Coexisting with Wildlife

Raccoons are known for getting into garbage cans, digging in yards, and nesting under houses or in attic spaces. Occasionally they may kill chickens or get into confrontations with dogs and cats.

Garbage cans with lockable lids are available and are the best solution to exclude raccoons. However, these cans may cost in the hundreds of dollars and might not be accepted by local refuse collection service providers. If lockable cans are not used, Garbage cans can be secured by fastening lids with rope, bungee cords, or chains and tying the handle to a stake driven into the ground.

Ensure that access points to either attic space or crawl space under your home are securely blocked.

Don’t leave dog or cat food outside.

Fence off garden areas with the fence buried under the ground.

Use repellents such as capsaicin (hot sauce) to make plants unpalatable.

“Milky Spore” (available at most garden stores) is a natural bacterium that gets rid of grubs in the yard which attract raccoons.

Close chickens in at night and surround the coop with fencing that extends 6 to 8 inches underground.

Make sure your dogs and cats are current on their rabies and distemper shots and occasionally check their stool for roundworms.

Motion-detecting water sprayers or sprinklers can scare wildlife away.

Despite best efforts, it may be that raccoons find their way into your home. Raccoons can damage infrastructure including air conditioning ducting, they might use insulation to make nests, interfere with electrical cables and water pipes, and find their way into wall spaces from attics or crawl spaces. This is not just an annoyance but could cost you significant amounts of money to fix.

Raccoons can be safely removed from your home using humane traps:

• Traps designed to catch feral cats, which are cages with doors that close securely when the animal treads on a trigger plate, are ideal size for skunks. Traps costs range from around $25 – $50. The cheaper traps work well for occasional use, whereas the more expensive traps can be used more regularly over a longer time. Once captured, raccoons can be either released or taken to a local wildlife rescue.
• Traps can be baited using cat food or dog kibble. Always ensure that you check traps as a minimum every 4 hours to ensure that animals are not left in traps for prolonged periods of time. In inclement weather conditions (heat or cold) traps should be checked hourly. Remember that being contained in this way is both stressful and potentially dangerous for the animals if it persists for a long period.
• Please ensure that you consult with your local Fish and Wildlife Service to check the legality of release of raccoons as some states prohibit release and others may require a permit. If your state does allow release, it is recommended that the raccoons are transported 10-15 miles from their capture site to prevent them from returning.
• If your state prohibits safe release, contact your local wildlife rescue to seek advice.
• Do not remove the raccoon from the trap to transport them as you could be bitten or scratched. Use sturdy gloves while handling the traps and do not hook fingers through the caging to carry the trap. Know that the traps are designed so that the animal cannot injure you while contained.
• When releasing, use gloves and simply open the trap to allow the raccoon to run away. The traps are designed to allow you open them without coming into contact with the animal inside.
• Ensure that you know how to set and open the trap before you use it.

Baby raccoons are usually born in the spring and are old enough to follow their mothers by fall. If you hear a high-pitched trilling noise coming from the place where a raccoon has made their nest, this means that a mother had made a den for her kits there. This complicates their removal as kits will generally not survive without their mothers until they are around nine months old.

It is understandable if you do not want raccoons to make your home their home for nine months and so the best course of action is to encourage the mother to relocate with her babies. Ways in which you can do this are:

• Use noise as a deterrent. You can set a radio up near the den location and have it play continuously.
• Use scents as a deterrent. You can use ammonia, cayenne pepper, peppermint oil, and vinegar, among other things in areas around the den.
• Use light as a deterrent. Raccoons seek dark places to make their dens. Be installing light in the areas where you believe a den is located, this can encourage mom to leave with her babies.

If you are unable to encourage the mother to remove her kits and are unable to wait for them to disperse independently, please contact a reputable wildlife rescue for advice.

Do not block entrance holes to potential den sites unless you are sure that there are no longer any animals present. You can check this by loosely blocking the entrance with hay, paper, or fabric. If it remains undisturbed for two to three nights, you can assume the den is empty.

Raccoons are intelligent animals with high IQs and a great memory. Not only can raccoons solve problems, but they will retain the solution used and apply it to similar situations in the future.

A raccoon’s black mask serves a purpose in reducing the glare from light. The dark black fur around their eyes absorbs light that would bounce in their eyes, allowing them to see more clearly.

A raccoon’s front paws have four times the receptors as their back paws. This makes them extremely sensitive and helps raccoons forage at night. Raccoons further increase their sense of touch by wetting their front paws – this is called dousing. It may appear that the raccoon is washing their food, but they are really wetting their paws to stimulate the nerves to better feel and find objects.