Raccoons And Your Garbage: How To Keep Them Out

If you want to know how to stop raccoons from getting into your garbage, the answer is simple. You need to secure your trash bins tightly and hire a professional team to remove the animals from your property. Raccoons are very smart animals with strong hands. They can easily pry open loose lids, tip over light cans, and rip right through plastic bags. When they find an easy meal in your yard, they will keep coming back every single night.

Waking up to trash spread all over your lawn is frustrating. It is even worse when these animals decide to move from your garbage cans right into your garage. They look for warm, dark places to build a den and raise their babies. Once they get inside, they can cause serious damage to your walls, wires, and insulation. You should never try to handle this problem on your own. Cleaning up after wildlife or trying to seal gaps without training is dangerous.

At Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control in Milwaukee, we see this exact problem all the time. Our team knows exactly how these animals behave and how they break into homes. We focus on humane methods to get them out and keep them out for good. In this blog, we will explain exactly how our team handles the removal process. You will learn about our proven steps to protect your garage, secure your property, and ensure your home stays completely animal-free.

How To Stop Raccoons From Getting Into Your Garbage?

To stop raccoons from getting into your garbage, you must store your bins inside a secure area and rely on professional wildlife exclusion to keep the animals off your property. Keeping your trash cans inside a locked garage or a sturdy shed overnight is the best defense. You should only bring your garbage to the curb on the morning of your pickup day. If you must keep your bins outside, use heavy-duty cans with locking lids. You can also use strong bungee cords to keep the lids shut tight.

Raccoons have an amazing sense of smell. They can smell food scraps from far away. Because of this, it is very important to rinse out food containers before you throw them away. Double-bagging your smelliest trash can also hide the scent. If you keep the smell trapped inside, animals will be less likely to visit your yard.

However, if these animals are already living on your property, securing the trash is only the first step. They will simply look for other food or try to break into your garage for shelter. That is why you need a professional team to remove them. We know how to track their movements and find out where they are hiding. We handle the difficult work so you never have to put yourself at risk.

One Comprehensive Property Inspection

Protecting your property from wildlife starts with a thorough inspection. Raccoons often find creative ways to sneak into homes, garages, and other structures. Identifying these entry points and problem areas is crucial for effective removal and prevention. A detailed evaluation provides the insight needed to create a tailored plan and safeguard your home.

• Inspecting Entry Points: A detailed inspection begins by examining potential entry points raccoons might exploit. Small gaps around doors, broken vents, or cracks in walls are common access points. Even spaces that seem too small can be used by persistent wildlife to squeeze through. By identifying and sealing these openings, the risk of repeated invasions is significantly reduced.
• Evaluating Structural Damage: Raccoons can cause extensive structural damage that isn’t always visible at first glance. From chewed wooden beams to gnawed wires or insulation, these signs need to be addressed quickly. Left unchecked, this damage may lead to safety hazards, such as fires or weakened support structures. Proper identification helps prevent potentially costly repairs down the line.
• Checking Nesting Locations: Raccoons often finds hidden spaces within homes to create nests. Common areas include attics, crawl spaces, and the gaps between walls. Locating these nests is critical to safely removing the animals and preventing further infestations. Clearing them out ensures the property remains safe and free of harmful bacteria or parasites.
• Inspecting Foundation and Roof: Both the foundation and roof are vital parts of a home’s defense against outdoor elements and wildlife. Cracks in the foundation or broken shingles on the roof can serve as entryways for pests. A complete examination of these areas helps reveal vulnerabilities. Ensuring these components are intact helps maintain the long-term safety and stability of the structure.

Humane Raccoon Removal

Raccoons are resourceful and intelligent creatures that often find their way into attics, garages, and other parts of homes in search of food and shelter. While they may seem harmless, their presence can lead to significant property damage and potential health risks. Humane removal is critical to ensure both the safety of the animals and the integrity of the home. Using proven and ethical methods, raccoons can be safely relocated without causing stress or harm to the animals.

• Safe Hands-On Removal: Raccoons often hide in hard-to-reach places, such as attics or crawlspaces. By using hands-on removal techniques, the animals are gently guided out of the property without causing unnecessary distress. This approach minimizes harm and ensures the animals are treated with respect throughout the process. If a mother raccoon with babies is involved, the family is carefully kept together to avoid separation. This method is ideal for preserving the well-being of the animal while addressing the issue effectively.
• One-Way Door Installation: One-way doors are an innovative solution for addressing raccoon entry points. These doors are installed on the primary access areas used by the raccoons, such as holes or gaps in the structure. The design allows the raccoons to exit the space safely but prevents them from re-entering. This approach not only helps in removing the animals from the premises but also prevents repeated invasions. It is a humane and highly effective solution that prioritizes both the household and the wildlife.
• Protecting Entry Points: To avoid future incidents, it is important to secure all potential entry points in the home. This includes sealing off small gaps, repairing broken vents, and reinforcing weak areas in the structure. A thorough inspection can identify these vulnerabilities and ensure they are properly addressed. By taking these preventative measures, homeowners can reduce the likelihood of raccoons or other wildlife returning. This step is essential for long-term peace of mind and the safety of the property.

Preventative Sealing

Preventative sealing is a critical step in protecting a home from unwelcome wildlife and preventing costly damage. Gaps, cracks, and openings in a building can serve as easy entry points for raccoons looking for shelter. By addressing these vulnerabilities, the structure becomes more secure and better protected. Proper sealing solutions ensure that animals cannot gain access, offering long-term protection and peace of mind.

