a new location immediately.

City Bylaws for Removing Raccoons

The bylaws in my city basically tell you that you can only move the captured raccoon approximately 2 to 4 blocks away from where it was caught. Anyone who knows raccoons knows that this is absolutely a waste of time. Any raccoon can make its way back to what he thinks is his den in no time at all.

In fact, 2 to 4 blocks will be his likely roaming area in terms of looking for food. So it really is a waste of time. They will be back at the den in your home the very next morning and now they know not to go near your trap. They are very intelligent and learn quickly.   If you are going to dispose of a captured raccoon, you are better off to take them out into the countryside and release them. Just make sure that no one sees you release the animal into the wild. You could be charged and the local farmers may not like it very much either.

So What to do with Raccoons When You Catch One.

Don’t waste your time trying to catch one in the first place. We will summarize here, but refer to some of our other posts for details about what you should do. Do what we did and you will have a proper long-term solution that will prevent not only the current family from spending time in your home but stop other raccoon families from moving in when the current family of raccoons is moved out.

Install a one-way trap door at the location where they get in. Make sure that the young pups are old enough to travel on their own and get out on their own. Place heavy gauge wire mesh over all other possible entries. Once the raccoons are out of your home, remove the one-way trap door and cover this opening with the same wire mesh. Now, these pesky animals cannot get into your home ever and no other raccoon families can get in either. this will also keep squirrels out as well as birds from your attic.

So save yourself the trouble of trying to catch them and also what to do with raccoons when you catch one. Just prevent them from getting into your home in the first place! If they are already in, follow this approach to get them out and keep them out.

For more details about bylaws and how to get rid of raccoons, click here.

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Trapping Raccoons in a raccoon trap is not an easy thing to do, however, once you do catch one, what do you do with it? Letting it go in the neighborhood is not going to solve the problems since they will just come back to your place like a homing pigeon. Many cities and towns have bylaws that basically say you must let them go within a mile or so of your home. This is really not going to solve your problem with raccoons in your attic since they will come back. They also get quite excited and snarl at their captors, hissing, and spitting. They are not pleasant to deal with when they are trapped in a live trap.

The first step is to check with the local humane society and bylaw officers. If your city has a restriction on what you can do with urban animals that have been captured then you are wasting your time trapping them. In fact, in our community, you are not allowed to let the raccoon out of the trap more than two blocks away, which basically defeats the purpose of catching them in the first place! This can be very frustrating for many homeowners dealing with Raccoons in their attic or elsewhere, however, this is the law and besides, there really is a better way to deal with them as you will read in the rest of this post.

Trapping Raccoons – More Issues

First, a few facts which may help you decide what you would like to do about raccoons. Or even if you want to spend the time trapping them.

There are usually 20 to 40 families of raccoons per square mile in urban areas. Each family will have 4 or 5 dens that they move around to. Movement is based on the availability of food and suitability for their needs. That is a pretty large number! Further, if a den is empty, they can tell if the den has been occupied recently or if it has been vacated. An open den is like an invitation to spend some time in your home and stay as long as they want.

So even if you take the raccoon you trapped 100 miles away there are many more waiting to move into the old den which just happens to be in your attic!

What Are the Alternatives

As you can probably tell, it is a waste of time to try and trap them even if you disagree with the bylaws. So what does one do?

Several animal agencies suggest that you not bother wasting time trapping the raccoons. Instead of worrying about where to let them go, you focus on getting them out of the den and then blocking the den entrance so they cannot get back in. This is by far the best solution.

Installing a one-way trap door that allows them out but not back in is an effective way of getting rid of your raccoons and you do not have to worry about where to let the raccoons go. Your current guest cannot get back in and no others from other dens can get in either.

We followed this approach and installed strong wire mesh over all potential entrances about 4 years ago. We used the door approach and then sealed it once we were sure they were out of our attic. I have seen raccoon tracks on our roof in the wintertime for the past 4 years. This shows that they are still trying to make a home in our attic. They do not stay long once they realize they are unable to get into our home.

Be Careful

A word of caution is in order. If you are going to install the one-way door, make sure that the babies are old enough to also come out and pass through the one way door. This is very important.

A mother raccoon who cannot get to her young has been known to practically tear the roof apart. They are trying to reenter the den and feed her young raccoons. If you have this situation, you may want to wait till they are old enough to travel. Besides you do not want to have them die inside your attic. They will cause a bad smell throughout your home.

For more details about bylaws and what you can do with animals you are trying to relocate, click here.

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Bylaws & Raccoons – We have had raccoons in our attic for 6 months this past spring until I hired a company to help me get rid of them. If you would like to hear more about this experience as well as about raccoons, go to our main index page. Also, check local Bylaws Regarding Raccoons in your area to ensure that you do not break the law by mistake. It turns out that you are not supposed to take them very far away from their habitat, even if this habitat is in suburbia.

Bylaws & Raccoons – Serious Business

A lot of people at this point are saying that I must be joking. Who would enact a law like that and why? Well, it turns out that there are a lot of municipalities that have these laws. We are not sure why, but we really think it is ridiculous, but even if you do take them a long way away, this action will not solve your problem.

Can you believe that the Bylaws Regarding Raccoons in our area actually say that if you trap a raccoon, you have to release them within two blocks of where you caught the raccoon! We all know what this means. The next night they will be right back where they started, in your attic!  While this sounds ridiculous and it is, there is actually a good reason for this approach.

What Good Reason Could There Possibly Be

You have to know something about raccoons to help you appreciate this bylaw. It actually does not matter if you drop them off 2 blocks away or 100 miles away. You will have another family of raccoons move into the old den before you know it, hence why bother dropping them so far away. At least this is the logic of the city where we live. Here is a little information about why this makes so much sense.

In many urban areas, there are 20 families of raccoons per square mile. That is really a lot of raccoons. In suburbia, there is lots of food and there are lots o homes for them to move into.  They each will have 4 to 5 dens in the area that they reside in. It is almost as if they were a rich family and liked to have multiple homes and cottages to move around too. And they like to move around.

They are able to distinguish between a den that is in use vs. one that is not and move right in. So even if you take your trapped raccoons 100 miles away, another family will move in shortly and take up their new home much to your annoyance. You might get lucky and not have any move in for 6 months, but it is a guarantee that there will be another family in your house unless you do something to prevent them from getting into your house.

What Can You Do About the Raccoons

The Bylaws Regarding Raccoons was enacted to get people to focus on deterring them from coming into your attic etc. in the first place. So first make sure that they are out of the den, including any young ones. Place a  strong wire mesh securely fastened to the entrance so they cannot get back in and then complete repairs.

If you do not make sure that the babies are out, the mother will literally tear your roof apart in order to get to them. Even if you have to wait until the baby raccoons are old enough to travel, it is definitely worth it.

There is also a chemical spray that can be used to deodorized and remove the scent of the raccoons which attracts them in the first place. Do not go into the attic without protection. Breathing the small particles created by dried feces can cause sickness and even death.

Hire professionals to remove the insulation and repair all damage. They will have the right equipment to get rid of the raccoon smell and plug any and all potential entrances. So much for Bylaws Regarding Raccoons that restrict you from taking them more than two miles away. It actually makes sense. Click here for more details about bylaw issues.

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