Raccoons do indeed harm pets. Even while it’s not the most frequent occurrence, it does occur frequently. Raccoons may joyfully respond to a nearby dog or pet; they are unlikely to seek out any pets unless they are infected with the rabies virus. Sadly, both scenarios exist, which means that raccoons may deliberately look for pets at night. Although it’s not very common, it’s still a possibility.
Raccoons frequently attack pets in retaliation for something. Raccoons will react whether they perceive a threat to their family or a threat to themselves. For more information on why they attack animals, see the section after this one.
If you see a raccoon about your property later (or earlier), it is best to call C&C Wildlife Control for animal control services before anything bad happens.
Can a dog defeat a raccoon in combat?
The Humane Society of the United States claims that healthy raccoons are unlikely to attack a dog unless provoked, yet occasionally canines will chase raccoons. A raccoon may fight back to defend itself when cornered by a dog, which puts both animals at risk of injury.
What should you do if your dog fights a raccoon?
After the battle, examine yourself for injuries. Even if you don’t feel anything, you can have been bitten or scratched. You risk contracting rabies if you touch your eyes, mouth, nose, ears, or any other open wounds. If you’re safe, thoroughly wash yourself and your clothes before handling any open wounds from the earlier struggle, etc.
If you’re okay, you should confine your dog for at least two hours. If the dog has the rabies virus on the outside of its body, this will deactivate it in the air. In case he has rabies, the dog should not interact with any other persons or animals. If he is still healthy after the quarantine, bathe him properly and watch out for odd symptoms.
Call the vet right away if the dog has any cuts, wounds, etc. The same is true for you: even if you were only bitten, you should go to the emergency room very away, even if you have already received a vaccination.
While it’s extremely improbable that you have rabies, it’s almost always too late once you become aware of the symptoms. Rabies is no joke. You should also contact the nearby animal control facility if the incident appeared to be random as well (i.e., the dog did not rush outside and fight the raccoon).
Do raccoons eat dogs?
Raccoons are little carnivores that typically weigh between eight and twenty pounds. They would be comparable in size to a housecat or small dog based on this. Raccoons are content to live in attics, abandoned rubbish bins, and porches and are remarkably well suited to urban environments. They can consume human waste, but they also eat insects, mice, birds’ eggs, nuts, crabs, berries, and trash from humans. Observe that none of these foods weigh more than eight to twenty pounds.
Predators smaller than 40 pounds typically have a very tough time catching prey that is larger than they are. Even predators like coyotes or lynxes, whose average weight is roughly 40 pounds, frequently struggle to take down deer and other huge prey animals. Because of this, a raccoon would have no chance fighting a dog, coyote, or huge fox and would not regard such a creature as a prospective meal.
When left unattended, cats and small dogs may get into fights with raccoons. However, these are rarely regarded as predatory attacks.
How do I keep my dog out of raccoon territory?
To prevent disputes with raccoons, the Washington State Department of Fish and Game provides the following advice:
- Never give food to raccoons.
- Feed your animal(s) indoors.
- Don’t let your animals out at night.
- Keep raccoons out of your home by blocking any pet doors.
- Food scraps should be disposed of in secure compost or garbage bins.
Do raccoons dislike dogs?
If you choose to use a sprinkler system that is activated by a motion sensor, the same procedure can be applied. When it suddenly turns on and startles the small animal, water can be an equally effective deterrent in getting a raccoon to leave.
To try to encourage these animals to go, you don’t need to be extremely technologically advanced. Many people achieve success utilizing very low-tech concepts. Having a pet can also be quite successful. Raccoons don’t like giant dogs very much, therefore if you have one of these pets, you can succeed in scaring the animal away as well. The best part is that you are not even required to let your dog out into the yard. The commotion the dog creates is often enough to cause the raccoon to flee. You can succeed just as well if you have a recording of a dog barking that you can play.
As you can see, noises and light will have the biggest impact on deterring raccoons from visiting your home. This safeguards you and guarantees that you won’t need to do much effort to keep this animal at bay.
Do raccoons drown dogs?
A few days ago, someone who was worried about rumors she’d heard about raccoons climbing atop swimming dogs’ heads with the purpose of drowning them asked me this inquiry.
