I went out to my rental house about 5 days ago to check some things out for the renters, and I found raccoons in the attic. At first I wasn’t sure if they were cats or raccoons, but after setting up a camera outside, I know its raccoons. I watched them crawl up the drain pipe on the side of the house and up to the rafters. Well, being as intelligent and cunning as I am, I sneakily slid a board in front of the hole they were using to get into the attic. Point 1 for me.
As it turns out, that was a mistake. For about 3 or 4 days after I blocked the entrance to the attic, it was silent. I was pleased with my handiwork and the tenants were happy that the problem had been seemingly taken care of. Well last night, the raccoons wanted out of the attic, and they wanted out badly. I don’t know if they ran out of food or they got impatient or even if they were going stir crazy up there, but they found a way out. Since they couldn’t get through the old way, they scratched and chewed themselves a new hole through the ceiling into the back room, which wasn’t quite big enough.
Now I have a video of a raccoon stuck in a hole, AND another raccoon very angry still in the attic. Luckily, the raccoon stuck in the hole wriggled its way out after a few hours and plopped onto the carpet and out the backdoor that we’d opened (point for the raccoon), but there’s still one more up there. The renters got so fed up with the whole situation that they moved the board that was keeping them out, but also in (another point for them)! Well now I’m not sure if there are more in the attic or if the one got out, but I do know that it’s easier to patch a hole the first time then to try and beat the raccoons in the attic.