Raccoon Removal in Asbury Park, NJ

Challenge

Recently, I went out on a service call for a homeowner in Asbury Park, NJ. The homeowner called our office after hearing noises in his attic late at night. I arrived at the location and began a thorough inspection of the property. After inspecting the rooftop I noticed that the soffit was broken into. I took a closer look and found raccoon hair stuck in the soffit as well as raccoon droppings in the attic.

Once a determined raccoon gains access to the roof, they can often exploit weaknesses in the home’s structure to gain inside access. With their razor-sharp teeth and claws, raccoons can tear through building materials, especially if the materials are already water-damaged or otherwise compromised. Raccoon droppings may carry several potentially dangerous parasites, most notoriously Baylisascaris procyonis. This is a disgusting roundworm that can cause serious illness in humans and their pets.

Raccoons are also predictable critters and take the path of least resistance. They're also not the slyest of thieves and leave behind evidence of their break-in. Here, I found distinctive raccoon paw prints of mud along the drainpipe. 

Solution

First, I temporarily sealed up the soffit area with hardware cloth and then placed two baited traps along the raccoon's path. In a short amount of time, the raccoon was safely caught. I then completely sanitized the attic area and replaced the soffit area with new, stronger metal flashing. Now I will safely relocate the raccoon to a new, humane environment.