If something big is walking across your ceiling after dark, you’re probably not imagining it. Raccoons are strong, persistent animals, and a roofline with a weak spot or an uncapped chimney can look like a perfect den to them. Once one moves in, the noise, the mess and the damage tend to grow the longer it stays.
Critter Catchers handles raccoon removal and exclusion from our home base in Acworth, Georgia, for homeowners and businesses across North Georgia. We find out where the raccoon is getting in, check for babies, remove the animals and seal up the entry points so the problem doesn’t start over next season.
Raccoon Inspection • Removal • Exclusion • Entry-Point Repair
Call (770) 424-3080 for Raccoon Removal
Most people hear raccoons before they ever see one. Raccoons are mostly nocturnal, so the activity usually picks up in the evening and continues through the night.
Common signs of raccoons in or around your home include:
Sound is often the best clue. Squirrels are busy during the day and make light, quick scurrying sounds. Raccoons are much heavier, so what you hear at night sounds more like someone walking around up there.
If you hear a high pitched chirping or mewing in the spring, that can mean a mother raccoon has kits in the attic or chimney. That changes how removal should be handled, so let us know when you call.
Getting rid of raccoons for good means more than setting a trap. We figure out how the raccoon is using your home, whether young are involved, and which openings need to be closed so another animal can’t move right back in.
We look at the roofline, chimney, vents, soffits, crawl space and anywhere else raccoon activity has been reported. We're looking for the entry point, signs of damage and any clues that a mother and kits are inside.
Whether there are kits changes everything. Based on where the raccoons are and what we find, we choose the right removal approach for your home and the time of year.
The raccoons are removed using appropriate trapping and removal methods. When babies are present, we make sure the whole family is accounted for so no young are left behind.
Once the animals are out, we close and repair the openings they used, such as damaged vents, soffits, roof returns and chimney openings.
Exclusion work targets other weak spots raccoons could use next. The result is a longer lasting fix than just catching the animal that happens to be in your attic today.
An attic gives a raccoon everything it’s looking for: a dry, quiet, protected place to sleep and raise young. Chimneys and crawl spaces offer the same thing, which is why those three spots account for so many of the raccoon calls we get.
Raccoons are excellent climbers. They can go up a downspout, a tree limb, a corner of brick or a porch post and be on your roof in seconds. From there, they look for anything they can pull open with their hands.
Areas raccoons commonly use to get inside include:
In a chimney, raccoons often settle on the smoke shelf just above the damper. In a crawl space, they may nest against insulation or ductwork. Wherever they are, finding the entry point is just as important as removing the animal.
In Georgia, most raccoon babies (called kits) are born in the spring, usually from about March through May, with some later litters in summer. A mother typically has three to five kits, and they stay in the den for roughly two months before they’re ready to follow her outside.
This is the time of year when a lot of homeowners run into trouble. If you trap and remove the mother while the kits are still in the attic or chimney, the babies are left behind. They’ll cry, they’ll starve, and the situation gets worse for everyone.
Critter Catchers handles mother raccoons and babies with a plan built around both. We locate the kits, remove the family together, and only then seal the entry point. That way no young are trapped inside, and the mother isn’t tearing at your roof trying to get back to them.
If you think there are babies, don’t seal anything yet. Call us first.
Raccoons are big, strong and good with their hands. When a raccoon wants into a space or out of one, it can do real damage in a single night.
Raccoon activity can affect:
Raccoons can peel back shingles and rip open roof vents to get into an attic. That also opens the door for rain and leaks.
Walking, nesting and latrine use can flatten and soil insulation, which can reduce how well your attic holds heat and cool air.
Soffit panels and fascia boards are common targets. Raccoons can push in soft or loose sections and pull them apart.
Raccoons in crawl spaces and attics sometimes tear into flexible ducts, which can waste energy and pull odors into the house.
Wires in the attic can be chewed or pulled loose. Any suspected wiring damage should be checked by a qualified electrician.
Uncapped chimneys are a favorite den site. Nesting material and debris can block the flue, so have it checked before your next fire.
The sooner raccoon activity is found and handled, the less time the animals have to tear up your home.
Raccoons climb downspouts, trees, fences and corner brick with ease, so any part of your roof is within reach.
