Picture the scene: you walk out into your yard in the middle of the night to get some air, or perhaps look at the stars and see a raccoon eating your pet’s food.
Thoughts start racing, like how should I get rid of it? Should I call someone? Is it safe to leave that food out there? And could my dog scare it?
This article will answer those valid questions. But briefly the answers are:
Humanely.
Yes.
No.
Yes, but best to avoid it.
Now, let’s break down those answers for you.
How do you get rid of raccoons or scare wildlife?
Humanely and carefully.
Raccoons, and any other wild animal you might encounter on your property, aren’t there to actively harm you; instead, they’re just looking for food, water, and shelter. Same as you.
And while some of these critters may become aggressive if they feel threatened or cornered, most will leave you alone if you leave them alone. As such, they don’t deserve to be harmed or killed because they happened to find food on your property.
Instead of using your dog to scare wildlife, consider hiring a wildlife removal company that handles animals humanely by trapping and releasing them in a safe location.
Should you call for help?
Reaching out to a wildlife removal company is the best, most efficient way to eliminate wild animals from your property. It offers 100% guaranteed efficiency, with the wildlife removal team also being able to advise you on future prevention techniques.
Not only that, but a company like Metro Wildlife Control knows how to take care of unwanted wildlife while avoiding infection or an attack.
Is it safe to leave dog food out?
No. Leaving your dog’s food and water bowls out overnight attracts nocturnal wild animals. Of course, they’ll come to inspect free food and water.
Always bring pet bowls indoors before locking up for the night. Similarly, picking up fruit, nuts, and seeds from your yard might be a good idea because they can also attract wild animals.
Can dogs scare wildlife?
Dogs, especially bigger breeds, could easily scare wildlife like raccoons, mice, or squirrels (all common nuisance wild animals on human properties). That’s because these animals don’t want to fight, despite what you may think. They don’t want to challenge you since you’re a lot bigger and probably not with your dog if it’s a big, massive dog.
But relying on your dog to scare wildlife can be dangerous.
When nuisance animals like raccoons or skunks feel threatened or cornered, they go into fight or flight mode. If your dog pursues or confronts the animal, it may have no choice but to attack. That can mean biting, scratching, or other violence that can cause severe injury to your pet.
But it gets worse.
In some more extreme cases, wild animals like raccoons often carry serious diseases, like tularemia and rabies. Your dog can become infected in an altercation.
Your dog could be exposed to fatal venom from intrusive animals like snakes.
So while your pet could scare away wild animals from your property, using your dog is perilous.
Instead, if you’re concerned about wild animals on your property or actively dealing with an invasion, the best thing to do is reach out to a wildlife removal company.
Keep your pet indoors while there’s a wild animal loose on your property to protect it from an altercation.