Raccoon Behaviour and Winter Habitats
No, raccoons do not hibernate but enter torpor, a state of reduced activity where they sleep for extended periods in cold weather. Unlike true hibernators, they wake up and forage on milder days. Seeking warmth, raccoons often take shelter in attics, crawl spaces, and tree cavities. Preventing raccoon intrusion involves sealing entry points and removing food sources like garbage and compost. If raccoons invade, professional removal services ensure safe relocation.
Raccoons are nocturnal and seek warm, hidden spaces like attics, garages, and crawl spaces during winter. They’ve been found in abandoned buildings and vehicles, while in warmer months, they live in tree cavities, hollow logs, and rock crevices. These adaptable creatures can cause structural damage and pose health risks, carrying raccoon roundworm and rabies virus. If threatened, adult raccoons may become aggressive to protect their young. They are also drawn to bird feeders, especially when natural food is scarce, increasing their presence in residential areas.
Purpose and Actionable Advice
This article will answer common homeowner questions about winter raccoon infestations and provide practical advice to manage the issue. It will also outline professional wildlife control solutions for safe and humane removal if these solitary animals are on your property.
What is Raccoon Torpor
Torpor is an adaptive survival strategy in which raccoons enter a state of lowered body temperature and metabolism to conserve energy. Unlike true hibernation, raccoon torpor is brief and occurs in response to cold temperatures and food scarcity. During this state, their heart rate, breathing, and metabolic processes slow significantly, allowing them to endure harsh winter conditions. While their body temperature drops, it remains above freezing, unlike some deep hibernators such as Arctic ground squirrels. This temporary dormancy helps raccoons survive periods of extreme cold without the need for constant foraging.
How Raccoons Sleep
- Raccoons store body fat up in the fall and go into torpor to conserve energy in the winter. Torpor is not a full hibernation but more of a semi-hibernation. Raccoons typically come out of their den only on milder days to forage so it could potentially take longer to humanely remove raccoons, but it can be done.
Nocturnal Winter Habits
- These nocturnal creatures prefer sleeping and use protected dens in the harsh winter conditions as opposed to their natural habitats, reducing activity in extreme weather. The city life noises don’t seem to bother them. In mild times, raccoons will exit to check on food availability, insects, nuts, rotted fallen fruit, etc.
Dormancy vs Complete Inactivity
- Even in dormancy, most raccoons are semi alert and active on warmer days, especially during breeding season so spotting raccoons outside on these milder days is common.
Contact Wildlife Control Services
- Customized Wildlife Control Plans: Tailored solutions for each unique wildlife problem.
- Affordable Raccoon and Squirrel Removal Cost in Toronto
- Emergency Wildlife Removal Services: Availability for urgent wildlife removal emergencies.
- ☎️ Call AAA Affordable Wildlife Control at 416-560-8972 to get prevention strategies that get results.
Is it safe to hire a wildlife control company in the winter?
Challenges of Winter Raccoon Removal
- Winter removals are difficult because raccoons are less active and dormant for longer, making professional intervention the safest because trained wildlife control experts know how long the one-way eviction door should be installed and how to install it so it doesn’t get buried in snow, causing it not to work correctly.
- Accessing all the right areas on the roof can be dangerous in the winter, and the pros will have the safety gear to do the job safely.
Seeking Warmth
In the winter, raccoons prefer warm, sheltered spots like attics, which can slow down removal efforts, especially for nesting females. Additionally, raccoons often use storm drains to travel and access food sources such as trash cans and dumpsters in urban areas, showcasing their adaptability to urban living.
Adjusted Removal Strategies
- Wildlife control experts adjust their methods in winter by finding den locations and entry points while taking into account the presence of young, making DIY removals risky.
Extended Eviction Time
- Limited winter activity and food scarcity can prolong the eviction process especially when young raccoons are present.
Specialized Cold Weather Techniques
- Experienced wildlife companies use specialized techniques and thorough inspections in the cold weather to ensure effective and humane raccoon removal.
Why do I still hear noise in the attic?
The impact of torpor on raccoon activity
- Raccoons’ slowed metabolism can cause sporadic movement
- Periodic arousal from torpor to forage or reposition in dens
Other In Attic Culprits: Mice And Other Pests
- Winter weather can drive mice and other small rodents into the attic and they make louder sounds than most people think is possible
- To tell if it’s raccoon or rodent noise, listen for walking. If you hear loud scratching, but no walking it could be mice.
Other Noise factors
- Temporary disturbance from raccoons searching for new den sites or food
- Noise from raccoons around the one-way door installation area attempting to reenter
New Entry Points: Are My Home Protections Sufficient?
Review your home’s vulnerabilities
- Common entry points: vents, soffits, roof edges and other gaps
- Even after initial remediation, inspect these areas
Invest in comprehensive exclusion measures
- Options to reinforce or upgrade protections (e.g. sealing vents, reinforcing soffits and securing attic access points)
- Continuous maintenance to prevent new entry attempts by raccoons or other pests
Conclusion
- Stay proactive and call our wildlife removal service when needed for humane wildlife management and home protection.
