Suburban Raccoons

Raccoon removal can be a very frustrating activity unless you really know what you are doing. The owner of this trap was lucky enough to capture this raccoon in a live humane animal trap. He will probably take the raccoon out into the country somewhere to let it go. We hope that he does not get scratched or bitten in the process of moving the trap. Or letting the raccoon go. When they are mad they can be quite vicious. A snarling biting raccoon is not something you want to fool with unless you are well prepared. He also appears to have caught one of the pups as well in this trap.

It is usually very difficult to capture any raccoon in a trap. Let alone the parent and one of the pups. They are very intelligent and will avoid these traps like the plague. But the sad part of this story is that the owner of this trap has not really solved his raccoon problem. He will just have to continue trapping and dealing with raccoons getting into his attic.

Raccoon Removal

The problem with raccoon removal in this manner is that consumers are just dealing with one raccoon. There probably is another adult raccoon since they live in pairs. There may also be cubs that are hiding away somewhere as well that should be dealt with. Good luck trapping the rest after they have seen what happens when you go inside one of these traps. Raccoons are very smart and learn quickly.

In addition even if you are lucky enough to get rid of these raccoons, there are many other families of raccoons in your area. They are just waiting to move into a vacated den. They like to have 4 or 5 dens to travel around to. Raccoons can somehow tell when a den is not being used. They will be more raccoons in your attic within a few months. Unless you do something about the entrance to the den it self.

Then there is the damage they caused. If they have been in there for any length of time, they may have left feces or raccoon scat in the attic The insulation will also be compressed and generally made a mess. Most consumers may not even be aware of this issue. It is a good idea to check on the status of your attic after you have removed them from your home.

the Best Approach

Really the best way to deal with raccoon removal is to install a one way trap door over the entrance to the den. This will allow the raccoons to exit through the one way door, but not get back in. Once you are confident that all of the raccoons are out, then you can remove the one way trap door. Install a permanent heavy gauge wire mesh over the opening after you have properly repaired the entrance. Make sure that the young pups if there are any are old enough to travel. They need to get out on their own. If not they will either die inside your home or the adults will make another hole into your home to rescue their youngsters.

This is by far the best way to deal with raccoon removal. They will be permanently kept out of your home and although you might even see them investigating to see why they cannot get back in, that is about all they will do. Pretty soon they will give up and head off to one of your neighbors to see if they can get into their homes attic. You may want to warn your neighbors as well if they have homes that appear to be good candidates for raccoons to get into. On our street, almost every home has had a problem with raccoons and most have had to resort to the heavy gauge chicken wire solution.

While you are installing this heavy gauge wire mesh over the opening, also take the time to cover any other potential areas that they might be able to get into. This will protect against birds and squirrels as well.

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