What kind of damage do raccoons cause in an attic?

Having raccoons in the attic is not a thing that should be taken lightly at all. It is often a problem that cannot be solved in an easy and pleasant way. The raccoons which have made your attic their home are capable of causing serious damage to your attic. Once the raccoon enters your attic it starts a whole household of its own. It breaks the insulation pipes to make a comfortable bed to rest in. It scratches the sides of the attic and sheds the wood. The urine and feces create an unpleasant odor which is also harmful for your health.



Diseases like the roundworm disease caused by the feces of the raccoons and rabies are one of the most common types that are spread cause of the presence of the raccoons in your attic. If the eggs of the roundworms are mistakenly digested by a human, it has a very severe impact on the nervous system. The raccoons even trample the insulation by just walking round. Once the insulation is being damaged or destroyed, it is not capable of working in the very same way. The insulation system of a house stabilizes the temperature according to the seasons. In summers it keeps the house cool and during winters it keeps the house warm. The repair of the damaged insulation system costs a lot. The raccoons destroy all the ventilation points. They even destroy the A/C ducts. If there is any electric point, the raccoons even chew the wires off. Basically they use it like it is one big garbage can. All this tremendous damage done by the raccoons will turn out to be very expensive for you.

The attic is surely the most comfortable place for the raccoon to live in. If a female raccoon enters it gives its babies. More raccoons means that they consume more and more space and so the destruction increases even more. Sometimes the case worsens to such an extent that a whole renovation is required just to fix the problem.

When in your attic, the raccoons are not just causing damage to your property but are the reason of destroying your peaceful life too. The continuous noises of scratching and scampering that these raccoons make is very disturbing. They do not let you sleep at night and that is beyond tolerance of many people. And if the raccoons keep on increasing in number, then this is something that will make you think of leaving your house and fleeing away! For this reason it is advised to get rid of this problem as early as you can before you face a worse scenario of the raccoon problem, which may affect your financial as well as health status.

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Dear David, I’m at my wits end with a raccoon living on my property for over a month. Then after reading your web page, I’m more stressed out than ever before. Love that they are clean animals, but why dump in my pool thereafter? I set a trap in front of my pool step and trapped the critter. He was mad crazy. When the trap was lifted, the bottom separated a little and with all its might, it was able to escape. I was horrified knowing that I had to go through that scenario again. What a smart sucker it is. I left the trap in its place, and it has not come around to do its duty. I thought it disappeared for good. My neighbor told me that it’s living in my areca palm tree -- a very dense tree. The tree separates our homes & every time he goes by it, it hisses at him. I even pick dead fronds from the tree. Now knowing that he’s living there, I’m scared to death to go near it. If I cut the palm back/down will it move to another tree? Can't see cutting down all my trees. Mango season is upon us. I’m probably feeding it since I saw a couple on the ground eaten. I picked as many as I could reach, but there are still an unreachable bunch. Then my neighbor has a coop with several of chickens in it. Could that be keeping it around, too, plotting on how it’s going to get one? Funny, yeah, but I’m stressed. Right now putting out $200-$300 to trap one is out of my pocket. Then who is to say that another one won’t come back. I contacted our county animal control. They will not pick it up after it’s trapped. I must bring it to them. I was really pissed because they’ll pick up a stray dog, but won’t come pick up a caged raccoon – it could even be rabid – a danger to all. Then after the incident of it escaping, I thought the worst. If I would have put it in my car, it could have escaped while I was transporting it. I’m going to set the trap again and place it by the tree in hopes that it will be caught, then call my x-Marine brother who has a plan. Semper Fi!!! It’s so smart, it may never go near the trap no matter where I place it. Probably trap a cat. Any other advice? Thanks, Cindy

My response: Wow, interesting story. Do-it-yourself wildlife control is hard. I have no further advice that wasn't already on my websites. Good luck.