Amidst the peaceful hues of twilight, you might notice a bandit-masked face peering through your Victoria yard; a curious raccoon on the prowl. While they may carry an air of innocent charm, raccoons are known for their mischievous nature, often leading to unwanted raccoon damage. Protecting your outdoor sanctuary from these nocturnal visitors requires smart, humane solutions.

Seeking expert advice on how to get rid of raccoons in your yard without disrupting the balance of wildlife isn’t just a necessity—it’s a responsibility. Skedaddle’s humane local wildlife removal services shed light on cohabiting peacefully with our furry neighbours while safeguarding the sanctity of your outdoor spaces. Let’s discover together the steps we can take to live in harmony with the natural world that surrounds us.

Understanding Raccoon Behaviour: Key to Prevention

Understanding raccoons’ behaviour plays an instrumental role in implementing preventive measures. As nocturnal creatures, raccoons are primarily active during the night and are infamous for their opportunistic feeding habits. Raccoons are omnivores, meaning their diet includes an extensive range of foods. They are attracted to easy food sources like your outdoor trash cans or pet food bowls left outside. Anything that smells appetizing will be an open invitation for these animals.

Raccoons, like many urban wildlife, are highly adaptable and resourceful creatures. They are excellent climbers and dexterous due to their nimble, hand-like paws, which they use proficiently to reach their food sources. Additionally, their strong sense of hearing and smell make them highly effective invaders of any outdoor space. 

While these facts about their behaviour can be fascinating, it’s essential to keep in mind that this knowledge also forms the foundation for keeping your outdoor spaces safe. Knowing how to mitigate raccoon attractants and barriers they might breach can significantly minimize the chances of an infestation. 

Understanding The Dangers of Raccoon Infestation

Raccoons can pose a significant risk to your household and outdoor spaces, primarily because they are carriers of rabies. Rabies transmission often happens through bites or exposure to infected saliva. Even though statistically rare, you should avoid all potential risk by keeping these nocturnal animals away.

In addition, raccoons can bring and spread other diseases in your outdoor areas, such as Leptospirosis or Roundworms. Both of these diseases are particularly dangerous to humans, especially children who often play outside. Leptospirosis can lead to kidney damage, meningitis, liver failure, and respiratory distress, while Roundworms can cause an infection that leads to loss of muscle control and blindness. It’s clear that health safety becomes an imperative in the presence of raccoons near your home. 

Besides health threats, raccoons can also cause severe property damage. With their notorious curiosity and remarkable dexterity, they can easily find their way into your gardens, and dumpsters, and can even damage your roof or attic, looking for potential nesting sites. Their trademark destructiveness includes tipping over garbage bins, uprooting plants, and tearing up lawns in search of grubs. 

Knowing these risks can help you design an effective strategy to mitigate the dangers associated with a raccoon infestation. Our following tips and tricks will guide you through making your outdoor areas safer.

Developing a Comprehensive Raccoon Deterrence Plan

When it comes to creating a raccoon deterrence plan, establishing physical barriers can be a proactive step. Raccoons are nimble climbers and diggers, which can make safeguarding your property a challenging task. Nevertheless, using rugged metal or plastic bins with locking lids can deter them as they are unable to gnaw through these materials.

Another effective step is to secure your trash cans, an often overlooked tip when it comes to raccoon prevention. Standalone garbage bins, or those placed against a wall, provide an easy climbing platform for raccoons. Opt for trash cans with locking lids and use bungee cords to secure them further. Putting the cans in a bin cage or strapping them to a post will deter these smart creatures from knocking them over. 

Another effective measure is to secure your property perimeters. Installing fence screens, or aluminum sheeting can discourage raccoons from finding their way into your yard. It’s crucial, however, to install these barriers deep into the ground while letting it extend upwards. This can prevent the raccoons from burrowing underneath or leaping over. 

Comprehensive illumination of your outdoor spaces during nighttime can also deter raccoons. Being nocturnal creatures, a well-lit area can be uncomfortable for them. Consider investing in motion-activated lighting solutions that turn on only when there’s movement detected, minimizing energy consumption while effectively keeping raccoons at bay. 

Additionally, address sanitation issues promptly. Raccoons are drawn to food and water sources. Ensure that no food, including pet food, is left out in the open. Regularly cleaning barbecue grills, securely storing compost bins and maintaining tidy yard spaces can significantly reduce the attractiveness of your property to raccoons. 

Besides food, raccoons are also attracted to potential nesting sites. Therefore, maintaining your outdoor spaces goes beyond keeping them free of food. To keep raccoons away, routinely inspect your property for signs of raccoon activity, such as paw prints, droppings, or disturbed garbage cans. Address the areas where they could potentially take shelter, including firewood stacks, sheds, and hollow trees. Seal off access to such areas or make them less appealing for habitation. 

Always remember, that preventing access to food and water sources is a significant part of the deterrence plan. A clean and well-sealed outdoor area is less likely to be attractive to these animals. 

Choosing Skedaddle for Humane Local Wildlife Removal in Victoria

At Skedaddle we firmly believe that it’s important to manage any problems you may have with raccoons humanely and carefully. Raccoons are intelligent, adaptable creatures, after all; it would be wrong to treat them with anything less than respect. Therefore, our wildlife removal services are always conducted following the strictest humane standards. 

Working with Skedaddle, a leader in humane wildlife control, our process is delicate but efficient. Our techniques effectively end your animal issues without causing harm to the wildlife. Our team is trained and experienced in handling raccoons and many other kinds of wildlife you may come across in Victoria. 

The Skedaddle process begins with a thorough inspection of your property. This step identifies any potential points of entry and evaluates the scale of the issue. Following the initial assessment, we properly removed the raccoons using one-way doors and other non-harmful methods. By developing a detailed understanding of the way raccoons behave, we have perfected the process of taking care of them in a manner that is both respectful and effective. 

We know the value of not just removal but also prevention. After removing the raccoons and sealing off their access points, we work to implement prevention measures that repel raccoons. We will also give you advice on what future actions to take to keep your property free from further raccoon issues. 

Partnering with Skedaddle guarantees you a service that is effective, humane, and comprehensive. Get rid of raccoon issues and ensure they don’t return, all with unmatched professionalism and expertise.

Take action today to protect your outdoor spaces and maintain the health and safety of your environment. To ensure a raccoon-free property, reach out to us for an initial consultation. Let experienced professionals in Victoria handle the task, giving you peace of mind and safeguarding your outdoor spaces. Contact us now to get started.