New Jersey Rabies Concerns create Raccoon Problems

A professional will humanely remove both baby and adult raccoons from your property.

Who would try to burn baby raccoons alive?  Or beat them to death?  Or drown them?  No one in their right mind, but such things happen in New Jersey when people motivated by fear want to get rid of raccoons and take matters into their own hands. 

Since rabies returned to New Jersey, and raccoons are the number one carriers of this always fatal disease, raccoons are more hated and feared than pit-bulls in the eye of the public.  You can read this article from the New York Times for more information.

There are significant dangers from rabid raccoons, and a number of other diseases associated with the animals, but do-it-yourself raccoon removal is not the way to get rid of raccoons.  People who are concerned about wild animals on their property need to contact a wildlife control specialist who can get rid of the animals efficiently and humanely.  Depending on local laws and regulations, the animals will be euthanized or relocated, but they won’t be abused.  Click here for more information about Allstate Animal Control’s Raccoon Removal Services.

One thing the do-it-yourselfers may not have considered is the danger they are placing themselves in.  Wild animals are unpredictable.  Even experienced wildlife control experts have seen very dangerous situations develop unexpectedly when working around raccoons.  The animals will attack without notice and it takes special equipment and quick reactions to defend against such an assault. 

When it is time to get rid of raccoons, and such times do come, hire a professional.  It is safer for you, kinder to the animals, and most likely to result in a successful outcome.

Nationwide raccoon control: 1-888-488-7720

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Rabid Bats in Liberty, Utah

Should you come into contact with a bat, get away as soon as possible and contact a professional.

A few days ago in Liberty, Utah, located within an hour of Ogden and Salt Lake City, Utah, two young girls were attacked by a bat that proved to be rabid.  Both are receiving rabies shots and are expected to recover fully.  You can read the full, original news story here: http://www.standard.net/live/news/179903/ 

While it doesn’t appear to be the case with these girls, often such bites occur when people are exposed to wild animals in their own homes.  The animals move in and the people either do not have them evicted or decide to try to get rid of bats on their own. 

I mention this because it is an excellent reminder of the caution that needs to be exercised around wild animals and why it is best to have professionals get rid of bats or other wild creatures that invade human territory. 

When you encounter a wild animal that is not behaving normally, you should leave it absolutely alone.  For bats, this means being out or active during the day.  The same holds true for a number of other creatures, including skunks and raccoons, both of which also are common carriers of rabies. 

Leave wild animals alone.  While animals are fascinating and can be cute or beautiful, they are almost all aggressive when they feel threatened.  At the same time, if an animal is unusually passive, it may be sick.  Either way, you can contact a wildlife control specialist who can get rid of bats or other wild animals safely. 

I wish a speedy recovery to these girls and wish a safe summer to all others and give you an urgent reminder that, for their safety, you should educate your children about the dangers of wild animals.  Should you come into contact with one, get away as soon as possible and contact a professional who will come to get rid of bats or whatever animal is causing the trouble. 

Professional Bat Removal: 1-888-488-7720

Confessions of a Wildlife Control Operator

I do animal removal because people and wild animals don't play well together.

I am often questioned about my role as a wildlife control operator.  How do I feel about wild animals?  Why is animal removal the right alternative when people want to get rid of squirrels, raccoons, bats and other critters on their property?  Can people control wild animals?  How are animals changed by the urban environments that people have created? 

Some of these questions are easy to answer. 

I love animals. Some of my favorite times have been spent in nature observing and enjoying wildlife. Just because I believe in removing animals from homes and businesses doesn’t mean I don’t like critters. 

I do animal removal because people and wild animals don’t play well together.  Animals are, well, animals.  They poop where they please, eat what they want and modify homes to suit themselves. I wouldn’t want to live in a poop-filled home, sharing my food with critters that don’t wash their hands and having all the wiring torn out of my attic, for example.  It isn’t safe. It isn’t healthy.  Many people become sick every year from animal borne diseases or from bacterial illnesses associated with animal refuse and waste. 

I am careful when I am doing an animal removal job.  We use humane procedures in wildlife trapping.  Animals are often live trapped and are relocated wherever laws and regulations allow.  Many animals are never handled by humans but removed from the building by venting and kept away by a variety of repellents. 

People cannot control wild animals.  Professional wildlife control operators are in contact with wild animals every day as they do their job of animal removal.  We study animal behavior and learn by education and experience how animals might typically behave in a certain circumstance.  I am, however, frequently surprised.  Animals are often ingenious in their methods of accessing and modifying a home to suit their fancy.  

