Eviction

Well the jig is up, the news is out, the Raccoon neighbours have been found out about!

It was something I knew would eventually happen. It was something that concerned me from the beginning; just on how the property owners would handle this situation.

A quick re-cap. Back in the Spring of 2014, I noticed Squirrels had made a hole in the back section of a neighbour's garage roof. Their garage is detached. We live on a crescent, and this home is actually one street over, but the back part of this garage hangs over the fence next door. The property owners cannot see this section of the garage from the ground on their side.

I was a good neighbour and tried to tell them what was happening. The person I was trying to communicate with did not speak English so I was treated to a couple very strange looks, like I was a 10 headed alien, and then the man just walked away. It was an awkward WTF moment and then I was like "well I tried to tell you" in my head and left it at that. I seldom see these people so whatever.

Spring 2015 a mother Raccoon discovered this hole, made it bigger and used it to have her babies within. The mother and her children lived there through this past winter until she had young again and then the previous year's young moved on.

It's been a real treat this year since "momma" got to be quite used to my presence outside and she either accepted me or ignored me for the most part. As her young grew, their first looks into the wild world outside this roof included me. To them I was part of the territory and they too did the same as mom... accept or ignore.

I enjoyed the many mornings and nights where I was being watched by the Raccoons. For many days at least one was there looking down at me while I filled bird feeders, did yard work or was taking photos of birds (and them).

A few weeks ago some major tree trimming was done over the garages down there. I guess that is when the hole was discovered. But nothing had been done until 2 days ago when someone attached a one way door to the hole. The Raccoons would be able to leave the roof but not get back in.

The silver lining to this is the fact these people actually got a professional who is tackling the situation humanely. The time of year is right as the young are old enough to leave on their own and winter is still a few months away. I do hope they find good shelter elsewhere in the area.

I've heard enough horror stories over the years of how some people deal with situations like this, not having the least bit of concern for the animals and do whatever it takes to get rid of them as fast as possible.

Back in the Spring I saw a Dodge Caravan on the Hwy 401. It was dark blue with the darkest tinted windows a person could possibly get. On the side windows and the back, in duct tape, it said "Wildlife B Gone". The van wasn't in very good condition, rusted bottom, a few dents and big scratches. To me, this paints a crazy visual of a guy with a hammer crawling into an attic going after the Raccoons.

Last night was the first encounter I had with the Raccoons since the door was installed. Momma and the smallest of her litter were on the roof trying to figure out how to get back in. It was sad to watch but I can't blame these people for doing this. If it was us, we most certainly would do the same thing. As much as some think I can talk to the animals, there was no way I could explain to them what was going on. In their mind, this was their home and now it's gone.

I was sitting down by the shed, enjoying my usual Whisky Wednesday. Momma got herself a drink too. They love that water bowl, especially the little one.

I hear Raccoons have more than one sleep spot; hard to believe with these ones since they were here all summer. Obviously they have found another place to sleep the day away. As I said above, I hope it's a good spot... and they stay safe.

Try and not be sad for the Raccoons. This story could have been a lot worse in another neighbourhood, hell, even another house on the street.

A short blog this one was compared to some of my others. I did one a couple days ago but didn't publicize it much. Click here if you would like another read.