Raccoons Have Been Living in Vacant Home in Toms River, NJ for Over a Decade!
Challenge
This customer decided to put his second home in Toms River, NJ on the market. As he was surveying the property, he noticed that a portion of the pacman was damaged, so he took a closer look and was almost attacked by a raccoon! Terrified, he called Cowleys Little Rascals department for help and we were sent out.
We inspected the property and found two access points made by the raccoons, one in the pacman above the front door and the other in the pacman on the second floor. We carefully inspected the attic area and noticed that the insulation was completely torn up and soaked with urine and there were feces everywhere.
We informed the owner, who then mentioned that he hasn't visited the home in over ten years. So the raccoons have been living and defecating throughout the attic area for over a decade!
Solution
The first thing we had to do was evict the raccoons, so we temporarily sealed up the access point above the front door with hardware cloth and then installed a one-way device over the other access point. The one-way is designed to allow the raccoons to safely leave the area but prevent them from getting back in. In order to install the device successfully, we had to use our new safety device, the GOAT. This roof ladder essentially consists of a hook and three 6-foot poles. The interlocked poles provide the necessary height and the hook is used to attach the steep assist to the rooftop. Once the hook is securely attached, we can climb or get down your roof via the three handles that are attached to each pole. We also installed several baited traps nearby.
Shortly after, we successfully retrieved both the raccoons and relocated them to a new, humane location. We then removed all the contaminated insulation, disinfected the entire attic, and then sealed up the two access points with sturdy metal flashing. We offered to reinsulate the attic for the homeowner, but he decided to add some insulation on his own.
