Raccoon Cartoons
Raccoons are so cute and are the subject of many cartoons,
movies and even as stuffed animals. Few people realize
the damage that they can do to your home as well as
impact your health should they get into your attic.
Consumers with cottages must contend with raccoons
and other animals getting into their vacation spots
while they are away all of the time. There are even
raccoon cartoons about some of these episodes.
This site focuses on the damage that raccoons can
do, some of the safety
issues and most important the
best way to
get rid of them, should they find their
way into the attic of you home. Other sites may have
information about raccoon cartoons, however we felt
it was more important to focus on the humane ways of
getting rid of raccoons safely and at relatively low
cost before they do a lot of damage.
Many communities have bylaws in place that require
live traps to be used and trapped
raccoons should be
released no more than 2 or 3 blocks from were they
were released. This is absolutely useless, since these
same raccoons will travel back to your house within
days, sometimes the next night. In fact most raccoon
families will have up to 5 dens in a neighborhood and
will move from one to the other. The odor of a den
attracts them and they can tell if the den is occupied
or not. So any released raccoon will return to your
house or others will just move in to the unoccupied
den unless you take proper steps to prevent the raccoons
from returning.
The damage raccoons can cause is immense if not dealt
with properly and in a timely manner. Raccoons have
been known to tear a roof a part to get to their young
when the entranced has been blocked. Many people recommend
installing a one way trap door that allows the raccoons
out but not back in. However you should only install
one of these devices once the young babies are old
enough to follow their parents out the trap door. We
cannot stress this point enough. Worst case is that
the adult raccoons will tear your roof apart to get
to their young causing a lot of damage, while the best
case is that the young babies will die in your attic
causing a foul smell in your attic which will migrate
through your house.
Wait until they can travel then install the one way
trap door so that they all leave. Once you are sure
they are out, then replace the trap door with strong
wire mesh that they cannot remove to prevent re-entry.
In addition, block all other possible entries with
this same mesh to avoid a new entrance for the raccoons.
Once the raccoons have left, you will need to repair
the damage they have caused in your attic and to your
roof. Precaution should be taken to avoid breathing
any dust from dried feces into your lungs. This can
cause various
organ damage and even death from the
microbes that are in the feces or raccoon scat. Use
a mask and dispose of all insulation etc properly.
If the raccoons have been in your attic for sometime,
you will need to hire a company that specializes in
dealing with potentially infected material from raccoon
scat.
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