Why do animals break in? It is very frustrating when wildlife enter our homes as they are messy, noisy and just plain annoying. Growing up we learn that urban wildlife are generally more scared of us than we are of them, but then why do they become unwanted house guests?
I believe that understanding why animals break in will help us solve this problem. If you check out our post How do animals get in you will find ways which will also help keep urban wildlife out.
2 main reasons for wildlife breaking into houses
Adaptation
Primal needs
1. Adaptation of urban wildlife
Raccoons, squirrels, skunks or opossums are constantly adapting better to urban life. As Toronto grows bigger wildlife have no choice but to adapt to the city, thus becoming less scared of humans. Many people feed raccoons or squirrels in their backyard or in the park, but this isn’t the best approach in dealing with wildlife in the city as they become less scared of us and they get confident approaching closer.
To help discourage wildlife from your property, do not feed them and when putting our your garbage, secure the bins. The new wildlife proof bins being introduced to Toronto should help this. If there are any wildlife animals in your yard, make large noises at them to leave. Inform your children to keep away from wildlife, especially when unsupervised, telling them not to feed them.
2. Primal Needs of urban wildlife
Raccoons, squirrels, skunks and other pests have basic needs that attract them to our homes. Their needs are similar to ours:
Shelter
Food
Heat
Nest
Animals are attracted to our homes as we have fulfilled these needs for ourselves, seeing it as a resource for themselves.
Shelter
Raccoons, squirrels, opossums and skunks all look for dens not just during the cold weather but all year round. Raccoons, squirrels or any pest will take advantage of any weak parts on our homes. They will scratch or chew through wood or any small holes to gain entrance. To stop them gaining access to these areas it is advisable to cut away all tree branches near your home to reduce access and to assess you home several times a year to see if there are any holes or weak points that you should fix. I can’t advise wildlife proofing your home enough, a service SOS Wildlife Control Incorporated provide that is effective and is worth it. No matter how high a fence you put up to protect your property, many wildlife animals have very sharp claws and will burrow under it or find other means to counter-act it. Wildlife proofing includes putting a wire mesh under your fences or porch which restricts animals from digging down to go under. For more information on wildlife proofing please call us on 1800-981-0330
Food
Wildlife are attracted to our homes because of fruit falling from trees, food in trashcans or in compost bins, BBQ leftovers and even pet bowls and bird feeders and more. It is important to clear out fallen fruit, have trashcans with tightly secure lids and take any precautions to ensure that food is inaccessible for wildlife. Soon we will have the new wildlife proof bins being released in Toronto in 2016. Lastly feed pets inside and don’t overflow bird feeders. Every little bit helps!
Heat
The heat escaping from holes in vents and open chimneys attract wildlife. It is important to check how efficient your home is, as it not only attracts critters but it is costing you money.
Below is a video of raccoons being chased by our team from the chimney flue. They are attracted to the heat.
Nest
Twice a year animals have babies but throughout the year wildlife keep an eye out for dens. However in baby season, Spring and Autumn, you will have a higher risk of finding wildlife in your homes as mothers are trying to find somewhere warm and dry to nest for a few weeks. If you do find baby animals in your home, do not touch them. Call SOS Wildlife Control Incorporated immediately as they need to be removed professionally and kept with their mother.
We will always have wildlife within our city environment, and we will have problems with these animals until we take preventative measures to keep them from homes. You can read our other posts on Toronto’s human – wildlife conflict and also Signs that wildlife are in your home already. Once the repairs are done and you begin a regular inspection of your home, we believe your wildlife problems will be over.
Do you hear noises in your attic, or hear scratching in the walls or chirping in your chimney? Then it is more than likely that you have wildlife in your home. In these cases the first step is to find out where exactly they are. The second is to figure out how they get in! Knowing what wildlife animal is on your property will help determine where you need to look.
If you have mice on your property, then it will be tricky to figure out exactly how they are getting. Mice have the capability due to their size and dexterity to squeeze tiny entry ways. They are cunning creatures who find ways to enter through tiny cracks and holes. They dart in open doors and even in windows. Mice are good climbers and if you leave your windows open especially on the first floor it is possible they will enter in to your home.
