Here’s How to Tell If Raccoons Are in the Attic

With raccoon baby season upon us, it’s important to learn how to tell if raccoons are in the attic. At this time of the year, mother raccoons are more likely to seek warm, safe, dry spaces to give birth and take care of their young.

Below, we offer some advice on how to tell if raccoons are in the attic. These surefire signs indicate you have a wildlife problem that needs to be managed immediately.

Noises

Strange noises coming from the attic are one of the telltale signs you have wildlife in your home. However, it can be tough to pinpoint exactly what animal is living up there just by the noises it makes. After all, you could be dealing with mice, rats, possums, squirrels or even bats and pigeons.

Pay close attention, though, and you’ll be able to determine whether or not you’re dealing with raccoons.

Raccoons are big, which means you won’t be hearing light pitter patter sounds or skittering. Instead, you can expect to hear large thumping footsteps. Because raccoons are primarily nocturnal, you’re also more likely to hear the thumping noises after dark, typically at dusk or in the middle of the night.

Raccoons are also quite vocal. You might hear chirping, crying, or growling noises. Raccoon babies in particular have a unique crying and whining sound.

Feces

Another way to tell if you have raccoons in the attic is to look—or sniff—for scat. Raccoons will use one area of your attic as a latrine, rather than leave feces all over the place. Raccoon feces is also foul smelling and you’ll likely be able to smell a small buildup of scat from other areas in your home.

Evidence of Feeding

Raccoons aren’t exactly clean creatures. And they’re definitely messy eaters. Go check out your attic. Even if you don’t see a raccoon, you might find surefire evidence that one is living up there. Specifically, you’ll find evidence of feeding, such as old scraps of food and old bones.

Evidence of Entry

How to tell if raccoons are in the attic? Another area to check is your roof. Though mice, squirrels, and bats only need small openings to get into your home, raccoons need a larger entry point. If raccoons cannot find a big enough hole to get in, they’ll make it.

With their strength and dexterity, raccoons are quite resourceful. They’ll take advantage of any weak point in your roof. They’ll tear open vent covers and pipe coverings. They’ll push open soffits intersections. They’ll tear away roofing tiles and drywall. If a raccoon is in your home, the evidence of its entry will be easy to find.

Raccoon Sightings

Even if you haven’t seen a raccoon in your attic, you might have seen one around your property. Perhaps it’s been sniffing through your garbage can. Or, maybe you’ve witnessed one climbing up or down your downspout or have seen one on your roof. These are all signs that a raccoon is likely living in your attic.

If you’ve seen any of these signs of raccoons in the attic, don’t dismiss them. Raccoons can be destructive. They’re messy. And they are also carriers of dangerous parasites like Baylisascaris and deadly diseases, such as rabies.

Knowing how to tell if raccoons are in the attic is an important first step to wildlife removal. Once you’ve determined that you do indeed have raccoons in your home, you can take appropriate action to humanely evict the animal and any babies. From there you can start the process to clean up, restore your attic, repair damage, and prevent future re-entry.

Do you need wildlife removal services? Request a quote today!