How can I get raccoons out of my house, attic or chimney?
Seal entry hole(s) - this is one of the most important single concepts in humane wildlife control. If you want to know how to keep raccoons away from your house, just remove the enticing entry holes inside! if your home is secure, with no easy and obvious entry holes, raccoons will leave it alone. Put steel caps on your chimneys, make sure all vents are properly screened, make sure your eaves and soffits do not have any openings. If every house in america were well-sealed against animal entry, we would barely have any wildlife conflicts at all! inspect your house - check your house top to bottom.
To stop the problem, you need to find the problem. Search your home for the nest and latrine (which is typically near the nest). Raccoons tend to nest in sheltered spaces like crawlspaces, attics, sheds, and chimneys. If you know where they’re living, you can figure out how they’re getting inside. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trapping
How can I get raccoons away from my yard or pond?
A fence is a good way to keep pests out. Unfortunately, a simple physical barrier is not enough to repel raccoons. These wily creatures can easily climb over or dig under the fence and get to where the food is, whether it’s your garden, your fish pond, or your compost pit. You should also protect newly-planted turf, as raccoons enjoy rolling this back to look for grubs underneath. To keep raccoons out of your yard, consider installing an electric fence. The jolts will repel raccoons and discourage them from entering. You can also opt to raccoon-proof your ordinary fence with the simple addition of a single electrified wire.
Raccoons need water to survive, so if you have a pond or other water source in your yard, it’s important to make sure it’s not accessible to raccoons. Make sure your pond is properly covered with netting or fencing to prevent raccoons from getting in.
How can I stop raccoons eating from my trash can?
Food is one of the main reasons raccoons come to your property. Raccoons are omnivorous and will eat just about anything they can get their hands on. They’re attracted to any food sources outside your home, so here are the most common attractants you can remove to keep these critters away. Trash cans: “trash panda” is a popular online name for raccoons. This term is incredibly accurate, as your trash bins will likely be their first stop when invading your property. Strong for their size, clever, and surprisingly nimble, a persistent raccoon can make quick work of even heavy-duty trash cans.
In general, repellents and deterrents have limited effectiveness to solve a raccoon problem. Sometimes the best offense is a good defense. Rather than deal with a problem after it happens, do what you can to prevent it. Exclusions are the prevention methods for deterring raccoon activity. They work by creating a physical barrier to stop raccoons from accessing resources. In your home, exclusions seal any potential raccoon entry points. Typical entry points are fascia boards, soffits, and vents. For the garden, they protected specific areas. Exclusions for the home seal all cracks and holes that a raccoon may see as a way to enter your home.
Creating a raccoon-averse environment involves more than just simple yard modifications; it’s about breaking the chain of attraction. Raccoons are omnivorous and have an astute sense of smell, drawing them to easy food sources. However, there are some tactics you can implement: secure your trash cans: these can be a feast for raccoons. Use locking lids or store them in a secure place like a locked shed or garage. You might also want to rinse out your trash cans frequently to eliminate food odors. Remove potential food sources: don’t leave pet food outside overnight. Keep bird feeders out of reach.
If you see a raccoon nosing around in your neighbor’s trash, they would probably appreciate a heads-up. However, here’s a list of things your neighbor really wants you to stop doing. If you don’t have a raccoon problem yet, but you’ve seen them in your area, you’ll want to start with prevention. Keep food sources out of sight, with garbage well-secured in outdoor trash cans, using a thick lid and a weight or pressure straps on top. Also, be sure your pet’s food is kept indoors. Install a tray on bird feeder polls roughly six inches below the feed to catch any dropped seed, and be sure the feeder isn’t in a location near trees that the raccoon could use to jump from to get on the feeder.