In a nutshell, the response to this query is “no.” Raccoons are not driven to pursue large predators into water and perch on their heads. The majority of raccoons have an innate inclination to stay away from dogs, and they can swim well on their own. To learn more about the origins of this tale, I spoke with a few game wardens.
A raccoon will naturally retreat to trees or water if it is surrounded or scared, such as when it is being pursued by a pack of coonhounds or a pet that is not adequately housed, because these are places where a raccoon can typically outsmart a predator. The raccoon will attempt to survive by climbing on whatever part of the dog is most accessible in order to defend itself if the dog continues to chase the animal and eventually catches up to it in the water. This is a self-defense move rather than an aggressive one. I couldn’t discover any instances of a dog really drowning as a result of these fights.
A pet owner in fear may interpret a raccoon’s defensive actions as an attempt to seduce and drown their animal, although an animal’s attempts to flee from danger or defend itself from a powerful predator are not motivated by malice.
It’s crucial to keep your pets adequately contained and apart from wildlife at all times. Sometimes raccoons and dogs get into vicious fights, especially if the raccoon was raised near dogs, if the dog is fed outside, or if the dog is willingly employed to hunt raccoons for their fur. However, a dog poses a considerably greater threat to raccoons than vice versa most of the time. A raccoon won’t intentionally try to drown your dog.
What happens if my dog gets bitten by a raccoon?
Dog assaults are even less frequent than raccoon attacks. Keep in mind to concentrate on the raccoon if you see the battle and want to put an end to it.
Wearing heavy clothing will protect you, and you should avoid approaching by using a big instrument like a shovel.
Make sure you and your dog are okay after the battle by looking for any possible wounds. Rabies is just one of the numerous diseases that raccoons can spread. Verify that you and your dog are both clear, and isolate him just in case.
Go right once to a professional to have any wounds you or your dog may have as a result of the assault treated. Rabies is a serious illness that, if left untreated, can be fatal.
How can I eradicate racoons?
- Add a sprinkler with motion detection. Consider installing a motion-activated sprinkler if you have raccoons in your yard or garden. The raccoons will be sprayed with cold water by the sprinkler when it detects them lurking nearby.
- Utilize ultrasound obstructions. Raccoons can be removed with the help of ultrasound deterrent equipment without suffering any harm. These discreet, small, and inexpensive gadgets scare away raccoons using sound (or a mix of sound and light). Others produce frequencies that can only be heard by raccoons, while some emit predator hunting sounds.
- Discreet trash bins. Raccoons find trash to be the perfect source of food. Make sure the garbage can is closed. If you store your garbage can outside, be sure it is a sturdy container with a lid that clips shut securely. If feasible, place your trash cans in an enclosed outdoor shed or garage.
- Use raccoon-repellent trash bags to contain your garbage. Invest in some rodent-repelling trash bags if, despite your best attempts, raccoons are still finding their way into your trash. Raccoons are repelled by these bags because they contain strong-smelling essential oils like camphor and mint. Without endangering the raccoons, your children, or your pets, the aroma will deter them from your trash cans.
- Create a homemade raccoon deterrent. Due to their extremely acute senses, raccoons are quickly scared off by some odours, such as pepper. Mix a bottle of spicy sauce, a few drops of liquid dish soap, and a gallon of water together (or an entire spice jar of powdered cayenne pepper). Anywhere you’ve seen raccoon activity, spray the mixture.
- Apply ammonia. A typical household cleaner called ammonia resembles the unpleasant smell of urine that raccoons find so repulsive. If you’ve seen raccoon activity, soak some rags in ammonia and place them there. Alternatively, you can just place a bowl of ammonia next to the raccoons’ entry points into your property.
- Don’t feed the birds and pets. Every night, indoors should be brought any pet or bird food that was left outside.
- Protect areas of high interest with fences. Raccoons are imaginative, inquisitive animals who search for food in a variety of places, including gardens, fish ponds, and compost piles. Install electric fences around the perimeter of these locations to keep raccoons away. A fence with two wires, one placed 6 inches above the ground and the other 12 inches above it, is what we advise building. With no negative effects on the animals, this will stop raccoon damage.
