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Would you like to know how to keep away raccoons that have taken up residence in your attic or barn? Or would you like those who prowl around your home or business to be able to leave and never come back? Here are some tips that can help you scare them away, as well as a description of the methods that professional exterminators use to capture and relocate these wild animals in the forest.
The importance of keeping raccoons away quickly
Raccoons can be affected by raccoon rabies. The provincial government is implementing a plan to control this rabies variant through surveillance and control activities. 143 municipalities are under close surveillance. Vaccination by airdrop and spraying was carried out in 2019 in the Montérégie region.
If you have a raccoon problem around your home, inside it or in your garage, call on an expert in exterminating wild animals to have them captured and relocated. They know how to keep raccoons away from your home. If you want to try to scare away or capture raccoons on your own to relocate them to the forest, you will have to take great precautions and use highly safe methods.
Remember that you must be extremely vigilant when it comes to managing the presence of raccoons around your home or business. This wild animal is unpredictable, entrusting the task to a raccoon exterminator is the best thing to do. Also, raccoon droppings can give off an unpleasant smell in addition to contaminating the surrounding area, hence the importance of calling a raccoon exterminator.
If homemade methods are no longer enough, or if the raccoon family is already established under your porch, our animal capture service takes over with professional traps, legal relocation and closure of access points to prevent return.
Cut off their food sources
Our second tip for how to keep raccoons away is about food sources. If a raccoon is lurking around your home or business, but has not made its nest in your attic, barn or garage, place your garbage cans in an enclosed area. Or, close them securely with straps, while washing them regularly. Garbage cans are full of food scraps that attract raccoons, so it’s essential to close them tightly with the garbage can lids.
In addition, you should avoid leaving pet food outside at night as well as bird seed, as raccoons are fond of pet food. It should be cut off from any food source as much as possible. Fence your garden with a metal fence (or chicken fence) more than a meter high, fixed on solidly planted posts. This will greatly limit the potential for raccoon invasion.
In the rural areas of the Montérégie, our exterminator team in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu sees a lot of raccoons attracted to gardens, composters and domestic chicken coops, where food sources are difficult to cut off completely.
Scare them away
To better prepare for a raccoon infestation, you can also install lights that detect movement near your garbage cans or garden, or an ultrasonic device (unless you have pets or chickens). Installing sprinklers with motion detectors is also a very good idea if you are looking for ways to keep away raccoons, nocturnal animals.
If you don’t have children or pets, you can also keep raccoons away by using chili peppers, such as habanero pepper. Raccoons hate its smell, as does cinnamon, which is a very unpleasant smelling spice for them. Finally, you can spray a mixture of water, fresh chilies, and cayenne pepper near their crossing points to scare them away.
How do you keep raccoons away from their burrow?
If you know the location of the terrier (under your balcony, in the shed, etc.), make sure there are no babies inside (they are born in May and come out in July) and block the entrances with wire mesh buried deep in the ground.
If raccoons have made their nest in your attic, make sure they are really out when you block the entrances (sofferings and roof ventilation elements) with wire mesh. Before you know how to keep raccoons away from your home, find out if it’s an animal or a rodent in the attic in the first place.
When the raccoons return despite all efforts to exclude, or if you spot a litter in a nest, trapping becomes necessary. Consult our advice on how to capture a raccoon properly (approved cage trap, relocation more than one kilometre away, respect for the breeding period).
Capture and relocation in the forest
A professional exterminator will know how to keep raccoons away permanently. He will be able to find where their nest is located and then capture them using a capture cage with food bait. He will relocate the entire family of raccoons in the forest, far from your home or business, and will be able to effectively block all possible entrances to avoid another invasion. Finally, the exterminator on the South Shore can, if necessary, decontaminate the nest site, which will also remove odours that could attract other raccoons.
Nova Extermination is an exterminator specializing in the capture and relocation of raccoons on the South Shore. Our experienced team of raccoon exterminators knows how to keep them away sustainably, by taking them to the forest. Experienced technicians will be able to find the nests and dislodge any raccoons that are hiding in your home or business.
Seven methods to keep raccoons away
The table below compares practical methods for removing a raccoon from a property, from cost-effective homemade solutions to permanent structural interventions.
| Method | Type | Cost | Duration of effect | Target species |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Constant light on at night | Very low scaring | As long as the lamp is running | Raccoons, skunks | |
| Radio on day and night | Sound scaring | 5 to 7 days | Raccoons especially | |
| Ammonia on rags | Olfactory repellent | Very low | 2 to 4 days | Raccoons, squirrels |
| Motion detector with water jet | Automatic scaring | Moderate | Permanent | All animals |
| Motion detector with ultrasound | Automatic scaring | Moderate | Permanent (but habituation) | Variable |
| Mesh sunk under gallery | Physical exclusion | Moderate | 10+ years | All (definitive) |
| Professional Trapping | High Capture | Definitive | Complex Cases |
The recommended sequence begins with scaring methods (light, radio, ammonia) for 7 to 10 days. If the animal does not leave the burrow, we move on to physical exclusion with trellises. The professional becomes necessary if a litter is present or if the animal shows abnormal behavior.
