CINCINNATI -- Everyone's had a deadbeat roommate: Someone who lives in their house, refuses to pay rent and makes messes they don't clean up. (No, we still haven't forgiven you, Steve.)
Westside resident Demetra Carr discovered last week that she has at least five -- and evicting them is going to take the help of city pest control. After months of hearing scratching noises in her walls and under her bathtub, Carr recorded a gaze of several raccoons perched comfortably on her windowsill, none of them displaying any intention of moving out.
"This is an unsafe environment," Carr said Monday. "I have a 12-year old in here, and we can not be getting rabies or getting bitten by nothing."
Carr and her landlord now have two options, according to the Cincinnati Health Department: Cut open the walls to evict the grabby-handed little gremlins or set traps to catch them one by one.
According to Health Department officials, a raccoon infestation can be one of the most destructive pest invasions in a family home. They’re known to tear up ductwork, soil insulation and bring disease inside a family home.
The Humane Society of America recommends that families dealing with raccoon infestations either hire a professional to help get rid of the critters or, if possible, use humane sensory 'harassment' techniques, such as playing loud music in the makeshift den, that will make their home an unappealing place for the gaze to remain.