- Never give raccoons food. Although raccoons might have a cute appearance and pass for beggars, you should never leave food out for them. Even feeding one raccoon will eventually draw in more of them.
How should you react if a raccoon approaches?
It is advised that if a raccoon approaches you, you break eye contact, gently back away, and enter a building to wait for the animal to pass. While doing this, enlarge yourself to appear larger, but refrain from attacking the raccoon unless it attacks you first.
What deters racoons from entering?
Raccoons are searching for food, water, and shelter when they enter your yard. They won’t have any cause to remain if they are unable to locate any. Therefore, ensuring that raccoons won’t find what they’re seeking for is the greatest approach to keep them out of your yard.
Raccoons can be repelled even if they are already on your property using specific odors and other techniques. To the greatest extent feasible, “raccoon-proof” your yard, use these suggestions.
Secure trash cans
Your trash can is the primary food source for raccoons on your home. These animals are more intelligent than you may realize, and they will tip your trash can over or open the top to get to the tempting treats inside.
Keep the lids on your trash cans tight to avoid this. Get a lock for the lid, use bungee cords to secure it, or weight it down with large objects like cinder blocks. Garbage cans should, if at all feasible, be kept inside a garage or shed with the door shut at night. The better, the less easily accessible your rubbish is.
Even if raccoons are unable to access your trash, the smell may still draw them. When disposing of waste that has a strong odor, such raw meat, place it in a plastic bag first to keep the scent in check.
Remove possible food sources
If you have trees that provide nuts or fruits, raccoons may also find food in compost piles, bird feeders, pet food bowls, or even just on the ground. If you want the raccoons to keep away from your property, find all potential food sources there are and eliminate them.
Get a compost container with a tight-fitting lid for compost piles. If at all feasible, keep it inside a garage or shed. If you don’t want to use a container, think about enclosing the pile with an electric fence. Regular fencing won’t be sufficient to keep raccoons away because they love to climb.
Raccoons are nocturnal animals, so if you bring your bird feeders inside at night, they won’t be able to access them. As an alternative, you can build a raccoon guard around the bottom of the pole or hang the bird feeder from a short, thin pole that raccoons can’t climb.
Never leave pet food out overnight in its bowls. If possible, feed your pets indoors (or in the garage), but if that isn’t an option, bring their bowls inside before it gets dark.
For fruit and nut trees, pick up any dropped fruit and nuts as soon as you can, ideally every day. You never know which night will be the one where raccoons visit your area in search of a meal.
Protect your fruits and veggies
A fruit tree, berry bush, or vegetable garden in your yard may serve as a significant additional source of food for the neighborhood raccoons. Raccoons can be prevented without removing your garden, but you may still build up a barrier to keep them out.
Installing an electric fence around your garden is the most efficient technique to keep raccoons away from your prized fruits and veggies. In this situation, an electric fence is more accurately described as a section of electrified wire. Raccoons shouldn’t be severely injured by an electric fence’s shock, but it should be enough to scare them away. To prevent raccoons from jumping over it, install two strips of electric fence around your garden, one approximately 6 inches off the ground and the other about 12 inches above the ground.
WARNING: If you have outdoor pets or young children that play in your yard, an electric fence might be dangerous. To prevent raccoons from consuming your fruits and vegetables, try planting plants with prickly vines or thorny branches around them as an alternative to an electric fence. Just watch out for the thorns when gardening!
Block access to hiding places
Raccoons prefer to hide out in enclosed, dark areas. That includes places with thick enough brush to offer cover, such as the crawl space under a deck or porch, deep inside a huge tree, and other similar areas.
Find any hiding places on your property that would be suitable for raccoons and seal them off with fencing or other barriers to prevent them from entering. Use wire mesh, sheet metal, or some other strong material to seal up the areas under your house so that raccoons can’t readily rip it open. To lessen cover, keep bushes clipped and well-kept.
Eliminate water sources
Look for items on your property that the raccoons might use as a watering hole as you search for prospective food sources and hiding places. Do you, for instance, have a pool, koi pond, bird bath, or other water feature? Or does your yard have a bin or container that could get wet when it rains?