The last question is more difficult to answer, as the answer is evolving as we watch. 

It is certain that some species of wildlife have been negatively affected by human encroachment.  Approximately 75% of the population of the United States now lives in urban or suburban areas.  As the shift from rural to urban occurs, some species are displaced.  Many species, however, seem to thrive.  The urban population density of raccoons, for example, is higher in many areas than the rural population surrounding that area. 

Urban wildlife control is a changing and expanding field.  As we perform wildlife trapping and animal removal, we must consider ecological principles and legal requirements as well as political, economic and societal issues. Wildlife control operators continue to learn as they manage wildlife in human-created environments. 

It will be very interesting to see what the future holds and how human-animal relationships develop. But, a few things will doubtless remain the same:  conflicts will continue to occur, people should not have to share their living and working spaces with wild animals, and wildlife control operators will be there to provide wildlife trapping and animal removal services to make things right.

Nationwide Wildlife Trapping: 1-888-488-7720

Rabid Bat Danger in Denver, Colorado

Wildlife control operators can control bats without injuring them, and without damaging your home.

Did you know that nearly 10% of all bats in the Denver, Colorado area that are tested by the Department of Public Health and Environment test positive for rabies?  In fact, bats are the number one carrier of rabies in Colorado.

While they are interesting and valuable animals, bat control is necessary.  Bat colonies in homes must be removed.  Wildlife control operators can control bats by removing them without injuring them or damaging your home.  In fact, your home will be better maintained when they are done, because it is usually lack of maintenance that allows bats to take up residence.

What else can you do to control your exposure to bats?  The Health Department recommends avoiding bats that act “abnormally.”  But, what is abnormal? 

1. The animal is active during the day. Healthy bats usually remain quiet and roost during daylight hours.
2. The animal has difficulty flying or cannot fly at all.  It is possible that the animal is injured, but it is likely sick.
3. The animal makes very loud hissing or squeaking noises.
4. The animal is on the ground and/or in an open or exposed area.
5. The animal allows you to approach it without attempting to get away. This does not mean it is a friendly.  It means something is wrong.

 If you see a bat with any of these symptoms, DO NOT handle it with your bare hands.  Most cases of rabies in humans happen when a person initiates contact with a wild animal.  Do not attempt bat control yourself.  Hire a trained professional wildlife control operator.

If there is any possibility you or a family member or pet have come into direct contact with a bat, seek medical help immediately.  The animal should be captured if it is possible to do so without directly handling the animal.  Bats have very small teeth and claws and the bites or scratches may be barely visible or not painful. 

Avoid danger by being careful around wild animals, knowing the symptoms of rabies and other infectious diseases and through careful home maintenance to promote a healthy living environment through sensible, sensitive bat control.

Nationwide Bat Control: 1-888-488-7720

Dead Skunk in the middle of Salt Lake City, Utah

A live skunk under your deck smells really bad. A dead skunk odor is much, much worse.

You got yer
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
Dead skunk in the middle of the road
You got yer dead skunk in the middle of the road
Stinkin’ to high Heaven! 

(Loudon Wainwright III, 1973)

Nearly everyone has had the experience of driving down the highway and catching a sudden whiff of dead skunk.  Skunks don’t smell great when they are alive, but a dead one gives a whole new meaning to stink. 

Imagine all that smell bottled up in an enclosed space—say, under a deck directly under your back door.  Yep, it happened to me, and I have a whole new respect for the power of those black-and-white critters.

I live in the east Salt Lake City, Utah area and have a deck out back of my house.  We are on a bit of a hill so part of the deck is several feet off the ground, but part is only about 18-inches.

I will probably never know why the animal was there or why it died.  I mean, really, did it HAVE to choose my deck?!

Once we figured out that the dead animal was right up against the house under the center of the deck where there wasn’t much clearance there was a larger problem: what to do about it?

Obviously, we couldn’t just wash the deck in tomato juice, which doesn’t work anyway.  After checking around we found out about wild animal control operators.  I thought they just got rid of live animals, but it turns out that they do dead ones, too.  And, they know how to get rid of dead skunk smell.

I cannot tell you what a relief it was to have these guys show up.  They crawled under the deck and removed the carcass.  They got rid of the smelly thing, which was pretty nasty, and then got rid of the smell.  They have this special enzyme stuff that somehow makes it go away.  I was amazed.  I figured I would be living with dead skunk smell for a long time.

Next time you pass a dead skunk on the road, be very grateful that it is in the road and not under your deck!

Nationwide Skunk Trapping and Odor Control: 1-888-488-7720