Suburban Raccoons

There are lots of raccoon deterrents on the internet that supposedly will tell you about Removing Raccoons from your home in your attic or other areas. Very few of them if any actually work, we have tried them and they just do not work with what we call suburban raccoons. These are raccoons who are used to living close to humans and have learned that there is no need to be afraid of us!

We cannot shoot them, since there is a danger you might hit someone next door and we cannot trap them, they are too smart or we catch something else. Also moth balls do not work at all, nor does the urine of dogs, wolves or other animals. In fact all that they do is smell up your house even more than the raccoons do. There is a way to prevent them from getting into your home and get rid of raccoons permanently.

Do not buy all of the things that are advertised on the internet or even in the hardware stores. In fact, traps are not even worthwhile investing in. We will explain some of the reasons why and also how to get rid of raccoons. First of all these raccoons are used to urban smells, loud noise, lights etc just do not work.

Lots of Raccoons in the Area

Secondly even if you catch a raccoon in a humane trap and take it 10 miles away, another family is ready to move in. There are from 20 to 50 raccoon families per square mile in urban areas. Some areas have even more than that and they are always looking for a vacated den. They can tell if there is a den close by, by the smell and if it is vacant. In fact we still have raccoons coming back every year to try to get into our place 5 years after we blocked all entrances.  So how to get rid of raccoons? The experts will tell you that first you must wait until the young ones are ready to travel outside the den. If you do not, the parents will tear your roof apart trying to get back to their young if you block the entrance.

Removing Raccoons from Your Home

Once the young ones are ready to move outside of the den, install a one way trap door with heavy gauge wire that is strong enough to block any raccoon over the entrance they are using and any other potential entrance. This is how to get rid of raccoons from your home. Once you are sure they are gone, remove the one way trap door and replace it with the same heavy gauge wire mesh.

Screw nail it into the roof and the joists so there is no way for them to tear the wire away and get through. Also block all other potential entrances with the same strong mesh wire so there is no chance for them to get in from some other entry point. This will also prevent squirrels from entering your attic as well.

Raccoons Cause a Lot of Damage and Are Dangerous After They Have Gone

Once you have figured out how to get rid of raccoons, be very careful with the repair of any raccoon damage. Especially of you are entering attic space. Breathing the feces can cause organ damage and death.

In the dry air of your attic, these feces break down. They turn into  dust and when disturbed will float in the air for you to breathe. At the very least wear a mask if you must go into the attic. Hire professionals to clean up the attic if they have been there for some time. You may have to replace the insulation. Also the air vents over the soffits if there is a lot of damage. For more information on repair for raccoons and other associated topics refer to our list of posts. Also check out our category list.

If you have had trouble getting rid of raccoons and found a better way, or want to warn our readers about proposed solutions, please leave a comment. We want to help people avoid these problems.

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