Fast Facts: Urban Raccoons

• Activity: Mostly nocturnal – heavy movement from dusk through early morning.
• Common den sites: Attics, crawlspaces, chimneys, under decks and sheds, thick vegetation.
• Baby season: Typically late winter through early summer – mothers with litters in tight spaces.
• Damage risk: Torn vents, shredded insulation, droppings & urine, chewed wiring and pipes.
• Health concerns: Droppings and urine contamination, parasites, potential aggression when cornered.
• Control methods: One-way eviction, humane trapping, professional exclusion, and repairs, cleanup & decontamination.

Raccoons are not “just big cats.” They’re powerful, intelligent omnivores with real leverage in tight spaces. The more you understand what they’re doing, the faster you can shut down the dam

Where We Find Raccoons in Southern California Homes

Urban and suburban raccoons treat your home like a deluxe den. They don’t just stick to one area — they use multiple “zones” around your property:

Attic Raccoons

The attic is prime real estate for raccoon moms. It’s dry, quiet, and lined with soft insulation. We often find:

• Nesting bowls burrowed into attic insulation.
• Heavy droppings and urine trails along their main travel paths.
• Damaged ductwork and chewed wiringnear their routes.

Once they’ve used your attic as a nursery, the odor can keep attracting raccoons year after year unless it’s properly cleaned and deodorized. Ask us about pairing removal with attic cleaning and restoration (if you have or plan to build that page).

Crawlspaces, Walls & “Carpenter Gaps”

A lot of raccoon traffic starts under the house. They use the crawlspace as a highway, then climb up inside wall voids and pop out through open eaves, loose soffits, or what we call “carpenter gaps” — those unfinished corners where building trades leave small voids because water can’t get in, but wildlife eventually does.

We routinely combine raccoon removal with crawl space cleaning and deodorizing and exclusion upgrades to seal those hidden routes for good.

Yards, Trees, Sheds & Rooflines

Not every raccoon is in the attic yet. Many of our calls start with:

• Raccoons raiding pet food on porches or in backyards.
• Animals using palm trees, fences, and rooflines as nightly travel routes.
• Nesting under decks, sheds, or elevated patios.
• Raccoons living in commercial roof parapets and warehouse rafters.

Whether they’re already in your structure or circling it, we design a plan that fits the layout of your property and how raccoons are using it.

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Our locate intervine trap Raccoon Removal Process

Every raccoon job is different, but our process is always the same: Inspect → Remove → Seal → Clean. That’s how we stop today’s noise and reduce the odds of tomorrow’s infestation.

STEP 1 · INSPECTION

Full Attic & Crawlspace Inspection

We inspect the roof, eaves, attic, crawlspace, and yard to confirm it’s raccoons, locate entry points, find babies, and document damage. You’ll get a clear explanation of what we found and the options to fix it.

STEP 2 · REMOVAL

Humane Trapping & Eviction

Depending on the case, we use secure cage traps, one-way doors, or during baby season, targeted raccoon pheromone “eviction liquid” to get mom to relocate her babies on her own. All work is performed by licensed trappers in California.

STEP 3 · SEAL

Exclusion & Raccoon-Proofing

We seal roof vents, soffits, crawlspace screens, and carpenter gaps with chew-resistant materials. For bigger structural fixes, we can outline full wildlife exclusion repairs so raccoons can’t just re-open the same holes.

STEP 4 · CLEAN

Cleanup, Sanitizing & Odor Control

After removal, we can clean and deodorize contaminated insulation, attic floors, and crawlspaces, and recommend restoration if damage is severe. This helps protect your family’s health and keeps new raccoons from being drawn back in by scent.

Attic & Crawlspace Cleanup After Raccoon Damage

Raccoons are heavy and messy. One family can crush large areas of insulation, contaminate framing with droppings and urine, and tear vapor barriers in the crawlspace. Leaving the mess behind means:

• Lingering odors that keep attracting new raccoons.
• Higher risk of fleas, ticks, roundworm, and bacteria.
• Reduced energy efficiency from smashed or removed insulation.

As part of our service, we can provide written estimates for:

• Attic cleanup and partial or full restoration – removal of contaminated insulation, spot or full-area sanitizing, and re-insulation where needed.
• Crawlspace cleaning – removal of droppings, soiled vapor barrier, and odor control in tight, low-ventilation spaces.

Learn more about our structural cleanup work on our dedicatedcrawlspace cleaning services page (and your attic/insulation page when live).

DIY Raccoon Repellents vs. Reality

There’s no shortage of internet tips for getting rid of raccoons: lights, radios, ammonia, predator urine, spray bottles, gadgets. In real Southern California neighborhoods, most of these don’t do much.

Urban raccoons grew up around trash trucks, sirens, leaf blowers, streetlights, and human smells. A little mothballs or music in the attic doesn’t scare a mother raccoon that’s already nested in your insulation.

California also has strict wildlife laws about how raccoons can be trapped, handled, and relocated. That’s why any trapping or wildlife work should be done by a licensed trapper in the State of California who understands both the animal and the regulations.

If you’d like to understand raccoon behavior, family structure, and why they pick certain homes, we’re building out a homeowner education series in our WILDLIFE ENCYCLOPEDIA – RACCOONS The more you know about how raccoons think, the easier it is to see why professional exclusion is worth it. 

Raccoon Removal Service Areas in Southern California

Los Angeles & Orange County

We provide raccoon trapping, removal, and attic/crawlspace services across most of the LA Basin and North / Central Orange County, including:

• Los Angeles, East LA, South Bay, San Gabriel Valley
• Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, the Valley
• Fullerton, Anaheim, Orange, Garden Grove, Santa Ana

Riverside & San Bernardino County

We also handle raccoon issues in Inland Empire neighborhoods, including:

• Riverside, Corona, Norco, Eastvale
• San Bernardino, Redlands, Rialto, Colton
• Many surrounding foothill and canyon communities

Same-day and next-day appointments are often available, especially for raccoons in attics, crawlspaces, and living areas.