It’s the Season of Raccoon Intruders: Take Steps to Protect Your Property and Your Health from these Messy Pests
Temperatures in the Midwest may be plummeting, but raccoon mating season is heating up.
During the season (which runs through March) houses and other buildings are vulnerable to these uninvited, ring-tailed pests.
Many raccoons – whose maternal instincts are now in high gear – will spend the coming months seeking out warmth and shelter.
Unfortunately, your attic, crawlspaces and walls can provide plenty of both. Expectant females will burrow in to establish a den where they will give birth and raise their kittens. Once the kittens are born, the family will generally remain in place for at least 60 days, until the young are old enough to venture outside on their own.
While evicting raccoons from your home may seem like a challenging task, it is important to act quickly if you suspect a furry family has moved in. Left unresolved, the mess raccoons leave in their wake can snowball into a dangerous and expensive issue.
The Mess: Rapidly Accumulating Waste
Raccoons are creatures of habit who deposit their waste in the same spot (or “latrine”) every time nature calls. Raccoon latrines are communal and can quickly become unmanageable if no action is taken. Once litters arrive, the new kittens (sometimes as many as six) contribute to the latrine and exponentially grow the mess.
Worse yet, because raccoon families nest in place after kittens are born, piles of waste are often left to accumulate for months.
The Risks: Disease and Home Damage
Raccoon droppings harbor organisms and parasites that can sicken humans. Their waste carries Baylisascaris procyonis, a roundworm that can infect humans (and pets) and cause ocular and neurological issues. Raccoon droppings also transmit histoplasmosis, which can trigger severe and/or chronic respiratory diseases.
Raccoons and their waste can also threaten the structural integrity of your home or building. They can damage insulation, wiring and woodwork. The longer raccoons are in your home, the worse (and more costly) cleaning and remediation efforts become. In severe cases, all insulation must be replaced, and entire attics must be remediated.
The Solution: Call Rusty’s Animal Control
Head off expensive renovations and health risks caused by raccoon interlopers by seeking professional help immediately. An experienced and licensed wildlife management company like Rusty’s Animal Control can safely evict your raccoons, prevent them from returning, and mitigate the damage and mess left behind.
With a decade of experience in wildlife removal, our team provides thorough and effective wildlife removal, sealing of entry points, cleaning and sanitizing, and the replacement of damaged or soiled insulation.
We offer a wide range of services to manage other common pests as well. To learn more about the solutions we can provide for your business or property, reach out to one of our team members.