What attracts raccoons?

Raccoons may be attracted to the homes or property where they can get shelter, water and food sources. Because raccoons are known as omnivores and they eat food that comes from animals and plants, they can be attracted to your home because of any type of food. It is important to get rid of the source of the food for the raccoons if you want to get rid of them. The food source may be fruits that have fallen from trees, bird feeders that can be accessed and garbage. Raccoons also like to eat bird eggs and mice. It is not weird that wildlife as well as humans have coexisted since the beginning of the time. There has been increased interface between wild animals and people in the more recent times due to humans’ extensive development and encroachment on the natural habitats of copious animals. This means it is more ordinary for people to find wild animals such as raccoons, opossums, and deer on their property. Wild animals are known to be quite destructive and can carry dangerous diseases that can pose a risk to humans.

The woodland environment is typically the natural habitat of the raccoons. Here there are many den sites where these mammals may choose to live. These include tree cavities and the abandoned burrows of large rodents or other animals. In the urban and suburban environments, raccoons may find shelter which mimics their natural shelter sites such as the area under decks, crawl spaces, chimneys and attics. Raccoons like the idea of being hidden away where there are no sounds and they feel even more protected. When you limit the access to these areas, it will lessen the possibility of the raccoons coming to your home.

If you have a source of water on your property, it can be hard to control, but you can do simple things like removing the containers that have water and ensuring that rainwater does not make a puddle on the property.

Raccoons are known to be opportunistic eaters, and they can eat different kinds of food. However, they mostly prefer food that is high in sugar and fat.

If there are enough food sources in your area, they are not going to hunt but instead will raid the home as long as food is accessible. The food of the raccoons may be the pet food that you leave outside, while they can also eat the food remains in the garbage bin or the food found in bird feeders. Make sure that you have cleaned the bird feeder each day and take it inside the house each night. You should put a strong lid on the garbage bin and do not leave pet food and other food remains outside. If there are no security lights near your home, it can attract the raccoons since they will come under the cover of darkness.

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