Seal any gaps in your doors, cracks/holes on the outside of your home or any gaps between the window and the frame. Mice may also enter through vents, chimneys or around access holes created for pipes and cables. Sealing holes and cracks and putting screens on vents and chimneys is the best way to keep mice out. And don’t forget to keep your doors closed.
Although larger than mice, rats similar to mice can fit through very small holes. They can inhabit very small nooks and crannies inside a house, from walls to ceilings, crawl spaces and attics. Rats excretion as you will know is very dangerous, so it is vital if you have rats you have them removed and closely inspect for your house for their entry points. It is not always easy to spot entry points, but a brown grease marks is usually an identifier for it if used often. For rats, you may have to crawl into tight spots or in some cases dig which is why it is highly advised to hire a professional to get rid your rat problem.
Raccoons are extremely intelligent animals who have adapted to city and urban life in Toronto too well. Raccoons have different vision from humans. They are able to see the heat escaping from your home and approach that weak area and get inside. They might rip open a soffit or go through an open vent, tear a hole in the wall or even just climb through your pet door. Not only do they have great sight but they have a great sense of smell, so do not leave any pet food about as this attracts them and may lead the raccoons into your home. Below are common areas for raccoon entry. It is recommended to inspect these areas at least twice annually to make sure there are no holes or any weak areas that need to be replaced.
Squirrels, like raccoons enter through holes in the roof, rip soffits, go through an open vent, chimney or through a hole in the wall. Squirrels are usually more frightened of you than you are of it, so try making loud noises or play ongoing music or call a professional. Covering entry holes with metal mesh, capping chimneys and trimming trees back from your home will help keep them out. The above diagram shows entry points for raccoons as well as squirrels. These areas on your roof should be inspected twice annually to monitor and replace any weak areas.
Opossums are pests because they will do anything to break into your home. If a opossum learns you have food, in some cases they will return on a daily basis and cause havoc. Opossums will make a nest in your home by chewing through the exterior of your house to get into your walls, garage, attic etc. If opossums invade your home they can chew through wood, drywall, gnaw on electrics and rip up all insulation in your home. To prevent opossums from entering, remove all food sources, secure your garbage and put a wire mesh around your yard or house buried at a foot deep to stop them digging under it.
Always check for babies before removing an adult, and do not remove an adult and seal off the entry points as the babies will starve and die. The babies need to be humanely removed and reunited with their mother who will take them to another nest.
As explained, services and methods depend on the situation, the type of animal and how they get in. It is highly advised to wildlife proof your home, this involves sealing all vents and weak areas of your home with mesh. Surrounding your home with a foot deep mesh that will help prevent wildlife from digging under your home and gaining entry. You should check your home regularly throughout the year to see if there are any sign of animals trying to enter your home as the best method for wildlife control is prevention.
Animal Control and Wildlife Control are terms that differ on many levels and are often mixed up. Understanding the difference between the two will help you receive the correct information and get in contact with the right help.
Animal Control handles mostly domestic animal cases, like dogs or cats
Wildlife Control deals with wildlife like raccoons, squirrels, skunks, bats etc. and are handled by private companies when on private property.
Animal Control
In Toronto and the GTA, animal control is handled by the city, who are responsible for preventing cruelty to animals, enforcing animal cruelty bylaws and housing stray animals.
They often provide the following:
Pet licensing
Animal Welfare
Unwated animals
Barking Complaints
Animals running at large
Adoption
Helping homeless, hungry or hurt animals
Here are several organization who can help you with animal services
For information on pet safety, food safety for pets, pet-proofing, and natural disaster prep for pet owners check out this great Pet Safety Guide by Expertise.
Wildlife Control
Wildlife control technicians handle animals who are generally seen in the wild and are not domesticated.
SOS Wildlife Control Incorporated provides the following services:
Animal control and wildlife control differ in the animal species they manage, but they both promote and protect the health and safety of people and animals. Both animal and wildlife control organizations should be professional and humane; to be well versed and familiar not only with wildlife regulations and species conservation but also with laws, rules and regulations relevant to wildlife management.
There are two main options to solving a wildlife problem – do it yourself or call a professional.
As a professional I will always advise using our services than doing it yourself, but that being said I do get a lot of phone calls from customers where it just ends up they only need advice as they can easily solve it themselves with the right knowledge. However this is the main reason I advise hiring a professional – knowledge.