If you have a raccoon issue, you should cover water features, including swimming pools, at least at night, with a sturdy material. This is crucial for fish ponds in particular. Raccoons will go fishing in addition to drinking the water.
Raccoons will stop hanging around in your yard if you are able to remove all sources of food, water, and shelter.
Treat your lawn for grubs
Has your lawn been disturbed by raccoons digging holes? They are probably looking for grubs, which are small beetle larvae that feed on grass and dwell in the soil. Once the raccoons learn that their favorite all-you-can-eat buffet is closed, they may decide to leave on their own if you take care of your food issue first.
Other indications of a grub infestation, besides holes in your lawn caused by raccoons and other predators, include:
- Browning or yellowing grass
- Grass that easily lifts itself out of the ground
- a squishy sensation when walking on grass
Find out how to get rid of grubs in your lawn if you see these symptoms. That could also be the solution to getting rid of your raccoon problem.
Scent repellents
Raccoons can detect your waste from great distances thanks to their keen sense of smell. But you can benefit from their perceptive noses. There are numerous strong odors that can confuse their senses and deter raccoons.
Raccoons dislike the following odors, which you can apply in your yard:
- Store-bought deterrents: You may purchase a variety of items online or at your neighborhood garden center that are made to deter animals like raccoons. They typically arrive as liquid sprays.
- Predator pee: Raccoons mistake your land for being dangerous when they smell the urine of predators like wolves, coyotes, or bobcats. You can readily find predator urine for pest management online and in some garden centers, which may come as a surprise to you. Use the urine of the predator that is most prevalent in your area. The best deterrent for raccoons is the scent of a well-known predator.
- Vinegar: If you want a stronger smell, use undiluted vinegar; if you want it to go further, dilute it with water. In any case, pour the liquid into a spray bottle and mist your property with it.
- Ammonia: You may buy this chemical, which is found in urine, online or from a home improvement store that sells pest control products. Place rags or open basins of ammonia outside after they have been soaked in ammonia.
- Crush garlic cloves and scatter them around your property in containers, or combine garlic juice and water to make a repellant spray.
- Cayenne pepper: liberally sprinkle dried cayenne pepper in areas where raccoons might congregate, or create a spray by combining one whole can of cayenne pepper with a gallon of water.
- Blood meal: You may buy this powdered form of dried animal blood online or at a hardware shop. Sprinkle the powder liberally all over your property.
- Plants for cucumbers: Consider growing cucumbers in your garden. They have the extra benefit that you can eat them, and raccoons detest their fragrance. To prevent raccoons from tampering with the other vegetables in your garden, plant cucumbers along the perimeter.
- Irish Spring soap: Grate or split bars of Irish Spring soap into flakes. The flakes or chunks should be liberally scattered all around your property.
- Peppermint oil: To make a repellent spray, combine a few drops of peppermint essential oil with water. For a stronger aroma, you could also use raw peppermint oil, although it would be very expensive.
- Epsom salt: liberally strew it across your property.
To annoy the raccoons’ nostrils and drive them away, you don’t need to cover your entire yard in these aromas. Use the fragrances in areas where you might expect to encounter raccoons, such as adjacent to food supplies, enclosed areas, and other areas. Additionally, you can use the fragrances to form a border around the outside of your property.
Raccoon repellent odors don’t endure forever, it’s important to remember that. You’ll need to reapply the perfumes every few days for long-lasting benefits. Smell repellents aren’t a practical long-term fix because of this. However, they can be useful for driving raccoons away from your home, allowing you time to lock up your garbage cans, tidy up your yard, trim your shrubs, and overall lessen the raccoons’ attraction so they won’t want to return.
Pet owners should be aware that these scents aggravate cats, dogs, and other outdoor pets just as much as they aggravate raccoons. With these odors in the yard, your pets might be reluctant to go outside.
Motion-activated lights and sprinklers
Raccoons can be driven away by sprinkler jets and motion-activated lights, both of which are often simple to install. Set up these motion-activated deterrents in key areas, such as near to garbage cans or under your deck, where raccoons are sure to trigger them.
