Raccoons look for warm, dark, safe places to make their nests and raise their babies. If you find a raccoon living in your garage any time between January and September, you should assume it is a mother and that she has babies nearby. You need to be careful to make sure that you don’t get rid of the mother and cause her to leave her babies behind. They could starve to death in the garage, or the mother could cause significant damage to your garage trying to get back to them.
The Raccoons May Leave on Their Own
You can choose not to take any action at all if a mother raccoon is living in your garage. Raccoons typically only use garages as shelter for short periods of time, and babies leave the den and become independent by the end of summer. Mothers often move their babies from one den site to another. You could simply wait for the mother and baby raccoons to leave on their own.
You Can Try Humane Harassment
You can also humanely harass the raccoons in your garage to encourage them to leave. If your garage is no longer dark and quiet, the mother may feel that it is not a safe place for her babies and may choose to move them to another location.
When using harassment techniques to get raccoons to leave your garage, you should do them as close to the den entrance as possible. You can turn on lights in the garage. Raccoons are nocturnal and do not like bright light. Make sure the lights are fire-safe, especially if you use extension cords.
Another option is to turn a radio to a talk station and put it near the entrance to the den. Music will not bother raccoons, but they feel threatened by the sound of human voices.
You can also use smells to encourage raccoons to leave the garage. You can soak rags in apple cider vinegar or ammonia, put them in a plastic bag, poke holes in the bag so the smell can escape, and hang the bag near the entrance to the den. Another option is to put dirty cat litter in a bag and hang it near the den entrance. Scents are less effective than other types of deterrents, but they can be effective when combined with other methods.
You will need to be persistent in order to get rid of raccoons in your garage. Try these methods for at least three days and nights.
You will need to make sure the raccoons are gone. Stuff the entrance hole with balled up newspaper or tape two sheets of newspaper over the hole. If the paper is still in place after three days, check the garage visually to make sure the raccoons are gone. Put ¼-inch wire mesh over the entrance hole until you can repair it permanently.
Hire a Wildlife Removal Company If Harassment Does Not Work
If these methods do not work to get rid of the raccoons in your garage, you can hire the professionals at Anderson Wildlife Control. We will humanely live-trap the raccoons and release them in another location. We will then seal off the entry point to keep other raccoons out and repair any damage they caused to your garage. Contact Anderson Wildlife Control for an estimate on animal control services in Connecticut.
