There is no doubt that most of us love seeing a cute raccoon in a state park or on a nature walk.  But you definitely don’t want to see that same raccoon rooting through your dog’s food when you open your garage door at night.

Or, if you see a big black snake in your yard, can you really be sure that it is probably just a harmless Louisiana king snake?  Very few people can correctly identify a snake in a situation like this.

The fact is that if you are hearing scratching and gnawing noises in your attic, or finding over turned garbage cans in the morning, there is a good chance you may have a problem with something commonly called “nuisance wildlife”.  And while some people may only experience the inconvenience of an uprooted garden, others encounters can be more serious to your health.  For instance, many people don’t know that armadillos can carry leprosy!

There are groups of nuisance wildlife animals that seem to cause most of the problems. These include:

• Raccoons
• Opossums
• Snakes
• Armadillos

What should you do if you see these animals around?

You have few alternatives in getting rid of these pests. But unless you are a pest control expert, “do it yourself” should be out of the question.  Each of these animals can be potentially dangerous, especially when cornered.  And each packs a nasty bite if you are unlucky enough to get too close.

Even if you are lucky enough to actually catch one of these animals, you need to know where you can release them and how to do this in a manner which doesn’t harm the animals.  And once they are gone, there are issues you may still need to address at your home or business to keep the animals from coming BACK – this is referred to as “exclusion”.

If you are seeing these animals regularly on your property here are a few tips:

• Don’t try to handle, pet or feed them
• Exercise caution if you are going to try and capture them yourselves
• Never shoot, harm or kill one of these animals.  In addition to being inhumane, it may actually be illegal unless you are licensed to do removal
• Check your trash cans, pet food, etc to make sure you are not leaving an easy source of food for them.
• Make sure that decking, woodpiles, etc. are cleaned out regularly to avoid making common nesting areas too comfortable for them.
• Keep grass and gardens under control

Many people wind up looking for help after trying unsuccessfully to trap and remove these animals.  After all, creatures like raccoons and armadillos are notoriously “trap shy”.  If you find yourself in this situation, call us today as we now offer nuisance wildlife control and removal in the Baton Rouge area.