Signs of raccoons terrorizing your home — Denver’s student essay
Signs of Raccoons Terrorizing Your Home
“What’s that scratching noise I’m hearing in my attic?” “Why are my garbage bins knocked down every morning?” “Where are the water bowls for the dogs I left outside?” These are just a few of the questions one might be asking themselves when confronted with sneaky raccoons terrorizing their home. For me, this topic hits home. I had raccoons running amuck in and around my home for months before I was finally able to safely and humanely remove them. If you’ve ever asked yourself “what is that bump in the night?”, here are a few signs that you have raccoons terrorizing your home.
The biggest sign for me was the bumping and noises being made in the attic. There were some light scratching noises, but also bigger noises of romping around up there. Turns out, raccoons like to bed in the insulation, and also like to bring some prizes they find outside into their new snoozing area.
Some indicators would be: light noises of moving around in the attic, scratching noises, thumps, and generally louder sounds than what could be made by a smaller rodent. Since they are nocturnal animals, they tend to be more active in places where they may nest or sleep in the transition from night to day.
I found I would always be woken up by these noises in the early am time, and sometimes during the middle of the night it sounded like a party was going on up there.
A second sign indicating I had racoons reeking havoc on my property was the mess I would find in the mornings. Specifically my garbage bins, and also, the entry way the raccoon was using to enter my attic. Dumped over garbage bins and scattered trash could be some indicators you have some sneaky racoons on your hands. Raccoons like to wash their food in water, and I would often find the water bowls for my dogs in odd places, and the water completely dumped out.
Some other indicators would be empty pet food bowls, or moved food bowls, when normally they would not be empty. Also, missing miscellaneous items from your yard, porch or deck. I would often find myself wondering why the entire bird feeder was on the ground in the morning with parts missing, or where a certain garden tool was. Where the racoons gain entrance into your attic, there may be some signs of the creation of this passage. I found some splintered wood on the ground around the attic vent, indicated something was scratching its way in there.
Eventually I ventured into my attic to investigate further, and I had found an area where the raccoon had stashed some miscellaneous items, and where he was bedding. After consulting with a professional, it was determined, that indeed a raccoon was the culprit for the onslaught of nightly terror on my home. As cute as they may look, these raccoons are smart, and sneaky! Always consult a professional before attempting to deal with them on your own.