Raccoons are generally a pleasant, cute, and unique creature. People enjoy looking at them, spotting them, and hearing them. That is, they enjoy spotting them within their own natural habitat. When a raccoon takes up residence in the attic of a home people do not enjoy seeing or hearing them so much, and with good reason.

Because Raccoons are naturally inquisitive and messy animals, they can cause serious damage to the maintenance value of a home, especially in an attic. Getting Raccoons and other such creatures out of your attic is not an easy task, and many homeowners might be tempted just to simply tolerate the problem. How can raccoons damage an attic? Through various ways. Consider the following:

Raccoons are not clean animals

Unlike a dog or a cat that can be trained, a raccoon is a wild animal, and if they get loose in an attic they will use your attic floor as a latrine. Although some raccoons will do their business in one place, most will leave feces literally all over the attic floor. Removal of these waste products can be difficult because raccoons will use various small enclosed areas. This unsavory habit will cause a serious biohazard in your attic.

Raccoons are destructive

Once a raccoon takes up residence in an attic, they will scavenge various materials for their bedding, including drywall, insulation, and even tear open air ducts. If a female raccoon has young, you can expect them to be bringing back various unpleasant items of food back to your attic as well.

Attics: a terrible location for raccoons

An attic is usually the central location for many important functions of your home. The duct work, the insulation, and the wiring are all usually present within this location. A raccoon can not only seriously compromise duct work and insulation but some have been known to also chew up the wiring in an attic, causing your home serious electrical problems. Moreover, if a raccoon dies in an attic, the decomposition will cause serious odor and biohazard problems as well.