the main conflict between people and
raccoons is when raccoons use human
resources to meet their own needs and
ends raccoons are the quintessential
generalist they really can live in a
whole variety of habitats in Washington
DC they see urban areas as opportunities
has rich and resources for them and they
kind of move in so they move into
buildings when there are structural
defects that they can exploit they hope
den and chimneys they'll den in paddocks
look at Birth the babies they're people
either try to solve the problem
themselves usually with horrible
consequences or they hire a professional
company who comes out in traps and
removes the animals because we've had
rabies moved through this area the
governmental folks will not allow
records to be moved and relocated so
those animals have to be euthanized
a long time ago we decided we need an
alternative model to the trap and kill
and it focuses on the diction exclusion
removal and reunion leaving these
animals in their known territorial home
range areas so they still have access to
all the resources they need to survive
in that procedure we usually chase the
adults out of the house and then put up
a screen to keep them from regaining
entry and that's it the job's done they
go on their way now with babies we
remove them put them in a specially
constructed box we call the reunion box
and then mom whom we we have chased out
she'll come along that night or
sometimes even sooner find your babies
and move them out
we've seen with putting the reunion
boxes back up on roofs kind of two types
of mothers the frantic ones will come
back and don't know how to get in the
box and just go absolutely crazy and
dessert and then the calm ones who come
back and look at the box and kind of
figure out where the entrance is go in
get their babies and move them very
calmly with we think the idea already in
their head that I know where I'm going
I'm going to take my babies and I'm
going to put them in this other den that
I feel is secure
through the work that we did with
National Geographic we had access to
very high-tech camera that was able to
record sequences and tell us more about
how these animals met these challenges
that we confronted them and what we
needed to do to make things better and
more humane for them out there
Oh
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