Suburban Raccoons


Raccoon Latrine on my Roof

November 21st, 2016 ernie Posted in Raccoon Roundworm No Comments »

Raccoon Latrine on my RoofIf you see a lot of poop on your roof it could be a serious health concern. Essentially there is a raccoon latrine on your roof or worse in your attic. There are health concerns, physical damage concerns and removal steps you need to follow. Bottom line is never allow anyone including your children to handle raccoon poop from a raccoon latrine. The poop contains eggs from the Baylisascaris procyonis or raccoon roundworm. These eggs if ingested can cause eye damage, brain damage and even death. Take special precautions if you need to remove raccoon feces from your home or other areas.

Raccoon Latrine on my Roof

If you have raccoon poop on your roof, it means the local raccoons have decided to use your roof as a latrine. If they are inside your attic, you may find feces inside on the insulation as well. You will need to hire a company to remove the insulation and dispose of it in an environmentally safe manner. This can be expensive.

In addition you need to make sure that the raccoons cannot continue entering your home. Install heavy gauge wire mesh over all potential entrances. If they are already inside, install a one way trap door over the entry point to they can get out and not back in. Make sure there are no baby raccoons inside. Either wait until they are old enough to travel on their own or go in and get them. Be sure to wear protective breathing apparatus and also gloves. disinfect everything after.

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Breathing in Raccoon feces

March 7th, 2015 ernie Posted in Raccoon Roundworm No Comments »

Breathing in Raccoon fecesMany readers might wonder how it would be possible for consumers to be breathing in raccoon feces? The answer is that it is in fact possible under specific conditions and that’s why anyone dealing with raccoons in areas where humans live, need to be very careful. For example, raccoons will find a way into a homes attic and set up their den to raise their babies. In the process, they will excrete urine as well as feces and that is where the problem begins.

Breathing in Raccoon feces – Attic

If the raccoons are in the attic which is where many raccoons like to set up their dens, the attic is hot and very dry and the feces from the raccoons will dry out quickly. The feces turn to dust and anytime they are disturbed, particles will float in the air making it possible for anyone who is not wearing appropriate breathing protection to breathe these particles into their lungs. Contained in these particles are roundworms which are very tiny and can exist under very difficult conditions. Not only can they exist in very dry conditions they can exist for several years.

Once the roundworms enter the human body through the lungs or worse through the stomach because you’ve accidentally ingested roundworms. They will migrate to the eyes and into the brain. They will cause irreparable damage and sometimes even death. It is very important to wear proper protection and to dispose of the protective gear carefully. This will help to avoid contamination of your person. In fact if you have raccoons living in your attic, you really should arrange for the proper disposal of all of the insulation. The associated feces and urine that is in the insulation should also be disposed of. Use a company equipped to deal with this kind of contamination. They will wear full-body suits and breathing apparatus. They should also have specialized bags to ensure that all of the exposed insulation is properly contained.

This is a real issue and should be taken seriously. Homeowners who are dealing with raccoons in their attic or other buildings must take precautions.

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Raccoon Roundworm Symptoms

October 7th, 2014 ernie Posted in Raccoon Roundworm 1 Comment »

Raccoon Roundworm Symptoms The last thing that you ever want to have happened to anyone including yourself is to be in contact with roundworms from raccoons. If you ingest these worms accidentally by breathing them into your lungs you can get quite sick. Also if you accidentally ingest them when they come in contact with a food source. They can cause really serious Raccoon Roundworm Symptoms leading to organ failure and even death. In case you are wondering these are microscopic worms. They cannot easily be seen by the naked eye.

They are extremely hardy. These worms can exist for a long time in harsh conditions, such as attics where it is hot and dry. If you have to deal with the situation shown in the picture, make sure that you take the necessary steps to protect yourself and your family. This man has a full protective gear on including a breathing filter to ensure that nothing is ingested into his lungs. Proper removal of the protective clothing and disposal is also required once you are finished with cleaning and making repairs.

Roundworm Symptoms

In humans the infection from raccoon roundworms is rare, however, they sometimes do occur. They sometimes will invade the eye, the brain, and other organs with quite drastic impacts such as blindness, organ failure, and death. If you are around raccoons or where they have been, take special care to protect yourself from accidental infections.

Symptoms in dogs include unsteady walking, difficulty eating, lethargy, circling, seizure, and confusion. Dogs and other animals will contract the disease from being around raccoons, their feces, and eating animals that have been infected with the roundworm. Often an animal that is infected will become easy prey for other animals. When they are caught and killed and then eaten the animal that has eaten the infected animal will often become infected repeating the cycle.

Adult dogs can often be cured if the disease or infection is caught earlier enough, it is almost always fatal in puppies. If you have raccoons in the area or see raccoon feces, take extra precautions when removing them. Protect your pets and children from coming in contact with these feces.

Raccoon Roundworm Symptoms in Cats

The symptoms and effects of the roundworm is pretty much the same for cats as it is for dogs. In the case of cats, they tend to get the disease from sharing areas. Or being in areas that are frequented by raccoons. In one way or another, they ingest the worms and become infected.

