Raccoons are among the most common and easily recognized nuisance animals in Macon and throughout Georgia. They're strong, stocky animals with masked faces, ringed tails, highly dexterious front paws, and distinctive ears. They're also highly intelligent animals who are able to figure out things like gates and latches, and even have rudimentary tool-using abilities.
Those characteristics are all parts of the reason why raccoons are such an annoyance, and why raccoon removal is one of our most in-demand wildlife control services. Raccoons are smart enough to get into places where they're not wanted, determined enough to figure out ways around all but the best exclusion methods. It's very difficult to keep raccoons out of a home, garage, shed, or other building. Raccoons are also strong enough to be dangerous if they feel threatened.
That last part -- about raccoons being dangerous -- really shouldn't be underestimated. Wild raccoons are decidedly unfriendly animals. Like most wild critters, they usually run away when they encounter a human; but when they're startled or cornered (for example, if you happen to come across them feeding near your garbage pails at night), they may well attack: and they're strong enough to do some damage if that's what they decide to do.
Raccoons are among the wild animals most commonly infected with rabies, a serious disease that is always fatal once symptoms begin to show. When raccoons become rabid, the disease may manifest as the "furious" form, in which the animal gets very aggressive; or the "dumb" form, in ehich the animal may be lethargic, confused, and even appear friendly or tame. In either case.
Rabid raccoons are more likely than healthy raccoons to be seen during the day, so if you see a raccon out and about during the day time hours, it's something to be concerned about. The same is true if the raccoon seems confused, is walking erratically, appears to be partially paralyzed, is unusually aggressive, seems to be growling or snapping at nothing in particular, or seems friendly or tame. Those are all possible signs of rabies.
In addition to rabies, raccoons, like all woodland animals carry parasites on their bodies, some of which can transmit diseases. Their droppings can also harbor disease-causing pathogens, which is one of the many good reasons why raccoons that get into homes must be removed.
Ground-level raccoon damage to a home
Raccoons can cause a great deal of damage to your home and to propert stored in it. Often the damage starts at the point where they first got into the house. Raccoons often find some small hole, construction gap, or other opening into the house, and make it big enough for them to get their bodies through. They can get into a home at any height, from ground level right up to the chimey.
Once they're inside a house, raccoons can do all kinds of damage. They especially like to tear thing up, including insulation, books, clothing, and flexible HVAC ducts. They also make a mess, cause odors, and create a health hazard with their droppings, urine, and shed fur. The odor and the disease organisms can get into the living are of your home, especially if you have heating or air-conditioning ductwork in the area (such as an ai-conditioning unit in the attic). Raccons also build nests that can create a fire hazard.
Another problem with having raccoons in a seldom-used area of your home is that if you or a family member do happen to go in there for some reason, the raccoons may become startled, and possibly could attack the person. On occasion, the opposite of this happens, and a raccoon will claw away at a wall or ceiling from the side opposite from where people are living, and eventually make its way through.
Long story short, if you have raccoons living anywhere in your home, they need to be removed.
Raccon control is accomplished by removing raccoons from a building using traps and then sealing them out of the building so they can't get back in. Because of raccoons' intelligence, strength, and dexterity, this can be a challenging job. Once raccoons move in to a house, they tend to be more determined to get back in once they're removed.
Raccoon removal is also challenging because raccoons can get into a house at any level, so we have to make the whole house animal-proof, from the top to the bottom. This actually works out well for you, however, because the exclusion work that we do will also seal out other animals like bats, bitrds, squirrels, and so forth.
Another thing we have to make sure of when removing racoons is that there are no baby raccoons left behind. When we find evidence of young raccons, we make every attempt to remove the whole family together and relocate them elsewhere. (If we do come across orphans, we turn them over to licensed animal rehabilitators.)
Once we've removed the raccoons and sealed them out, we clean up after them. This can include removing droppings, disinfecting, deodorizing, and applying insecticides to kill displaced parasites. We also replace insulation that has been damaged or contaminated with filth
Raccoon removal isn't a job for handymen or do-it-yourselfers. It requires a specialized knowedge of the animals' habits and abilities. Almost all non-professionals who attempt raccoon-proofing seriously underestimate the strength, intelligence, and determination of raccoons. As a result, the repairs that they do are totally ineduqate to keep raccoons from getting in. Raccoon removal also requires specialized equipment like ladders, scaffolding, and bucket trucks to get to every possible place where a raccoon could get into a building.
So don't waste time trying to do DIY raccoon control. Contact us insead. We look forward to hearing from you.
For more information about raccoon control or any of our fine services, please contact us.
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The Macon, Georgia office of Rid-A-Critter provides raccoon trapping, removal and damage repair in Macon-Bibb County, Georgia and the surrounding areas including Albany, Americus, Barnesville, Byron, Centerville, Columbus, Cordele, Culloden, Eastman, Fitzgerald, Forsyth, Fort Valley, Gray, Griffin, Hawkinsville, Juliette, Kathleen, Milledgeville, Perry, Roberta, Sylvester, Thomaston, Tifton, Valdosta, Warner Robins, Yatesville, and Zebulon. We are fully licensed and insured.
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