Raccoon in the backyard

[CatMom1994]

I saw a raccoon in my backyard today. My mom said she saw it yesterday too. It just walked around exploring but made eye contact with me while sitting on the patio. The closest it came to my sliding glass door was less than five feet. It went in and out from under fences, so keeping the back gate closed would be useless. Luckily it was not there earlier when gutter installers worked on the back of our unit. We have also seen it crossing our street once and I know it has been here a few other times since the roofing project began. Mom will call the HOA president tomorrow about a sewage pipe problem and tell her a raccoon came here at that time.

Can anyone explain what would attract a raccoon to the yard now? All roofers are required to clean up their messes every day in the contract so no trash is left behind for any animal to get into, but I never saw it until last month. Unfortunately it often gets into a filodendron (huge green leaves and stems, no flowers) pot to sniff the plants. I had that plant for years with no problems. But as an animal lover, there is no way I can report a harmless raccoon to pest control and the plant is still fine.

 

[linda2147]

if you see a racoon or a skunk wandering around in the daytime its probably sick. stay away from it. They carry rabies and will attack you if they are sick. best to call animal control and let them handle it

 

[CatMom1994]

I only see it in the daytime. It looks healthy to me.

 

[Alpha1]

We had a raccoon breaking into our garage years ago, when we kept dry dog food in there, made quite a mess a few times. We caught him in there one night and he climbed up the siding onto the rafters, look a leak on my husband. We just left the door to the back yard open and left him alone, he wasn't there in the morning. There attracted to any type of food, they were in the front by the street too, a neighbor was setting out cat food for some reason, not sure if she owned a cat.

Seems they can be out in the daytime, here's an article from the humane society which tells of the signs of being rabid.
https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/raccoons-and-public-health

 

[mechi2]

if you see a racoon or a skunk wandering around in the daytime its probably sick.

Not so, we have raccoons walking around in the yard during the day. They are most active in the evening but they still come out during the day. I've only seen skunks several times and it was during the day also, a family of them.

 

[CatMom1994]

I never saw a skunk and don't know if they live in Florida.

 

[CatMom1994]

Does anyone know why a raccoon would visit one of the cleanest properties? Why would it want my backyard instead of where the trash cans are in front? With no changes in what Mom plants or other animals trespassing except the usual lizards, my unit should not be a raccoon hideout.

 

[mechi2]

Maybe it was just passing through or maybe it saw all those workers and came over to see if they left any goodies behind. As long as the raccoon isn't being a nuisance I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[CatMom1994]

Maybe it was just passing through or maybe it saw all those workers and came over to see if they left any goodies behind. As long as the raccoon isn't being a nuisance I wouldn't worry about it.

The HOA hates raccoons being here. It is their responsibility, not mine.

 

[CatMom1994]

The problem is worse than I thought. Mom said everyone in the HOA got an email with instructions not to feed birds because when you feed birds you attract squirrels (which I already knew) and other animals including raccoons. I asked her if there have been other complaints about raccoons. She said people have been complaining about them for months. That surprised me because I have only been seeing one for weeks. It is unknown if I have been seeing the same raccoon every time. The HOA has no interest in paying a company $500 to trap a raccoon. The timing of its arrivals in my yard are coincidental.

 

[CatMom1994]

OMG the latest wildlife update is unbelievable. A trapper will come out here after all - not for raccoons, but a coyote. I do not know when it was in the area or who said what, but there are woods behind the complex. Dog walking is prohibited by the HOA until further notice. While they are at it, people want to get rid of squirrels too. The HOA is headed toward not allowing any warm-blooded wild animals on the property.