Raccoons In Your Attic: How Do They Get In?

Raccoons and other wild animals seek out warm, safe, and dry areas to live and raise their young. They frequently seek refuge inside people’s homes, particularly attics. You may have a raccoon problem if you hear noises in your attic at night.

You may be curious as to how the raccoons gained access to your attic. Raccoons have excellent climbing skills. They sometimes use a neighboring tree with a long branch that hangs over the house to climb onto a roof. Raccoons can also climb up a downspout or the corner of a house. It is not always essential for raccoons to climb to the top of the home to gain access to the roof or attic. These quick-footed creatures can quickly scale brick walls and even smooth timber surfaces. Aside from the roof, there is another excellent entry place for raccoons. This is in the section of the dormers where there are overlapping wood pieces. Raccoons may use these spots as their entry points.

Raccoons can claw and eat their way into an attic once they’ve climbed onto a roof. They may chew and scratch at a small crack in a soffit or under an eave until it is large enough for them to pass through and get access to the attic.

Every home is unique, which is why it’s crucial to get yours examined by a qualified specialist. A qualified wildlife specialist will be able to identify potential points of access and advise you on how to secure them to keep your property safe. When it comes to finding a den site, raccoons are clever, strong, and tenacious. You may contact your certified humane wildlife removal specialist in removing raccoons from the attic.

What Are The Ways For A Raccoon To Get In Your Attic?

Raccoons are very smart creatures. If there are any open holes in the roof of the house, raccoons will constantly look for them. Even if these holes are small and cannot be passed through by raccoons, they will be chosen because raccoons can change their size to meet their needs. This is facilitated even more by any nearby tree with easy access for the raccoons. Raccoons will find it easier to climb the trees and then enter the house through the attic or roof in this situation. Furthermore, the trees will help their transit and food intake.

Attic raccoon invasions are not only plausible but inevitable for some homes due to climbing skills and an instinct to den in a high position. A raccoon has the same passion for trees and high places that leads it to your attic. The second most frequent option is to use an architectural feature like a downspout or a 4×4 porch post. As long as it’s the proper size and they can climb up with traction.

The following are some of the most typical entry points that a raccoon might use to become an unwelcome house guest.

• Roof-Soffit Intersections Are Being Opened. The regions of your roof where the soffits are located above the section of the roof are known as roof-soffit intersections. Where the top and bottom roofs meet is where these intersections usually occur. Raccoons have an easier time getting in since the soffits are built of thin plastic or aluminum. To get access to the attic, the animal simply needs to use its shoulders to pry open the fragile soffits. They can simply obtain access to the entire attic after the soffit is opened.
• Roof Vents That Have Been Destroyed. For raccoons, destroying your metal or plastic roof vent cover is a straightforward chore. Raccoons can sense the exiting air through these vents, which are on your roof to facilitate air circulation in your attic. This tempts them to enter to take advantage of the warmth, so they’ll work hard to gain entry. Vent covers made of plastic or aluminum are no match for a Raccoon.
• Ripping through the edge of your roof. Raccoons frequently enter through the roof’s edge, where the house and the eavestrough meet. To reach the eavestrough, all melted snow and rain must pass past the roof’s edge. Because of the hard temperatures and high levels of moisture, the roof’s edge becomes worn and deteriorates more quickly. As a result, an opportunistic raccoon can easily tear away or eat at the rotted wood to gain access to your home.
• Going through your chimney. A mother raccoon can nurse her babies right at the bottom of your chimney. Adult raccoons can readily clamber up and down chimneys in search of shelter and protection, as they resemble hollowed-out tree cavities. Raccoons will establish their home on top of your fireplace’s damper once inside. The raccoon-proof chimney caps available at hardware stores do little to keep raccoons out.
• Going through your plumbing mats. The cylindrical vents on your roof are utilized to exhale sewer gases and are connected to your plumbing system. A hole is cut through the roof to extend the pipe outside while installing a plumbing vent. The opening on the roof is normally significantly larger than the pipe to make it easy to run the plumbing. Rubber matting is then used to cover the open area. Raccoons will frequently pull and tear at the rub mat, squeezing into the attic through the hole beneath it.

Will Raccoons Leave The Attic On Their Own?

Raccoons, everyone’s favorite masked bandits from the backyard. They’re adorable, and they seem to be all over the place. Raccoons are an unwelcome visitor for many people. And they don’t seem to go away!

Raccoons, on the other hand, have adapted to coexist with humans. Raccoons, in general, will not leave your property on their own because they have found safety, food, and shelter close to your home. Raccoons commonly eat rubbish, hide in attics or beneath decks, and prey on pets.

The following are some of the reasons why a raccoon will not leave your attic:

• Raccoons can live almost anywhere. Most wild animals are better adapted to specific environments. Beavers prefer to dwell near bodies of water, such as rivers and lakes. Prairie dogs prefer open areas. Rattlesnakes are nearly entirely found in desert areas. Raccoons are one of the few animal species that appear to be unconcerned about their surroundings. They are equally at ease in hot, humid southern summers as they are in frigid northern winters. Raccoons, like humans, can be found in almost any setting. They are extremely adaptable and can live almost anyplace humans can.
• Raccoons are on the lookout for a safe haven. Coyotes are more harmful than humans. Raccoons, at least, believe this. Coyotes, cougars, and bobcats are among their natural predators. Small raccoons are prey for eagles and huge owls. While out at night looking for food, raccoons are chiefly concerned about evading these predators. And they’ve worked out that sticking around humans is the best way to stay relatively safe while hunting for their next meal. Raccoons, like many other animals, like to live in a secure environment. There are fewer predators when there are a lot of people, therefore raccoons are safer. Raccoons are pests, but they’re not stupid, and if they believe they’re safe, they’ll stay.
• Raccoons are continuously on the lookout for food. If all the food a raccoon could ever need is within foraging reach of your land, it is unlikely that it will leave. Raccoons are no exception to the rule that food is a major contributor to unwanted pests. Raccoons are voracious feeders who will eat just about everything. Raccoons are attracted to food that is left out in the open. Everything is on the table, from dog food bowls to fruit trees, soiled recyclables, and even lawn grubs. Raccoons will remain around if there is anything that even faintly resembles food. They’re not likely to leave until all of the food has been consumed.
• Raccoons are looking for a place to call home. Raccoons prefer to feel safe, as we all know. They also enjoy being well-fed. Furthermore, they are slackers. Raccoons do not construct their own nests. A raccoon in the wild will dig a suitable hole in a tree or a rock face and then repair it to make it a comfortable hiding place. The majority of the housework is already done for an urban raccoon. If a raccoon gets into a house, garage, or shed, it will find a ready-made den with plenty of warm insulation. It’s no surprise that raccoons prefer to live in man-made structures that are safe and secure.