During the spring, summer and fall months families all over Florida enjoy relaxing in their backyard swimming pools. Sometimes an afternoon in the pool is ruined, however, when someone finds animal waste floating in the water. The culprit is often a raccoon.
Why Raccoons Like Pools
Raccoons are naturally drawn to water. They are attracted to bodies of water such as streams and lakes. They often wash their hands and food in water.
Raccoons like to hide their feces and often defecate in water. If a stream or lake is not close by, they may use a pool as a toilet instead. Raccoons are more likely to use a pool to defecate if there are steps leading down into it. Obviously, this creates an unpleasant situation for homeowners.
What to Do If You Have a Raccoon Problem
If a raccoon is leaving waste in your pool, you need to act immediately before it causes a huge mess, clogs your pool’s filter, and makes your family sick. According to the CDC
Raccoon feces can sometimes contain the eggs of a worm called Baylisascaris procyonis, which can infect humans, particularly children, and cause severe neurological illness. The best strategy is to live-trap the raccoon and move it to another location a safe distance from your home, so you will not need to worry about it coming back.
You should not try to catch a raccoon yourself. Raccoons can bite and scratch if they feel threatened, which can cause serious injuries. Raccoons also sometime carry rabies, and you could be infected through a bite.
Call Miller’s Wildlife Services for Help
The best way to deal with a raccoon in the pool in the backyard of your Florida home is to call the professionals at Miller’s Wildlife Services. We will come to your home and set up traps to catch the raccoon. We use humane, environmentally friendly methods. We do not employ poisons or pesticides or harm the animals we capture in any way. After we have caught the raccoon, we will relocate it to another place, so you will not need to worry about it coming back.
There is always plenty of time to enjoy your pool in Florida. If you have a problem with a raccoon leaving waste in your pool, act now. Call Miller’s Wildlife Services so we can trap the raccoon and relocate it and you can enjoy your pool for the rest of the summer. Contact us today to get a free estimate on raccoon removal services.
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