Three test cases and their resolution
Raccoon that loots the garbage cans every night
The most frequent case in urban and peri-urban areas. The raccoon does not settle down but comes back daily to empty the bags and scatter the waste. Solution: replace garbage cans with self-locking models, store them in a shed or garage until the morning of collection, clean containers weekly to reduce odour. Moderate cost, result in a few days.
Raccoon with burrow under the gallery
More problematic: the raccoon sleeps during the day under the porch, comes out at night to hunt. Outside the calving period (May to August), intervention in two stages: intensive scaring for 7 to 10 days to push the start, then installation of a wire mesh driven 30 cm into the ground and folded outwards in an L-shape to prevent any return. Post-closure check with a flour area on the floor to confirm that no animals have become trapped.
Raccoon that regularly enters the garage
Typical case of a garage with a poorly sealed door on the ground. The raccoon comes in at night to drink from bowls left on the ground or explore. Solution: Install a steel brush broom seal at the bottom of the garage door (eliminates access), remove any water or food sources from the garage, and install a motion sensor with a water jet near the door for the first few weeks. Results in 1 to 2 weeks.
Why a Raccoon Comes Back So Fast
Many owners notice that a raccoon hunted comes back in less than a week, or that another takes its place quickly. Three biological factors explain this phenomenon and guide the actions to be taken to break the cycle.
Expanded spatial memory
The raccoon is an intelligent mammal with an excellent memory of places. A regular food source (accessible garbage can, bird feeder, open composter) is memorized and included in its hunting route for several years. As long as the spring remains accessible, the animal continues to visit it, even after several occasional scares.
High population density in the city
Quebec’s urban areas are home to up to 100 raccoons per km², according to studies by the Société de la faune. If you chase one individual, several others in the vicinity can quickly take their place. This is why eliminating the source of attraction is more effective than eliminating a particular raccoon.
Annual Dispersal Cycle
In September-October, the young raccoons leave their birth territory to look for their own habitat. This is the peak period for new installations. Strengthening prevention just before this period (August) avoids the majority of the problems of the following year.
Questions
What attracts raccoons to a house?
Four main sources of attraction for raccoons:
- Unsecured garbage cans : Raccoons lift standard lids in seconds.
- Bowls of water or pet food left outside overnight.
- Vegetable gardens and fruit trees (cherries, apples, grapes) in season.
- Shelters under galleries, sheds or stoops that offer a comfortable and dry burrow.
Open composters are also a raccoon magnet. Reducing these sources is the first lever of repellent, more effective than repellents.
What natural repellents keep raccoons away?
Three substances are relatively effective: ammonia on cloths placed near burrows (the smell evokes predator urine), cayenne pepper sprinkled on targeted surfaces (irritates the paws and muzzle), and peppermint essential oil renewed weekly. The effect is temporary (3 to 7 days) and the raccoons get used to it quickly. Combine with physical barriers for a long-lasting result.
How to secure your garbage cans against raccoons?
Four effective techniques: use garbage cans with self-locking lids (standard lids are opened in seconds), place a weight of 10 to 15 kg on the lid (brick, paving stone), store the garbage can in a shed or garage until the morning of collection, and clean the containers weekly to reduce the attractive smell. Wheeled bins with bungee straps usually hold up well.
How do I stop a raccoon from digging under my porch?
Three preventive actions: install a galvanized wire mesh in 12 mm mesh around the entire perimeter of the gallery, driven 30 cm into the ground and folded outward in an L-shape to block the digging, caulk the spaces under the main porch with welded mesh, and eliminate sources of stagnant water around the house that attract raccoons. An inspection each spring after the thaw will identify new holes before the raccoons arrive during the calving season.
What if a raccoon is already living under my porch?
Four steps: confirm the presence with an area of flour or sand on the ground to identify the footprints, identify the period (April to July: probable range, exclusion prohibited), place for a week unpleasant stimuli (radio on, bright light, ammonia) to encourage the mother to move the young, then confirm the departure with the sand area before definitively closing the accesses. If the mother does not move within two weeks, call a certified trapper.
Are raccoons dangerous to pets?
Yes, on several levels. Raccoons can transmit rabies by bite, a disease that currently affects several regions of Quebec and justifies the relocation restrictions active until June 6, 2026. They also carry the raccoon roundworm (Baylisascaris procyonis) which can infect dogs and cats through contact with droppings. Raccoons are also combative if they feel cornered and can seriously injure a small or medium-sized dog.
When to call a raccoon exterminator?
Four situations justify the call: confirmed presence of a litter under the porch or in the attic, diurnal or disoriented behaviour of the raccoon (possible sign of rabies to be reported to the municipality), unsuccessful attempts to keep away for more than two weeks, and any exposure of a human or animal to the raccoon (bite, contact with droppings). A certified trapper has the necessary permits and applies exclusion protocols in accordance with Quebec regulations.
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Our raccoon management team operates throughout the South Shore and the Richelieu Valley. We cover Boucherville (areas bordering the Parc des Îles where raccoons are very present), Brossard in residential areas with a high density of trees, and the entire South Shore. For an urgent problem, call our exterminator in Longueuil at the first sign of damage to the garden.
