A Sign Of The Times

Are we marked?


Well, I was wondering how long it would take to happen now that our economy is hurting so badly. This weekend, we were broken in to, while we were at home even. Talk about SCARY!

Looks like a sign of the times.

I don't even own a gun.

I do always keep a loaded baseball bat next to the bed.

Somebody was in the house my wife told me at 2 am.

Thumping, bumping, scrabbling.

They're in the attic, I reluctantly crawl in, flashlight in one hand, pepper spray in the other.

I hear rustling, my flashlight beam spots the masked intruder as the dark shape darts for a small opening. I nearly crap my pants in the confined space, movement is limited. As it stops near the opening I see it's profile. Although it's masked, I got a good long look at the little trespasser.

Be on the lookout for the following invader - coming to an attic/crawlspace near you!

Just as we are marveling about having Junco's nesting in a hanging basket on our back porch, somebody else takes the cue and moves on in too. Eve first heard noises over the dining room in the middle of the night. Loud chewing, growling to go with the thumps and bumps. I crawled through attic at 2 in the morning to chase momma raccoon out - only find out that there were babies (kits) there too.

I love the Internet for things just like this. I went to the Washington State Dept of Wildlife website. They have a section on different critters and how to deal with them.

http://wdfw.wa.gov/wlm/living/evicting.htm

So, we followed most of their recommendations. Since young were involved, great care is needed when attempting to evict;

1. ID the intruder - A raccoon that I chased outside at 2 in the morning.

2. Locate all points of entry - A plastic gable vent was ripped open near the bottom, leaving about a 4" gap inside to the attic. It sits right above a roof section, so you can stand right outside the vent, then easily come and go once it's opened.

I found one other: A gap in the rafters on the outside part of the roof. It's practically invisible unless you see a critter go through it. I only knew it was there because I had to chase cats out a couple of years ago and they would just disappear when they made it to one corner. Even crawling over to it I could not see it. From the outside it was not easy to find, but I did finally see our calico go through it into the attic. At the time, I sealed it up then with 1/8" hardware cloth stapled between the rafters to cover the opening. When I checked it however, it had been ripped aside allowing access in and out. I stuffed the hardware cloth back into the opening to block the opening but not seal it.

3. Determine the animal’s main entry - The ripped open vent. I covered the entire opening with 1/4" hardware cloth.

4. Determine if young are involved- Absolutely no doubt. We're not sure how old they are but they could be heard at night. When inspecting the attic I could hear them but they were in a part of the attic that was extremely tight to fit in. I certainly didn't want to be confined in a small space with a protective mother.

5. Evict the family only when necessary - Seeing as how the critters were tearing things up in the attic it was completely necessary. No way do I want to risk further damage. Given that there were kits involved we had to be sure that Momma would do the moving for us. We did not want them trapped/isolated from each other. We also had some sympathy for her plight being the animal lovers that we are. We didn't want to hurt of kill any of them. We just wanted her to leave the attic space. She didn't look that big and was more timid than aggressive around her youngsters. Being around a mother and babies in the wild, I was very aware that she could easily attack out of protecting them.

6. Begin the removal process - We did in earnest. All points of entry accounted for and sealed except for the opening between the rafters. According to the website, one opening should still be blocked but not sealed up so the animal will still be able to get out, but with effort. Then we're to check the opening every day to see if they are still coming and going.

Also, as a part of evicting harass as much as possible; Make noise, bang on the ceiling. Enter the attic and make your human presence known.

From the web site;

Intensely harass the animal. Using a mechanic’s bright drop light (grid enclosed bulb) or other portable light located away from burnable objects, light up the sleeping area being used by the animal. (A fluorescent light will conserve electricity and keep the heat level down.) In addition, put a radio in the area and play a talk station as loud as you can tolerate. If the animal moves to an unlit area, move the light and radio to that area, or install an additional light and radio.

I used two trouble lights and a clock radio light up the nesting area with as much light as possible. I tuned the radio to a talk station and cranked the volume up as loud as we could stand it. You don't want music, you want many different voices 24 x 7.

I had to belly crawl under the rafters to where the nest was located and placed both lights directly over it. As I was putting this in, momma showed up. Thank goodness she wasn't at all aggressive. Laying across the ceiling joists, under the rafters I felt very vulnerable to an attack by the mother. Luckily she was more timid and didn't come close as I moved away. Then I set the radio on it's side with the speaker facing right at where the momma had dove under the insulation and turned on AM 1090 - good and strong. I used compact fluorescent bulbs in the trouble lights and they added a nicely irritating buzz to the radio.

Once complete I crawled back out and shut the access panel into the attic.

Also mentioned in the article was to get some predator scent; coyote or cougar urine and soak them into rags and ball them up with twine and toss them into the nest area. Thankfully I didn't have to resort to that! Although, on one of my trips up there I really had to go pee badly and barely made it back down to the toilet!

7. Follow up - These methods worked better than a charm.

I checked the opening every morning, on Thurs and Friday it had been pushed out. It was still in place on Saturday and Sunday. Last night I reconned the area and heard no more little critters in the nest. According to the info from the Dept of Wildlife, a scent trail could be left behind that other critters may follow - so be sure to seal things up tight, which I did. Also they recommend spraying the entry with pepper spray or some sort of predator scent (urine) to ward off any future potential break in artists.

Also it's wise to check for any damage in the attic; wiring, insulation etc... and to make sure that your smoke detectors are fully functional in case there is hidden damage. While I do have sympathy for the little critters, it only goes so far because I have my family to consider too.

The weather over the weekend warmed up quite a bit making it quite hot in the attic crawlspace. It had to be nearly 100 in there on Sunday. That probably also helped because 1; It had to be uncomfortable for a furry animal and 2; it be easier for momma to move her babies when it's not cold, windy and rainy (like today). The instructions said it could take a few days or weeks if off spring are involved.

It took me three days to evict them. Proudly I might add without hurting, killing or causing great harm to the animals in question. Raccoons can be a nuisance but they are also just trying to survive like me. In the wild they only live on average for about 3 years and usually die because of human interaction, getting hit by a car, - nearly 15 in captivity. They already have it rough enough and I have a feeling their ancestors were here before mine so I try to be respectful - even though being woken at two in the morning made me angry enough to want to kill or hurt them!

In the end, careful attention and little effort took care of the issue with not one drop of blood spilt. Other than the bruises on my knees from crawling around attic or the knot on my head from ramming it into the rafters. I do worry still about their safety in this violent world, as I do for my family too.

She was only trying to raise, protect and care for them. I can respect that.

I didn't see father around anywhere.

Maybe that's whey raccoons are such a nuisance; no dad at home during those critical times?

A sign of the times indeed....