As a professional, with the amount of times I’ve seen things done incorrectly or inhumanely, I would always recommend calling for wildlife removal services. That being said, it is a common occurrence that we receive phone calls from people requesting advice so that they can tackle it on their own. When conducting wildlife removal, it’s always safest to call a professional because one of the main differences between DIY methods and calling a service are two things main things, knowledge and experience.
Handling wildlife problems without experience or knowledge can be dangerous. As recently reported in the Town of Oakville were three dogs who died and three dogs were seriously ill after eating poison a neighbor planted carelessly to get rid of local wildlife.
The individual planted rat poison around trees to get rid of squirrels but unfortunately the neighbors pets were victim. As a huge dog lover and an advocate for the humane treatment of animals, I would be devastated if any animal (or human) got poisoned due to my neighbor’s carelessness.
Without knowledge or experience, anybody can fall victim putting their own and other people’s health and safety at risk. It is unfortunate that a decision made by their neighbor has devastated these houses which could have been avoided with proper research into more humane, non-lethal solutions. You can read more on the story on Global News.
In general SOS Wildlife Control Incorporated takes one of two approaches for wildlife problems (or a combination).
The main and preferred approach is to install one-way doors at entry-points to allow animals to leave the building, and to prevent re-entry.
The second is live trapping. We snare or trap the animal and then release back into the wild a kilometer away in accordance to Ontario rules and regulations.
These approaches sound very easy but it takes experience and knowledge of the animals to do it correctly. If there are babies involved separate precautions must be taken. The mother must be initially removed and later relocated with her babies, the humane method of wildlife removal with babies. If you have a wildlife problem, call us for advice or help – 647-994-9453 or email us at info@soswildlife.ca.
Do-it-Yourself Wildlife Removal Tips
As much as we recommend calling wildlife technicians, we are aware of the stride people take on their own. Below are a couple tips for Do-it-Yourself wildlife removal.
If the animals pose no immediate threat to health and safety, then residents may choose to wait until the adults and any young have left the home or property, and then close the access point to prevent re-entry. Residents taking this approach must ensure that all young animals have left the nest or den, which normally means waiting until the young are weaned.
Read up on your local animal legislation before attempting to do it yourself. Ontario has strong animal welfare legislation, enforcing strong laws and tough penalties. In Ontario it is an offence to cause or permit distress to an animal.
“Their goal is to ensure Ontario’s animals are protected and treated in the humane manner that our society expects”.
Ministry of Natural Resources, 2015.
It’s against the law in Ontario to even own a trap that can catch anything bigger than a rat. Any device big enough to kill a raccoon or any use of poisons to kill these wild animals could also snare the neighbor’s cat or worst case scenario a toddler. The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) recommends hiring a licensed professional to trap and remove the animal.
Trapping is a common tactic for urban wildlife management in Toronto, but the most effective way of controlling pests like raccoons, skunks, mice, rats, or squirrels is prevention. Preventing the wildlife from entering your home can be much more effective than live trapping. Please check out our video on wildlife proofing your home.
“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.”
-Mahatma Gandhi
The shooting of the Newmarket black bear on Monday, June 1st, has outraged the public of Ontario, and rightly so. The citizen’s of Ontario are now petitioning the government to formally review the policies and actions of the police and Ministry of Natural Resources in regards to wildlife conflict response. The policies and procedures in place are obviously not adequate regarding safe and ethical practices when dealing with the preservation and protection of wildlife.
The MNR have strict laws and guidelines for wildlife control, however the shooting of the Newmarket bear shows a failure in the system that needs to be addressed. On the MNR website you are advised to contact “Bear Wise” or the police if you have a bear problem. The Newmarket bear was roaming the streets for two days before the police responded and by the time MNR officials were ready to respond, the bear had been shot dead by police.
With the austerity cuts in 2012 the public education programs under Bear Wise were cancelled and staff was cut from 48 officers to 21 which may have resulted in the delay. Unfortunately the 2015 budget outlines, another 5.5 per cent cut to all government programs except essentials such as health care and education. That means the MNR is about to be stretched even thinner. Nonetheless, proper protocol and training should be enforced. All wildlife removal needs to be humane by law. Private Wildlife Control companies like SOS Wildlife Control Incorporated use humane wildlife control techniques for Raccoon Removal, Squirrel Removal, Skunk removal, Bat Removal, Bird Removal.
