Raccoons can squeeze through any opening that they can get their head through. Often times, common points of entry are through attic vent louvers and attic fans. You should try to make sure that these openings are either closed (if not in use) or properly guarded by using sturdy metal screen. Learn more about keeping raccoons out of the attic and house. Get help for problems with raccoons.

A well balanced diet of fresh fruits, vegetables, lean chicken and fish, but very little red meat. A high grade, low ash dog food can be substituted for the chicken/fish component. To Diet Page

Not like a dog or a cat. Once a year in early spring the 'coon's coat "cracks". The dead hair of the winter coat comes out in clumps. In the wild, the den is lined with it to keep the newborns warm.

Yes, but we are willing to negotiate the issue. If you give us our own belongings from the time we are tiny and frequently replace them when we annihilate them, we'll generally agree to leave your things alone.

Humans misinterpret the signs of sexual maturation during mating season. For differing reasons, both sexes are prone to aggression during mating season. Once it is over, we return to being your loving pet until next year. Not really. If your house can withstand the onslaught of an active two year old that can climb sheer walls, it's probably safe from me.

In general, no, but we do tend to become obese if we are allowed. And those that are obese tend to have heart conditions that significantly shorten their lives.

This is a personal decision. I've known of a family that raised 2 children and 3 raccoons, a squirrel, a cat and two dogs together successfully. You have to assume that at some point the children will be bitten by the pet raccoon. This probably precludes the children from entertaining friends in the home.

If your community is experiencing this problem, then fill out an Urgent Help Form. Under the General category, select Quick expert help for all other problems using the check boxes, and then select Other using the drop-down box. One of our volunteers will contact you either by phone or by email regarding this matter.

This is a battle we fight constantly and reports are that raccoon numbers are very high this year. There are several things to try. If you are feeding from your deck, you pretty much have to take you feeders in at night. With any luck, you can get them to move along. If you are feeding from a pole system in your yard the solution is to add a raccoon baffle to your setup. This is not to be confused with a squirrel baffle. Squirrel baffles are too small to keep adult raccoons out.

Adult raccoons may be anywhere from 24 to 40 inches in length (including 8-12 inches for tail) and weigh 14 to 40 pounds depending upon locale (larger raccoons in the north) and sex (males are larger than females). Average is about 3 feet and 25-30 pounds. Captive raccoons can weigh considerably more than their wild neighbors and they have a tendency to obescity. I would venture a safe guess that the male raccoon who weighed a record 62 pounds was not found in the wild.

Raccoons like dark quiet places such as an attic or basement. You can try discouraging them or making them move by setting up things that disturb their home environment (i.e. lights, music, etc.). If you have more than 2 of them in your attic or basement you're very likely to have a mom and babies. Male and female pairs do not stay together. Males are solitary and groups are generally mom and her babies.

The Colorado Division of Wildlife has a problem animal hotline at 303-297-1192 or visit their website at www.dnr.state.co.us/wildlife/.

Call 704-336-2673 to setup the pickup of large items and yard waste. Do not put the item by the curb until the scheduled pickup date. It may be a week or two away.

The City of Shoreline does not provide trapping services. If you would like a list of trappers please call (206) 546-1700. For information regarding other wildlife, please call the Washington State Department of Fish & Wildlife at (425) 775-1311.

Rabies is a viral infection that affects the nervous system of raccoons and other mammals including humans. The disease is always fatal once clinical signs of infection occur. Fortunately, rabies in humans is rare in the United States, with five or fewer cases reported per year. However, rabies exposures and subsequent human rabies treatments are common.

In spring and summer, mother raccoons may use chimneys and attics as nesting sites for raising their cubs. The best and kindest solution is to wait a few weeks for the raccoons to move out on their own. Don't worry about any smell or mess-mother raccoons clean their babies meticulously to avoid attracting predators. Once the raccoons are gone, promptly call a chimney sweep to install a mesh chimney cap (or seal any holes leading to the attic) and this situation will never occur again.

Many people wrongly believe raccoons "wash" their food. Others have stated that this behavior is only something observed with captive raccoons, related to their instinct to search in crevices between rocks in streams and creeks for crayfish and other goodies. Still others say they are not really "washing" but do this to moisten their food. (Despite what these people may have heard, raccoons DO have salivary glands.

Raccoons are extremely agile climbers (and descend trees head-first) and have nimble feet, but they are flat-footed like humans and bears and are relatively slow runners. Their rear legs are slightly longer than their front legs which, combined with their flat-footedness, causes them to waddle when they walk. The raccoons footprints resemble those of a human being. Because their front toes can be opened wide, the forepaws can be used skillfully to handle food and other objects.

Information on this is not consistent. Depending on the sources, raccoons average life-span in the wild is anywhere from 5 to 8 years while it ranges from 8 to 13 years for captive raccoons. Reportedly, there have been cases of raccoons living up to 16 years in the wild and 21 in captivity. In the wild, the greatest mortality occurs during the first 2 years of life - the principal causes of which are man (hunting, trapping, cars, dogs).

In the wild, raccoons are found across most of North America. They inhabit wetlands, plains and, primarily, forests. However, as civilization moves in on them and destroys their habitats, raccoons adapt quite well to living in urban areas and are among the most common wildlife species found in cities and towns. Their ideal habitat would be heavily wooded areas with a mixture of evergreen and hardwood trees in various stages of growth, with rivers, streams or lakes.

Avoid a direct confrontation - a raccoon is not normally an aggressive animal but if it feels threatened (or is a female with babies) it is quite capable of defending itself and inflicting severe damage on its opponent. Just chasing the animal out somehow and then sealing off the entry point will, almost always, not work because the raccoon will return and force its way back in again. At this point, it will cause more damage than it did before.

Raccoons are typically mating during the winter, preparing to produce litters of 3 to 5 babies in April. The offspring typically stay with their mother for about a year. Learn more about raccoons.

Yes. We remove skunks and raccoons from homes, sheds, garages, gardens and anywhere that they are a problem. Yes. We provide snake removal and control and also provide snake avoidance and toad avoidance classes for dogs.

Skunks are highly beneficial to landowners because they feed on large numbers of agricultural and garden pests. They seem to prefer grasshoppers, white grubs, beetles and crickets. Raccoons make their dens in hollow trees and hollow logs. They eat berries, grains, nuts, cat and dog food, fish, frogs, reptiles, rabbits and eggs and love corn.

A Gallagher Food Plot Protector Fence using 7 simple components to construct any size and any shaped food plot for ¼ the cost of a high fence. It's portable and reusable for years. You can print of a list of materials for a 1 to 15 plot area from our website.

A bungee cord may work well, but it will need to be removed before your garbage, recycling or yard clippings cart is serviced.

Yes. Send your dog to Dog Island. But in the meantime, teach your dog to be tough. Buy a BB Gun and get your dog a stuffed raccoon, like the owners of our favorite dalmation, Charlie, did (see article)

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