I'm a bit Freaked Out (a little off topic)

I'm posting this based on my last reply and hoping it gives me more raccoon luck. LOL!

I had a second raccoon professional come today (he is also a restoration expert and he'll be doing the attic clean-up when this is over). He looked at the picture of the baby and said to try small (humane) squirrel traps, baited with marshmallow and a fruit paste he gave me. He looked up in the attic to see if he could find more babies, and my brother spent a good hour up there looking as well. I did hear more shuffling sounds, but neither of them could find anything.

I'm hoping we'll find any additional babies that might be up there by tomorrow... as time wears on there's a bigger chance of them dying up there and I'm SO not happy about that prospect.

Thanks for listening!
 
Final Update

We took matters into our own hands (or shall I say, my courageous, much younger brother did).

Tonight, my brother and husband cleaned out the rest of the boxes in the attic. After it was clear up there, my brother started removing floor boards... low and behold, there were two more babies. Very tired and very scared, but still alive. Mind you, I had suggested to the first raccoon guy that maybe they were under the floor boards up there, and he assured me that was impossible.

We put the babies in an old cat carrier and called the raccoon guy to come get them. They'll be reunited with mama tonight. And I can finally sleep knowing they aren't going to die a slow painful death in my hot attic.

Next step now, after the holiday weekend, will be the attic restoration. All the insulation is going to be replaced and they'll look and make sure there aren't any chew wires. The holes in the roof will be permanently fixed (instead of the patch job that's up there now). The facia is all going to be replace and extended up over the lip of the roof so animals will be less likely to chew there. We've already trimmed some of our trees and bushes back and will finish the rest.

And then hope we never have another raccoon nest in our house.

Thanks for listening all...

baby.jpg
 
Aw, Amy, the more portraits you make, the cuter these darned pests look. Next thing we know, you'll be feeding him/her puppy chow and walking her on a leash. Glad this worked out.
 
I Love Film said:
What makes you think they won't all be painfully murdered by the "raccoon guy"?
Why would he keep them alive?
Click to expand...

Thanks for the cheery note.

I'm not unrealistic. I do realize that it's possible the Raccoon Guy may have to euthanize them. I'm unclear on what the catch and release laws are in New York.

and honestly don't want to know.

However, even if they are to be euthanized, it is FAR more humane than to let them die a slow and painful starving dehydrating death in my attic.

I will say this... we had some problems with Raccoon Guy #1, but he was the guy that had the mother raccoon. His daughter was very very very nice and did explain how the moms and babies are reunited. She also clearly loves animals, and I asked her if her dad does, and she went on and on about how much he loves them. His house/yard was adorned with cute animal sculptures. His camera was filled with photos of animals, including a deer that basically "rang his doorbell" looking for food. It increasingly became clear, he's an animal lover.

When he came to retrieve the first baby, we suddenly saw this side of him as he retreated into raccoon land, snuggling with the baby and "chirping" at it (and it was chirping back)... to a point where he was basically ignoring us. It became immediately obvious that he's a guy who is better with animals than with people (and it also explained a lot about our odd experiences with him).

I think if he has the option to lawfully release them, he will.
 
We are plagued with squirrels around here. While most people think they're cute, those of us familiar with them know they are simply rats with bushy tails that are highly destructive of property and vegetation. Our neighborhood is blessed with large oak and pecan trees and some fruit trees which provide shelter and food for the little monsters. Every year we watch them destroy immature nuts and fruits and wreak havoc on flower beds and plants in containers. If that was the only nuisance they might be tolerable. But they also invade attics and storage rooms and outbuildings by chewing their way in.

We discovered a large hole under the eve at the front of our house a few months ago. This followed several nights of being awakened with the sound of a galloping animal in the attic above our bedroom. We got a maintenance man to come over and cut a sheet of plywood to cover the damaged wood as an interim measure until he could replace the molding. The damn thing chewed through the plywood patch and got in the attic again. We set a trap to catch the varmint but it never took the bait. Right now we have an unsightly piece of plywood with a hole in it covering an even more unsightly hole at the front of the house that we are unable to have properly repaired because we can't catch the squirrel responsible. Life was simpler when I was a child and lived in the country. Everyone had a .22 and a shotgun and no one would tolerate being dominated by a lowly rodent.

So, DRabbit, I feel your pain and long for the relief you received when the invading raccoons were removed.

By the way, raccoon can be quite tasty. If you're hungry. I've also eaten squirrel. But now I find it totally unpalatable.
 
A good thread with good photos. I have had snakes, coyote, bats (under the deck and we let them live there), rabbits, and black widow spiders (been bitten once). Many people have deer and some have bear. Just outside DC.
 
Dogman: we had squirrels 2/3 year ago, and they are a pain in the you-know-what too. Cute yes, and I remember watching them as a kid thinking they were so fun. That's until they broken into the attic. Mind you, I'm in suburbia, not in the middle of the woods or anything. LOL

Same crazy raccoon guy that got rid of my problem this time did it last time... and he had them all out in less than a week. They have TERRIBLE fleas, so be sure you fumigate when you do finally get them out.

Also, try baiting your traps with a cracker, lots of peanut butter and half a regular marshmallow on top. The white of the marshmallow attracts them apparently. Put birdseed in the peanut butter if you have it on hand.

And if you're going to let them go... make sure it's more than 5 miles from you house or they will find their way back!

Good luck... you have my sympathy.


Steve: we laugh and say we must have a sign in our backyard saying "wildlife welcome". We get bunnies, moles, and chipmunks regularly. We had ducks nest in our yard once and lay eggs (more babies! But not in my house... LOL). Then the squirrels and raccoons in our attic. I don't know why they like us so much. ;)
 
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