Raccoons on Asbury Park, NJ property
Challenge
Recently, I was called out to an apartment complex in Asbury Park, NJ to determine if there was a nuisance wildlife infestation, and if so, to get it resolved. According to the property manager, a tenant in a ground floor unit was hearing scratching noises underneath the bath tub. Upon arrival, I first inspected the exterior perimeter in the area where the noises were heard. The tenant wasn’t imagining these sounds. Wildlife had dug an opening underneath the crawl space cover, giving them to access to the crawl space right underneath where the noises were coming from.
Wildlife technicians need to know the particular animal infesting a structure for appropriate baiting and trapping, and the droppings left behind often give us the answer. Here, I immediately knew that the trespassing animal was a raccoon. Raccoons are the largest nuisance wildlife we deal with on a regular basis, and their droppings are large as well, anywhere from two to three inches long. They are dark and tubular in shape, and have an extremely pungent odor. Another giveaway of raccoon feces is that they usually contain easily visible fragments of undigested berries. Also, raccoons establish community latrines where they use the same area over and over again “to do their business.” All wildlife droppings carry disease-causing pathogens and are potentially dangerous.Raccoons can transmit raccoon roundworm, which is potentially fatal to people. These tiny eggs, which are small enough to inhale, will hatch inside the body and the larvae will then move about infesting organs. There are few diseases more horrific than worms growing and reproducing inside your body.
Solution
Now that I knew what I was dealing with, I could set up the right traps with the right bait. After two days, success! I trapped the raccoon and gave him a free ride to a preferable location far away from human habitats. Even though raccoons thrive in urban environments like Asbury Park, it’s not a great way for them to live. It’s also not good for people. Raccoons can be aggressive, especially moms protecting her babies. Also, raccoons are the primary rabies vector in New Jersey.
After determining that there was no more wildlife in the crawl space, I filled in the hole leading to the crawl space and re-secured he cover, sealing their access point and preventing any more raccoon break-ins. This particular job should serve as a reminder that many types wildlife, not just mice and insects, are attracted to the privacy of crawl spaces. It is important to make sure that all areas around the foundation are sealed and any doors or vents leading to the crawl space are properly secured.