A new petition has been started by the outraged public for the government to correct the policies and procedures in place. You can read more about it and sign up here.
For further information on how people and bears can co-exist check out Bear With Us. Bear With Us Sanctuary and Rehabilitation Centre for Bears was formed by Mike McIntosh, who has been making his rounds educating people and assisting with conflict resolution. It may be an idea that the MNR collaborate with the sanctuary to avoid a future system failure.
Ontario is and has been facing human wildlife conflict. Constantly, wildlife are breaking into people’s property resulting in wildlife being mistreated treated by humans. From our experience, it is very sad to see what some people are capable of doing to animals, but fortunately there are still a large population of people who respect wildlife and promote humane treatment.
Wildlife, like raccoon’s, squirrels, skunks, and opossums all exist in Toronto, bringing a little bit of nature to the hustle and bustle of the city. With food readily accessible in trash bins and gardens plus the disruption of their natural habitat, we can hardly blame them for helping themselves as they adapt to an urban lifestyle. Toronto has become overpopulated with wildlife in the city as there is no natural predators to keep a balance which the reason for a human-wildlife conflict. So why are these animals not being killed to resolve the human-wildlife conflict? Why are these pests removed from our homes and released a mile away?
We believe and support in humane solutions and so do Ontario legislation. Ontario has strong animal welfare legislation, enforcing strong laws and tough penalties. In Ontario it is an offence to cause or permit distress to an animal.
“Our goal is to ensure that Ontario’s animals are protected and treated in the humane manner that our society expects” Ministry of Natural Resources, 2015.
According to Ontario rules and regulations, to even own a trap that can catch anything bigger than a rat is illegal. Any device big enough to kill a raccoon or the use of poisons to kill these wild animals could also end up injuring someone else including pets. The Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) recommends hiring a licensed professional to trap and remove the animal.
Trapping is a common practice of urban wildlife management in Toronto, but the most effective way of controlling nuisance wildlife like raccoon’s, skunks, mice, rats, or squirrels is prevention. Preventing wildlife from entering your home can be much more effective than live trapping.
Toronto Human Wildlife Conflict
The large population of wildlife in Toronto can be associated with the introduction of the green bins a few years ago. The green bins provided the animals with a one stop shop for food which seems to have correlated with the increase in wildlife population.
To tackle this problem the government are providing Toronto residence with the next generation green bin which is larger, more sturdy and has improved animal resistance features. You can see the new bin below and the size difference in comparison to the older green bin. We should see this bins fully introduced later this year / early 2016.
Below is a video of the new green bins put to the test with raccoon’s. I have to be honest when these bins were first introduced I was very skeptical as raccoon’s are very intelligent. I guess they will have to be put to the test so we can find out!
Although this is a humane step the City of Toronto has taken to tackle the city’s wildlife problem, this alone is not enough to deal with Toronto’s wildlife problem. Recent talks by the City have further recommended “human behavioral contributors to urban wildlife issues.” to help mitigate the wildlife conflict. This still has to get approval from the full council and it will be about addressing the human behavior to urban wildlife issues rather than implement programs that attempt to control wildlife populations.
Educating people on their behavior is a great step in learning how to deal with human-wildlife conflict. This humane response would involve compassion and respect and preclude cruelty and avoid suffering or injury to the animals. Educating the public to understanding the animals’ characteristics and needs and learn how to wildlife proof your home and property will help us take a non-lethal approach leading to a peaceful coexistence. Urban wildlife is an important element of the city life and it is important to appreciate the diversity of these animals. When they are prevented from being a nuisance, they can add an important aspect to living in the city.
The Fur-Bearer Defenders, an organization who promote co-existence with wildlife will be on Wits and Pieces on Rogers Television in Ontario tonight from 7 to 7:30 pm! They will be discussing Toronto’s wildlife conflict, the City of Toronto’s plan for managing this conflict, and answering any questions viewers may have. Please watch and get involved as everyone’s views and opinions may help resolve this issue!
