In videos on social media, raccoons look like lovable, furry friends, and most folks enjoy those brushes with wildlife when a raccoon comes up on the back porch and scurries around. One redditor actually came up with a clever name, trash pandas, affectionatley referring to the eye-masked little fiends.
Contact a Professional ASAP
But the fact is, raccoons can carry serious diseases and they are not friendly neighbors.
If you have raccoons in or near your house, you should immediately contact a professional to remove the raccoons to protect your family’s health.
The Risk of Roundworm
Among the diseases raccoons carry is raccoon roundworm, and this diseased parasite can cause extremely serious illness up to and including death.
Raccoons are exceptionally skilled at breaking and entering. If there is an unfortified possible entrance to get inside your house, a raccoon will find it. Your home’s security is only as strong as it’s weakest entry point. They love to nest in your attic and in your walls, and particularly during the cold months of winter raccoons will be seeking ways to get into your warm house.
Once inside, raccoons will leave droppings in your attic, crawlspace, or inside the spaces of your walls. When those droppings begin to dry out, microscopic roundworm eggs inside the droppings can become airborne if the droppings are disturbed (for instance, while putting away Christmas decorations in the attic).
Beware the Air
Once airborne, these microscopic eggs may be breathed in, and that is how people become infected with raccoon roundworm.
Once in the lungs, the microscopic roundworm eggs can travel through the bloodstream to the intestines, and there the roundworms will grow and live for up to two years.
Symptoms of Raccoon Roundworms
People who have raccoon roundworms will suffer from diarrhea, abdominal pain, and even lung disease. Extreme cases have been documented to cause blindness and death.
Raccoon roundworm is a very serious health issue and should be taken seriously.
But it is completely preventable.
If you have raccoons around your home, it is highly recommended that you contact a professional to check your home to make certain the raccoons have not already invaded and to find entry points that need to be dealt with.
If raccoons have already started nesting in your home, you should immediately have a professional come and serve those pests with an eviction notice.