OTTAWA RACCOON REMOVAL

RACCOON REMOVAL PROCESS

Raccoons in Ottawa

The Rideau and Ottawa rivers that run alongside some of Ottawa’s most densely populated areas allow for urban raccoons to thrive in seemingly unlikely places. Raccoons are incredibly well adapted to urban environments, and with close proximity to water sources and food, many raccoons in Ottawa look to attics as an ideal opportunity to build their den. Raccoons are found throughout the city of Ottawa and Skedaddle receives calls from frustrated homeowners who have come to discover raccoons are living in their attic. From older, densely populated areas close to the core, like Lowertown and the Glebe, to the outer suburbs, there are no parts of the city where raccoons are not found. With dexterous paws and unique problem solving skills, opportunistic raccoons can make their way into just about any home. The damage they can do while inside an attic is significant, and removing unwanted house guests requires expert raccoon removal in Ottawa.

How Raccoons Face Ottawa Winters

Anyone who has spent a winter living in Ottawa knows that the season can be harsh. Despite their furry coat, raccoons must seek warm shelter to survive once the cold sets in. This leads many raccoons into the cozy attic spaces inside Ottawa homes. As Ottawa residents spend their winter days skating along the Rideau Canal or attending holiday events held at the Winterlude and ByWard Market, raccoons are settling into their winter dens. Raccoons would much prefer to den inside a cozy attic where warmth and seclusion are available.

The majority of the capital region is surrounded by wetlands, forests and farmland, however, raccoons are found in urban and suburban environments in much larger and denser numbers than natural environments. The reason is that places inhabited by humans offer more food and shelter opportunities than wooded areas. Raccoons that have fattened up during fall on discarded food and make their way into a cozy attic are far more likely to survive to spring than those living in more harsh conditions. While attics are the clear favourite denning location for raccoons, throughout winter each year raccoons are discovered in basements, crawl spaces, sheds and garages in Ottawa.

After spending the fall fattening up for winter, raccoons can laze the days away in the safety of their dens until the cold weather passes. Rather than true hibernation, raccoons enter a resting state called torpor during winter. During this time they can long stretches without being noticed by homeowners and although their activity is reduced during this time, raccoons can cause damage to insulation, electrical wires and exterior building materials that can lead to moisture and mold into the home.

Babies Complicate Raccoon Removals

Urban raccoons normally divide their time between multiple den sites located within a small range of any neighbourhood in Ottawa. Homeowners with a raccoon problem may hear their activity sporadically as they move between den sites depending on weather, availability of food sources and mate selection. Baby raccoons begin to arrive in Ottawa by mid to late March and with a 63 day gestation period that means mating usually begins in January.

Attics often serve as a mating site for pairs of raccoons during winter but the arrival of spring results in a change of activity for female raccoons. For an expecting mother raccoon, it is absolutely necessary to hunker down in a single secure den site after the arrival of her babies. Raccoon babies are not mobile for the first few months after birth and need close attention from their nursing mother. She will avoid having to cart her babies one by one to different den sites. That means noises that were once occasionally heard by homeowners before the babies arrived become more constant and much louder as the litter grows.

Finding and removing a litter of up to six babies from a dark, cramped attic requires a hands-on approach that only trained professionals can complete safely. Skedaddle’s team of raccoon removal specialists are trained to locate and remove baby raccoons from even the most hard to reach places. Our team protects the babies in a heated baby reunion box so that they can be reunited with their mother outside of the home after they are removed. The mother can then relocate the babies to one of the other den sites she is familiar with in the area. Failing to account for or consider raccoon babies during spring and summer removals can lead to additional property damage or their inhumane death.

Humane Removal Techniques Protect Ottawa Wildlife

Skedaddle technicians understand the seasonal routines and behaviours of Ottawa raccoons and put that knowledge to work in order to complete a safe removal every time. Raccoons are not typically aggressive but if startled or cornered they will react by biting or scratching. Mother raccoons with babies can be especially defensive of their young litter. Although Ottawa has not had any confirmed cases of raccoon rabies, residents should always keep a safe distance when encountering raccoons in their neighbourhood or inside their home.

Ottawa’s ability to remain free from raccoon rabies,despite outbreaks elsewhere in Ontario, is no accident. The province has helped protect against the spread of rabies from New York State by disturbing rabies vaccine baits along the St. Lawrence seaway. More locally Ottawa Public Health and the Ottawa Humane Society have stepped up education efforts to educate residents and pet owners on how to protect themselves.

In Ottawa, many homeowners dealing with a raccoon problem might be tempted to live trap the culprit and take for a drive, in many cases across the Rideau or Ottawa Rivers in hopes that it won’t be able to make its way back. One of the ways that diseases among wildlife are able to spread is by trapping and relocating infected animals to new areas. Trapping wildlife alone rarely solves the problem and in addition to spreading disease it can also lead to injury and orphaned babies. Skedaddle uses safe and humane wildlife removal techniques that we have perfected since our founding in 1989.

Run-ins with raccoons are not uncommon in Ottawa and although they are a known city dweller their behaviour is often misunderstood. A prime example cropped up in the summer of 2019, when residents in Stittsville spotted several raccoons behaving oddly during day time, they immediately called the City of Ottawa to report the concern. As it turned out, the raccoons were not sick or rabid, they had simply become intoxicated from consuming too many fallen crab apples that had fermented in the heat.

How do Raccoons get into Ottawa Houses?

While you spot a raccoon while walking a trail in Ottawa’s greenbelt, you’re more likely to see them closer to home, either passing by along your back fence or darting across your street. Raccoons are comfortable in communities that were once entirely agricultural, places like Metcalfe, Manotick and Greely as well as the downtown core. Though newly constructed homes and those built in the early 20th century vary in terms of building materials and style, clever raccoons rarely struggle to make entry.

Raccoons climb downspouts or use trees to climb onto roofs and once there they take advantage of vulnerabilities they find in building materials to get inside. It could be some rotted wood or weather beaten shingles that they work away at or a newly installed vent or soffit that just wasn’t made to withstand their strength.

No matter how they have gained access, the only way to keep this group of raccoons and any others in the neighourhood out, is by raccoon-proofing your roof. No two homes are the exact same and the vulnerabilities for raccoon entry will vary depending on construction style, the building materials used and their condition. Since many of Ottawa’s older homes have century style designs with steep roofs which can make removing raccoons more dangerous and complex. Our trained technicians come equipped with the proper tools to safely remove raccoons from any style of building and install exclusion measures to prevent unwanted guests in the future.

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Raccoon Facts

Raccoons are nocturnal animals, but they are most active at dawn and dusk. This is the time when you are most likely to see them in your yards. In most cities the number one killer of raccoons is vehicle traffic.

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