The mother raccoon tore a hole in the side of the house in order to get in. Raccoons are very strong, and can tear open a roof or wall if they want to
get in. They'll usually take an easier spot, like a soffit, but they'll get in any way they can! This hole may not appear terribly large, but it never
ceases to amaze me how wild animals squeeze through such tiny spots. Oh yeah - the customer tried to fix this hole, but momma raccoon tore it right open
again the next night.
I went into the attic, and even though it was, as usual, a very hot and tight crawl, I made it to the place where the noises were heard, and sure enough, I found
this litter of baby raccoons down the wall. They were very difficult to reach, but I was able to get them all using a snare pole. This was a litter of five,
which is higher than the average litter of four. Sometimes the raccoon has only three, sometimes up to six.
The absolute best way to trap mama - set the live babies in the trap as bait, and she'll go in every time. This method almost never fails. I make sure that
they are all safe and that they all live. I am sure to relocate them all together once they get re-acclimated.
Raccoon mothers are some of the best mothers in nature. They are very protective of their young. If you place the young in a cage, you'll always trap
her. Nothing can separate a mother raccoon from her babies! This is an advanced wildlife trapping technique that only the pros should attempt (or even
have the right equipment for).
If you want to get rid of raccoons in the wall or attic, it's best to call a professional. The people living in this house were do-it-yourself type people. They figured
that they had squirrels in the wall, and they were trapping every squirrel in the neighborhood with cage traps, and (illegally) relocating them to property they did not
have permission to release on. They had no trapping permits. Regardless, they were wrong. They in fact had raccoons. I took one look at the hole in the wall, and I told
them that this was no squirrel! I solved their problem in under 24 hours, and now they get a good night's sleep!