• Inspect All Possible Entry Points: A thorough inspection is the first step in identifying areas that need sealing. Small gaps around doors, windows, and vents are commonly overlooked but can be prime entry points for wildlife. Checking the roofline, chimney, and foundation for cracks or openings is equally important. Paying attention to these details ensures no area is left vulnerable to intrusion.
• Reinforce Vents and Openings: Openings such as attic vents, dryer vents, and soffits are common access points for raccoons. Reinforcing these areas with heavy-duty materials significantly reduces the risk of entry. Using robust materials, like steel screens, ensures these barriers are durable and raccoon-proof. This step is essential for maintaining the integrity of the home’s structure while keeping wildlife out.
• Seal Holes and Gaps: Small holes and gaps in the building’s exterior can provide easy access for pests and wildlife. These areas can be sealed with strong, weather-resistant materials to block any potential entry. Special attention should be given to spaces around utility lines, pipes, and cables. Proper sealing stops future issues and prevents raccoons from creating further damage.
• Protect Garage and Other Vulnerable Areas: Certain parts of the home, like the garage, are particularly susceptible to wildlife incursions due to their accessibility. Once the garage is emptied, every hole and gap should be closed using heavy-gauge steel screens and durable sealants. These materials are tough enough to withstand raccoons attempting to chew or tear through them. Addressing vents, soffits, and gaps around the garage doors ensures this area remains secure over time.

Cleanup and Sanitization

When raccoons invade your garage, they often leave behind droppings, urine, and other waste that can be harmful to your health. These materials can carry bacteria and diseases that you should not be exposed to. Attempting to clean up wildlife waste on your own is not safe and can increase your risk of getting sick. It is always better to rely on our professionals who know how to handle these situations properly.

Our team uses specialized protective gear to remove all traces of raccoon waste safely and effectively. This equipment keeps our technicians protected while ensuring your garage is thoroughly cleaned. We carefully collect and dispose of the waste according to safety guidelines, leaving no harmful materials behind. This step is essential in restoring the cleanliness of your space.

Once the waste is removed, we sanitize the entire area to eliminate any lingering germs or bacteria. Using advanced cleaning products, we also work to neutralize odors that could attract more raccoons in the future. This process not only protects your health but also helps to make your garage a more secure and pleasant space. With our thorough cleanup and sanitization process, you can have peace of mind knowing your garage is safe and ready for use.

Proactive Raccoon Control with Skedaddle

Our team does more than just remove the animals from your garage. We also look at your whole property to see what is drawing them in. Raccoons are always looking for easy food and a safe place to hide. If your yard offers both, they will want to stay. We help you identify these risks so we can fix them.

We check your trees and bushes to see if they are touching your garage roof. Animals often use long branches as a bridge to climb right onto your building. We will advise you on where trimming is needed to cut off their access. We also look at how you store your trash and pet food.

By taking these proactive steps, we make your property much less inviting to wildlife. You get peace of mind knowing that our professionals have secured your home. We guarantee our sealing work so you never have to worry about the animals coming back.

Humane Summer Raccoon Removal

Summer is a very busy time for wildlife. Mother raccoons are actively looking for safe places to raise their babies. Your garage or attic is a perfect spot for them. During the summer, we get many calls from homeowners hearing scratching noises above their heads.

We handle summer removal with great care. We never use live trapping or relocation. Moving an animal far away from its home is stressful and often dangerous for them. Instead, we use our one-way doors. The mother can walk out of the door to get food, but the door locks behind her.

If there are babies inside, our team climbs in and carefully removes them by hand. We place the babies in a safe, warm baby box right outside the entry hole. The mother will easily find her babies in the box and move them to a new den in the wild. This keeps the family together and gets them out of your garage safely.

Raccoons in Milwaukee: Local Challenges

Living in Milwaukee means dealing with unique weather and local wildlife habits. Our city has a mix of older historic homes and brand-new buildings. Raccoons are very adaptable and can easily break into both. The nearby rivers and parks also provide a great natural habitat for them, meaning they are always close by.

In the winter, the cold Milwaukee weather drives animals to seek warmth. Your garage provides the perfect escape from the freezing wind and snow. In the spring and summer, the frequent rain and blooming gardens give them plenty of food and water. This year-round activity means you always need to be on guard.

Our local Milwaukee team knows exactly how the wildlife behaves in this area. We understand the building codes and the common weak spots in local homes. Because we live and work in the same community, we know exactly what it takes to protect your garage from the local wildlife population.

Frequently Asked Questions

Protect Your Property with Skedaddle

Dealing with wildlife in your garage or garbage can be a frustrating and stressful experience, but you don’t have to face it alone. While securing your trash is a great first step, it often isn’t enough to keep wildlife away for good. That’s where we come in. At Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control, we provide the professional help you need to safely and humanely remove raccoons and keep them from coming back. Our team handles all the hard work, so you don’t have to climb ladders, clean up dirty messes, or worry about coming into contact with harmful waste.

We use proven methods to protect not just your home, but the wildlife as well. By sealing off entry points and ensuring your building is secure, we help keep your property safe and raccoon-free. Whether you hear noises in your garage or notice critters rummaging through your yard, it’s important to act quickly before the problem grows worse.

Contact Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control in Milwaukee to request an estimate. Trust our experienced team to take care of everything, giving you peace of mind and your space back. With us, you can say goodbye to wildlife issues for good.