If you suspect the presence of infected raccoons, cats, or dogs, seek treatment for your pets right away. Also, protect yourself by frequent hand washing and staying away from feces. Use protection when cleaning up any feces that you find. They could be carrying the roundworm within the feces.

This post focused on symptoms. There are additional posts on this site that discuss clean up as well as the removal of raccoons if they are in your attic.

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Raccoon Worm

September 7th, 2014 ernie Posted in Raccoon Roundworm No Comments »

Raccoon WormThere are three things that are really gross about this picture. The first is that these are raccoon feces in someone’s home and there appears to be a lot of them. The second thing is that someone must suit up, go into the attic to remove the feces and the urine soaked insulation. The really gross thing is that these feces from raccoons are filled with raccoon worm. If they find their way into the digestive system of humans or their lungs can cause serious health issues and possibly even death.

This is why the man shown in this picture is wearing protective clothing. He is also wearing an air breather as well to protect him from airborne eggs from the raccoon worm. Attics are hot and tend to dry things out quickly including the feces of raccoons. But the worms and their eggs somehow survive and are so tiny that they can become airborne if disturbed. This is how you can ingest them easily into your lungs if you are not wearing protective clothing.

Raccoon Worm – Dealing with Feces in Your Attic

The short answer is that all of the insulation and the feces must be removed using environmental procedures. The material must be disposed of in such a way that there is no danger to humans. The Raccoon worm exists in the gut of the raccoon and thousands of eggs are expelled in the feces of raccoons every day. They apparently are very hardy and will last a long time even in harsh conditions such as dry hot attics. Don’t fool around, this is dangerous to your health situation and you must deal with the mess appropriately. Hire companies that are equipped to remove and dispose of the material safely.

Raccoon Worm – Stop the Raccoons from Entry

If you have raccoons in your attic, the first step is to stop them from getting in. Professional animal control personal will install a one-way trap door so that the raccoons can get out but not back in. Once you are sure that they are out of your attic, the next step is to begin the cleanup.

You will want to follow this process as per the instructions outlined above to avoid any health issues. Also if the raccoons have babies in the attic of your home, you may have to wait until they are old enough to travel on their own. They have to be able to get out of the attic through the one way trap door themselves. If you do not wait, the adults may try to find another way into your home. They can and will do even more damage than they already have.

Once you are sure that they are all out, you can then begin cleaning up. Make sure that you install heavy gauge wire mesh over all potential entry points. This will ensure that they cannot return and cause more damage.

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Raccoon Roundworm

August 7th, 2014 ernie Posted in Raccoon Roundworm No Comments »

Raccoon RoundwormWhen we were doing a little research about raccoon roundworms, we already knew that it was very dangerous for humans to ingest roundworms from raccoons. But we were a little shocked at what we found. Now we understand why being careful when dealing with raccoons is so important. You must avoid any possibility of ingesting the eggs of the roundworm.

The official title is Baylisascaris. However, we will just use the term raccoon roundworm in this post. Raccoons who are infected shed millions of eggs daily. The eggs take two weeks to turn into larvae and can remain viable for many years. They can withstand harsh weather and decontamination. They can easily withstand the heat and cold in your attic without any problem. Once they enter the host, ie, a raccoon or worse, a human, they like to head to the brain. Also, the eyes with apparent impacts.

How Do Humans Contract Raccoon Roundworm

The eggs are in the feces, which can be found just about anywhere. However, if you have raccoons in your attic, this means the feces will be on your roof. They will be in your eaves trough, and they will be in your attic as well. Raccoon feces can be found almost anywhere in the wild. Certainly around the outdoors of your home if you have raccoons in your attic. Anywhere there is food left outdoors, under shrubs and along fences, there will be raccoons and feces from the raccoons. We have a fence at the back of our yard. My neighbor on the other side of the fence calls it the raccoon highway!

By far, the greatest people at risk are young children playing outside and may come in contact with raccoon feces. They may not be aware that they have been in contact. We know that young children do not always wash their hands as often as they should and also tend to lick their fingers etc.

Raccoon Roundworm in Your Attic

If you have raccoons in your attic, you will have feces in your attic. This means millions and millions of roundworm eggs and larvae. They can exist for years in your attic. There will also be feces on the roof which will be washed into the eaves trough and onto the ground wherever they exit.

Environment precautions must be taken if you will remove the insulation if you enter the attic. Proper disposal of the insulation must be ensured, and anyone in the attic or handling the insulation must also be sure to wear protective clothing. They should also wear breathing apparatus to avoid any possibility of ingesting the eggs or the larvae. They are microscopic and will float in the air when the dry feces are disturbed as you move around the attic or clean it.

According to the research we completed, no confirmed case has been successfully treated.  Hire professionals with the proper equipment to deal with this problem of raccoon roundworms if you have raccoons in your attic.

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