Learning how to keep wildlife out of your yard is about identifying specific species and understanding their behaviours and motivations. Most neighbourhood wildlife wakes from the winter and searches for food, shelter, and safe birthing areas to raise their young. If you do not do everything you can to protect your property and deter nesting animals, you will need the help of professional wildlife control services.

Common Wildlife in Richmond Hill

Most wildlife and rodent removal services see property damage in the spring. Raccoons can destroy sections of roofing to access attic spaces; squirrels may chew through power lines and siding. Every wild animal can damage your property, but they don’t do it to be malicious. To animals, your home is a safe and secure den with plenty of room for them and their future offspring.

The problems you might deal with and the prevention tactics that are most effective will depend on the species. Richmond Hill neighbourhoods share many common species, and homeowners are likely familiar with the four most common.

1. Raccoons

Raccoons are adorable-looking creatures. They are about the size of a large housecat or small dog and are known for their distinct markings and human-like hands. Despite their cute appearance, raccoons are not pets and will not take kindly to people approaching. While the animal is unlikely to attack a human, it will if it is cornered or feels threatened.

Raccoons, like all wildlife, can carry and transmit diseases to humans. The animal is a known carrier of the rabies virus, but that does not mean that every raccoon has rabies. The disease is rare and rarely transmitted to people.

2. Squirrels

Squirrels are technically rodents, but most people don’t see them as such. Still, like most rodents, squirrels must chew incessantly to file down their incisors, which never stop growing.

Squirrels are smaller, agile animals and may enter homes through attic vents and other small openings. Unfortunately, because of the animal’s need to chew, it can present a significant fire risk to homeowners. Squirrels, like other rodents, may chew through live wires, potentially causing electrical fires.

3. Skunks

Wildlife control services in Richmond Hill receive many house calls about skunks living under decks or inside crawl spaces. Skunks do not often make it inside a home, but they do love nesting around them. While skunks are capable diggers and can build their own dens, it is often easier and safer for them to nest under manufactured structures.

4. Mice

Mice are intrusive creatures, and because the animal can fit through the smallest of openings, it is challenging to keep them outside. The biggest issue with mice, besides the everyday dangers of most wildlife, is their rate of reproduction. A house can go from an infestation of only a few mice to several hundred or more within a few short months.

Prevention Methods for Homeowners

To keep wildlife outside where it belongs, homeowners need to focus on outdoor maintenance. Keeping your grass cut and eliminating any wood or debris piles from your property is an excellent place to start. Also, trim or prune all bushes and trees near your house. You want to keep plants a minimum of three to six meters. You should also purchase trash cans with tight-fitting lids and clean up around bird feeders.

Skedaddle Wildlife Service and Methods

Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control specializes in all types of animal removals, from skunk to raccoon removal. The company focuses on humane processes, like exclusion, to keep homeowners, technicians, and animals safe. Contact Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control if you suspect you have a wildlife problem. The company will send a team of qualified technicians out as soon as possible.