Raccoons are a quirky, clever pest. Their pilfering-yet-somehow-charming personalities have both aggravated and amused us for centuries. Type in “raccoons” on YouTube, and you will find an endless queue of entertaining raccoon capers. Watching one steal donuts from a coffee shop is pretty funny. Watching them break into your pantry and trash your food supply? Not so much. Most people know that they will eat practically everything—and they get into everything too. Including, unfortunately, our homes. They seem to figure a way in too quickly. We’re sure these bandits don’t need that trademark mask of theirs, but it is certainly a clue to their usual intentions.

Raccoons adapt very easily to different climates, although they typically avoid extreme heat and cold. They have been here much longer than we have—25 million years! They can be found everywhere in North America and upper South America.

They have evolved to become savvy urban dwellers and are just as much at home in the forest as in the suburban landscapes surrounding our homes. As we mentioned earlier, they are not fussy eaters. They will eat insects, eggs, mice, and other rodents, fruit and vegetables, nuts, fish, and even worms and mollusks out in the wild. In the not-so-wild, they will gleefully help themselves to whatever they can find in your trash can, pet dishes, and garden. And if you have a tantalizing treat that they can see or smell in a garage, on a porch, or even inside your home, you can bet these sneaky, intelligent pests will be trying to get in. They wander into pet doors, pry open unlocked windows and scale fences, get into crawl spaces, and even open door handles to gain entry where they want to go.

You may even know someone who has one as a pet. Are they cute and fun to play with? We’d be lying if we said no. However, it would be best if you also were cautioned that they make genuinely terrible pets. They are and always will be wild animals. They are unclean, destructive, and will make a mess of your home. They are also overactive, do not “housetrain” quickly, and bite without warning even if they have been hand-raised or domesticated. Most experts strongly recommend never willingly bringing a raccoon into your home. Furthermore, it is well known that they spread infectious diseases (like rabies) and carry parasites (like roundworms).

The federal government warns you never to touch them because of how dangerous they are to human health. With the number of rabies cases in Florida on a steady climb, you don’t want an animal known to transmit that hanging around your property.

You should know something more if you are experiencing a problem with raccoons in or around your home or place of business: Ohio has rules and regulations regarding how raccoons are dealt with. Nuisance and sick animals can be caught without a permit. However, it is illegal to live trap them and relocate them off the property.

Do you think you might be having a problem with raccoons but haven’t seen them? If you don’t see them, you’ll probably notice the evidence of their mischief: toppled trash cans, scratch marks, droppings, and footprints, which are very distinctive and look like tiny human handprints. That is not unusual either, as they are nocturnal and often only appear in the darkness.

Utilizing the services of a wildlife control specialist is an absolute must. Matt's Animal Control is a top-rated expert for assistance with raccoons in the Miami Valley area. We have the experience you need, and we are always ready and happy to help. Please contact us today.