How to Locate Raccoon Babies

During the birthing season, Skedaddle begins each raccoon removal with a thorough search of your home for babies. Immobile raccoon babies cannot be trapped or chased from the attic. That means they must be located and removed from the attic by hand.

We know that mother raccoons will go to great lengths to protect and hide their babies. Finding them is almost never easy and almost always involves crawling through a cramped, sweltering attic full of itchy fibreglass insulation that’s full of raccoon urine and feces. You must go where the raccoons go to find them.

Our wildlife technicians use their trained eyes and ears to find babies tucked away in hard to reach places like soffits and wall cavities. Of course, this also puts us in pretty intimate contact with mother raccoons that are never far away. When protecting their young, mother raccoons can be highly aggressive so you must be prepared to fend her off when retrieving the babies. They can also complicate matters by taking on of the babies in her mouth and running off to another part of the attic.

It is important to remain calm and in control of the mother and the babies during this extraction process to ensure an effective removal. Once we have got hold of all the babies, we reunite them on the outside of the home with their mother by placing them inside a heated baby-box. From there, she can safely relocate them to one of her alternate den sites in the area. 

WHAT IS THERMAL IMAGING?

To put it simply, thermal imaging allows you to see the heat radiating off an object or animal. Thermal cameras rely on body heat and thermal contacts, quickly identifying a source of heat and converting it into an image with varying heat signatures. Using just one image, Skedaddle technicians will be able to identify the number of babies present and their exact location.

The great thing about a thermal imaging camera is that light is not required to produce a clear image, making it ideal for spotting nocturnal animals like raccoons that rely on the cover of darkness to remain undetected. Thermal imaging cameras allow Skedaddle technicians to see raccoon infestations through various materials, including brickwork, and wood, from 50 feet away. Making sure all babies are removed before repairing the raccoon’s entry point is very important. A mother raccoon that is locked away from its babies can cause thousands of dollars of damage to your roof as she tries to find a way into the attic.

thermal imaging shows where raccoons are present above the ceiling inside the attic

WHY QUICK REMOVAL IS KEY

The longer raccoon babies stay in a home, the worse the removal and clean up process will become for homeowners. Raccoon babies are dependent on their mothers for up to 10 months, and during this time they will use an attic space as their own personal playground and litter box. As you can imagine, the bigger the babies get, the more damage they will leave behind.

Additionally, once raccoons have secured a safe den site, there is always a possibility they will return in the future. If the raccoon babies in your attic remain undisturbed, they will return year after year to raise generations of babies. Mother raccoons are clever and will do anything to get to their young. If a mother loses access to an entry point with her babies still inside, she will rip apart any piece of soffit or siding to get to them. If she is not successful, dependent babies will die in the attic, leaving behind an even bigger mess for homeowners.

USING A PROFESSIONAL HUMANE REMOVAL

Employing hands-on removal techniques to keep raccoon families together is not only humane, but also reduces the likelihood of further damage to your home. Making sure all babies are removed before repairing the raccoon’s entry point is very important. A mother raccoon that is locked away from its babies can cause thousands of dollars of damage to your roof as it seeks a way into the attic.

Likewise, trapping and relocating a mother raccoon away from her babies is no solution. Orphaned babies inside your attic die a slow, painful and needless death. It is often more difficult and costly to remove dead animals from your home. Decaying carcasses in your walls or attic can make your home unlivable.

If you believe that the raccoon taking up residence in your attic, chimney, shed or deck has babies it might be best to call in a professional. Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control technicians have the experience and know-how to solve even the most complex raccoon problems. Call us today for an inspection at 1-888-592-0387.