Raccoon prevention - how to keep them away

Tips and tricks for keeping raccoons away from your garbage cans, bird feeder, yard, house, or any other property.

This educational guide will help you to resolve your problem with a raccoon. Raccoons are basically urban animals, and they love to eat out of garbage cans or dumpsters or pet food dishes, and they frequently set up a den or a nest inside human dwellings, including in the walls or attic. They are very strong and have dexterous hands. You will find that the best way to keep raccoons away from your property is often with simple and free habitat modifications.

How To Humanely Keep Raccoons Off Your Property

One of the problems that many people experience when they are dealing with raccoons is that these animals can be quite destructive when they come into contact with people in a domestic setting. From stealing pet food and fallen fruit to rooting through garbage to find waste food, the mess left behind by raccoons can be a problem, and this can be even worse if these animals find a way into your property and make a nest either in a chimney or an unused attic space. The key to humanely keeping raccoons off your property is to remove the attractions that will draw them there, while also putting in place features that will encourage the animals to go elsewhere.

Removing The Features That Attract Raccoons To Your Property

The primary reason that raccoons will be drawn to a particular property is the potential to scavenge food easily, so the first and most important step is to look at removing any easy sources of food for the raccoons. Garbage is often one of the most valuable sources of food for raccoons in an urban setting, so there are a few steps you can take. The first is to try and minimize any food waste that you create, and to consider using a food waste disposal unit in your kitchen, or to put any excess food into a secure composting bin that the raccoon cannot get to. When it comes to storing garbage, ensure that it is placed in a shed or outhouse that is securely fastened, or place it in a bin that can be fastened shut so that the raccoons cannot get to the food inside. There are also raccoon repellents that can be sprayed on bungee cords in order to help ensure that the fasteners aren't removed or gnawed through by the raccoons. Another attraction for raccoons is homes where the pets are fed outside in the yard or on the back porch, and it is best not to leave any pet food unattended, as the raccoons are opportunistic and will quickly take up the offer of free food. Another source of food that raccoons can be attracted to are fruit trees, so it is important to make sure that you check the area regularly and make sure that any fallen fruit isn't allowed to lie on the floor, as raccoons will be attracted to the scent.

Securing The Perimeter Of Your Property

Raccoons are naturally furtive animals that do not like to be out in the open, so they will usually look for gaps in fencing or a piece of fence that can be easily moved in order to get in to your property. Another important step to keep the raccoons from your property is to make sure that your fences are well maintained, and that there are no obvious gaps that will allow the raccoon to easily get through or to climb over. It is also important to ensure that the fence is embedded a short distance into the ground, as raccoons are skilled burrowers, and can easily get beneath fences that only go to the surface. While fences may not be the most attractive part of the garden, they do play an important role in humanely keeping these animals away from your property. A difficult decision is whether or not to use a barbed wire or an electric fence to help keep the raccoons away. If you do choose to use an electric fence, a single strand will usually be enough, and should be one that is a high voltage but low amperage so that the raccoon will experience a shock, but won't be harmed. On rare occasions, barbed wire fences can cause harm to raccoons as they climb over the fence.

Features That Can Repel Raccoons

As well as removing the attractions that draw raccoons to your property, another option is to take steps that will naturally make the raccoons want to look elsewhere for their scavenging grounds. One of the most effective deterrents for raccoons is a motion activated floodlight which will light up your yard or garden when it senses movement, which will usually send the raccoon running for cover. Another option is a motion activated audio repellent, which emits a high frequency noise that is theorized to be unpleasant for the raccoon, but is not audible to the human ear.  However, these sound devices have shown very little effectiveness in the field. It is also possible to have a motion activated sprinkler which sprays water at any animal that visits your yard or garden, and is also an effective repellent. There are also plenty of repellent products that work using scent that can be used around the perimeter of the property to try and repel the raccoons and encourage them to go elsewhere. These products mimic the scent of the raccoon's natural predators such as coyote urine, and provoke a natural fear response which will send the raccoon elsewhere to look for an easier target.  Our experience with repellent products has been fairly dismal, but you can give them a shot.  It's usually better to remove attractive features rather than try repellent.

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