They don’t need a big hole to start with. A raccoon can pry at a loose vent or soft spot until it opens wide enough.
Chimneys without a cap are like an open door. From a raccoon’s point of view, it’s a ready made hollow tree.
Raccoons remember a good den. If the opening isn’t properly sealed, the same raccoon or a new one is likely to try again. That’s why exclusion matters so much.
For most homeowners, it’s better not to.
Raccoons are one of the wildlife species most associated with rabies in Georgia, and a cornered or trapped raccoon will bite and scratch. Their droppings can also carry raccoon roundworm, a parasite that can make people and pets seriously ill.
Georgia also has rules about trapping raccoons and where wildlife can be moved and released. Depending on the time of year and the situation, a permit from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources may be required. Trapping during baby season adds another problem: catching the mother can leave kits behind in your attic or chimney.
And even if you do catch the raccoon, the opening it used is still there. Without exclusion work, you’ll likely be dealing with another one soon.
A professional can handle the removal safely, account for any young, and close up the entry point once the animals are out.
Every raccoon job is a little different, so there isn’t one price that fits them all.
The cost can depend on things like:
An inspection lets us see what’s actually going on before we recommend any work. That gives you a real plan and a real number instead of a guess over the phone.
A raccoon in the attic isn’t the same as an ant problem in the kitchen. It’s a large, wild animal that has broken into part of your home, and solving it means understanding both raccoon behavior and how your house is built.
Critter Catchers is based in Acworth, Georgia and provides wildlife removal throughout the surrounding North Georgia and Metro Atlanta area.
Our raccoon removal approach focuses on:
We treat the raccoon and the opening it used as one problem, because fixing only half of it rarely lasts.
Raccoons aren’t picky about who owns the building.
Critter Catchers provides raccoon removal for homes and commercial properties, including raccoons in attics, chimneys, crawl spaces, walls and under decks or porches.
Every job starts by looking at what’s happening at your property, not by assuming every raccoon problem needs the same fix.
Critter Catchers is based in Acworth and provides raccoon removal and wildlife control throughout a wide North Georgia service area. We serve communities throughout:
Cobb County • Cherokee County • Bartow County • Douglas County • DeKalb County • Clayton County • Forsyth County • Fulton County • Gwinnett County • Rockdale County • Paulding County
Wooded lots, creeks and older neighborhoods in these areas give raccoons plenty of places to live, and many of them wander up to houses looking for food and shelter. The goal is the same wherever you are: get the raccoons out and close the door behind them.
The most common signs are heavy thumping or walking sounds at night, chittering or growling noises, torn shingles or vent covers, flattened insulation, a musky odor, and droppings piled in one area of the attic or roof.
Raccoons are heavy, so they sound more like footsteps than scurrying. You may also hear growling, chittering or, in the spring, the high pitched crying of baby raccoons. Most of the noise happens at night.
Sometimes a raccoon leaves to feed at night, but it usually comes back. If a mother has kits in the attic, she won't abandon them. As long as the opening is there, the problem usually isn't over.
Don't seal the opening and don't try to remove the mother on your own. Babies left behind can die inside your home. Call a professional who can remove the mother and kits together before the entry point is closed.
No. Smoke or fire can kill young raccoons that can't climb out, and it can damage your chimney. Raccoons in a chimney should be removed first, then a chimney cap can be installed to keep them out.
They can be. Raccoons can carry rabies, and their droppings can contain raccoon roundworm. A cornered raccoon may bite or scratch. It's best to keep people and pets away from the animal and the areas it has been using.
It depends on where the raccoons are, whether babies are involved, how many entry points need sealing and what repairs are needed. An inspection lets us give you a plan and price based on your actual situation.
Seal entry points once the raccoons are out, cap your chimney, trim tree limbs away from the roof, and secure trash cans and pet food. Professional exclusion work closes the openings raccoons are most likely to use.
Thumping, chittering or a bad smell won’t tell you how a raccoon got in, whether there are babies, or how many other weak spots your roof has.
Critter Catchers can inspect your property, figure out what’s going on and put together the right removal and exclusion plan.
Get the raccoons out and close up how they got in.
