Raccoon infestations in residential areas are becoming an increasing concern for Dallas homeowners. Raccoons are known for their adaptability, intelligence, and dexterity, making them difficult to remove once they find their way into an attic or garage. They will not give up their new home easily, and they can cause significant damage to property, risk the health and safety of occupants, and spread diseases such as rabies.
A raccoon in the attic is more than just a minor inconvenience. These masked bandits can chew wires, damage insulation, tear up duct work, and cause other structural damage, leading to costly repairs. Furthermore, raccoons are known to carry various types of parasites and transmit diseases like leptospirosis, which can endanger both humans and pets. Many homeowners and commercial property owners don’t need reminded – but addressing raccoon problems quickly is imperative to ensuring a safe and sanitary living environment.
To help homeowners effectively address raccoon removal, the below discusses various methods, preventive measures, and professional assistance options you can leverage if you have raccoons in your attic. By understanding the best practices for dealing with a raccoon infestation, individuals can make informed decisions that protect both their property and well-being.
Critter Stop helps you put a stop to your critter problem in a safe way. We also offer the following services:
Common indicators of raccoon activity include:
After identifying raccoon activity, the next step is to locate the entry point they are using to access your attic. Entry points can be:
By recognizing the signs of raccoon activity and identifying their entry point, you can more quickly and effectively address the issue and take steps to remove raccoons from your attic. Remember to be humane when dealing with raccoons or any other wildlife.
Raccoons can cause numerous problems when they move into your attic. In this section, we will discuss various methods to remove raccoons from your home, with a focus on live trapping and relocation, using repellents, and the most effective way - calling a professional.
Live trapping is sometimes an option for raccoon removal, as it can allow the safe capture and relocation of the animal. A few points to consider when using this method include:
Generally speaking, live trapping is only recommended when no other options are available though since raccoons are usually smart enough to avoid the live traps, wasting valuable time in the process. Raccoons are incredibly intelligent and are often wise enough to avoid live traps – especially if they have been caught in a trap anytime in the last few years.
Repellents can be another option to try to deter raccoons from your attic. Some common repellent types include:
Similar to trapping, repellents are rarely effective. If you have raccoons in the attic, it will probably take a lot more than repellent to evict them. A single raccoon in your yard may be easier to deter with a combination of repellents. But once wildlife makes it into your house or commercial property, repellent very rarely solves the problem.
If you feel overwhelmed or unsure of how to handle raccoon removal yourself, you can always call a professional. Hiring a wildlife control specialist such as Critter Stop ensures that the raccoon problem is dealt with efficiently and humanely. Professionals possess the necessary equipment and experience to handle raccoons safely and comply with local regulations. At Critter Stop, we offer customers a thorough inspection free of charge so they know exactly what options are available to them.
When considering professional raccoon removal services, it is essential to research and find a reputable company with good customer reviews and a track record of successful removals. Targeting a wildlife specialist, instead of a handyman, roofer, or general pest control company is also wise, given the value of experience in this field and all of the unexpected things that can pop up during a project when working with a wild animal.
Raccoons can cause thousands of dollars, and sometimes tens of thousands of dollars, of damage if they gain access to your home. Efficient removal and preventing future re-entry is essential for keeping your property safe and avoiding costly repairs. This section will cover sealing entry points and raccoon-proofing your property.
To effectively prevent raccoon re-entry, identifying and sealing all possible entry points is crucial. Here are some steps to take:
Remember, raccoons are clever and persistent animals, so thorough inspections are key to keeping them out.
In addition to sealing entry points, here are some measures to raccoon-proof your property:
By following these steps, you can effectively reduce the likelihood of raccoons entering your home and property.
Raccoons are known to carry diseases that can be harmful to humans and pets. Raccoon feces can carry diseases for ~2-3 years, presenting health hazards far years past the initial removal. Some of the diseases carried by raccoons include:
To minimize the risk of contracting these diseases, it is essential to avoid contact with raccoons and proximity to “raccoon latrines” - where raccoons use the restroom - and to take proper precautions when handling raccoon feces or cleaning up contaminated areas.
Apart from health risks, raccoons can cause significant damage to property. Some common issues include:
It is wise for homeowners to take preventative measures by sealing potential entry points, securing garbage cans, and maintaining a clean yard to deter raccoons from invading their property.
In many areas, raccoons are protected under wildlife protection laws. It is essential to understand the specific laws and regulations in your area before removing raccoons from your attic or property. It is often illegal to:
It is crucial to consult with your local wildlife agency or professional wildlife removal expert to ensure compliance with the law.
When dealing with raccoons on your property, it is important to treat them animals humanely. Raccoons are intelligent, and causing unnecessary suffering is both unethical and often illegal. This is something we feel strongly about at Critter Stop. Some humane removal methods include:
It is recommended to always consult with experts to ensure that your raccoon removal methods are both legal and humane, avoiding harm to your local wildlife.
If you prefer to leave this work to the experienced and well-reviewed professionals, give Critter Stop a call and we can provide a free inspection and estimate!
At the same time, some other tips can help prevent future raccoon invasions:
If you have a mother raccoon with young raccoons in your attic, enlisting the help of experienced raccoon control experts is particularly important. Mother raccoons are likely to get aggressive and extra destructive when separated from their baby raccoons. For this reason, it is never advisable to separate a raccoon family. We want to keep all the raccoons together. If the baby raccoons are too small to exit a one way door installed over a primary entry point, then we want to hold off on installing it since once the mother racoon leaves, she will not be able to re-enter and relocate her babies. A better strategy is to leave the primary entry point open, install strobe lights and, if you can tolerate the noise, a speaker playing music near the raccoons nest, or as close as you can get if it is in a hard to reach place. Oftentimes, this is enough to cause the mother to relocate the babies.
Attics are a prime nesting spot for raccoons - especially if you have rodents in your attic, which the raccoons will hunt. To detect raccoons in your attic, listen for noises at night, inspect for large droppings, nesting materials, and odors. Additional clues include damaged vents or duct work, compressed insulation, or damaged electrical wires.
Critter Stop offers free in-home consultations to build custom solutions to your problems. We inspect your home thoroughly, inside and out, for signs of damage, animal entry, animal nesting, droppings, and more. Once we discuss the extent of the problem and what needs to be done to fix it, we’ll document a game plan together.
Sealing your home immediately is our priority. The exclusion team will thoroughly patch up potential entry sites from the roof to the foundation and everywhere in between. Once we’re sure no other rodents are getting in, we’ll set our traps in those areas we suspect animal activity.
Our technicians will check in on your home several times throughout this process. If game cameras have been set up, we’ll review those with you to discuss the animal activity. Once the traps are cleared, we will reset them and re-evaluate all the sealed points of entry to ensure no critter has re-chewed a hole or found a new way into your property.
We don’t call it a job well done once the pest is gone. There’s more work to be done! We completely restore your affected area by pulling up and replacing damaged insulation. Additionally, we fog the affected area to disinfect and remove animal pheromones that can attract new pests in the future.
“I used Critter Stop due to rats and squirrels in my attic. They also chewed up siding on the house to get in. Critter Stop was able to remove the rodents and secure the entry points. Everyone I dealt with was very polite and professional. They were able to come out quickly, communicated well, and they always showed up on time. I would use them again.”
Jeff L. via Google