How to Get Rid of Skunks, Racoons & Opossums


While skunks, racoons, and opossums offer some benefits of managing pests to the yard, they can wreak havoc on your garden, particularly when they feed on or trample plants. Not only that, but these animals can also cause serious property damage. Additionally, they can even attack chickens or eat eggs and young chicks. 

Fortunately, there are several effective and humane strategies you can employ to get rid of skunks, racoons, and opossums in your garden and around your home. Continue reading to learn more.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. We may receive commissions on purchases made from our chosen links with no extra cost to you. Learn more.

    Install Motion Detection Sprinkler

    These critters are not that difficult to scare off. They're spooked by sudden noise or movement. If you have racoon, opossum, or skunk in your home, simply install a sprinkler system in your yard with a motion detector sensor.


    Motion activated sprinklers work by detecting motion or heat passing through their coverage area. So once the motion sensor detects the critter, it will startle it with a burst of water which is enough to send it scurrying away. 


    Orbit Yard Enforcer Motion-Activated Sprinkler is one of the best deterrent sprinklers which uses both heat and motion activated. It also has customizable features to suit your needs. For instance, you can set it to only work at night when  yard-invading creatures are active.

    Sprinkle Animal Repellent Granules

    Since these bothersome little animals like to dig and make holes in the ground, the best thing to do is to stop them from digging. Sprinkle the repellent granules along the ends of your garden beds, woodpiles, sheds, garbage cans and  any other areas you wish to protect. Granular repellent will drive away these animals by taste, touch, and smell.


    NB: There are a number of animal repellent granules, of which some are toxic. I advise you to avoid those products and consider plant based repellents such as Bonide BND2361 - Repels-All Animal Repellent, Granules. This product is organic and chemical free, so you can use it around household pets and plants without any worries.

    Control Grubs in Your Flower Beds and Lawn

    If your flower beds or lawn  has lots of holes in it, you may be dealing with racoons, skunks, opossum, or other small animals such as moles. They usually dig up the lawn looking for grubs. As they love to find grubs in the lawn, the best thing to do is to treat your lawn in order to get rid of grubs.


    There are plenty of ways you can use to eliminate grubs, from using natural methods to using pesticides. If you would rather stay earth-friendly, apply milky spore or introduce beneficial nematodes to your lawn. These methods are completely safe for pets and plants. However, if you prefer to go for insecticides, buy a grub killer such as GrubEX.

    Remove Any Sources of Food

    Apart from looking for grubs in your yard, these animals undoubtedly have other reliable food sources that keep them hanging around your home. Therefore you must keep your yard clean so that they don't have access to anything edible.


    Clear away any rotting vegetables and fruits that fell from the trees so that these little animals won't feast on them. Also keep pet food out of their reach, including low hanging bird feeders. Moreover, make sure that all trash cans have secure lids so that the contents won't be spilled.

    Remove Possible Shelter Options

    Skunks, opossum, and racoon seek out dark and dry spaces for shelter. They are highly attracted to gaps under the shed, deck, and porch. Therefore you need to erect a physical barrier to keep your yard free of these animals. You can install wire mesh to cover the openings under your deck or porch and other exposed openings to prevent entry.


    Wood piles and old or unused materials can also serve a shelter for these little animals. So you should make sure that everything is properly piled, without leaving spaces for these little creatures to crawl into. Also overgrown bushes, built up debris, and old animal burrows, may harbor skunks, racoon, and opossums. You should consider trimming the bushes and fill up any holes around your home.

    Use Flashing Night Lights

    Using flashing night lights to scare unwanted animals is another humane option you can use. Repellent lights flash a colored beam, typically red and many nocturnal animals get frightened of it as it mimics the eyes of fearsome predators.


    The good thing about these lights is that they're solar powered so it only needs sunlight to charge and automatically do its job at dusk. You can install the unit in your farm, yard, garden, or chicken coop.

    Build a Fence Around Your Garden or Property

    Another more effective preventative method which can be a long term solution is to build a fence around your garden or property. This forms a physical barrier which blocks these trespassers from entering and causes damage. To ensure you get the most suitable mesh, you must consider its material, dimension, and ease of installation.


    Additionally, placing an electric wire on top of a fence will also help. You can install it using a fence charger with aluminum wire. With an electric garden fence in place, these critters will soon find out their free meal is unreachable. Where they were once free to roam, they will now unexpectedly be faced with a safe, but memorable, electric shock which will let them stay away for good.

    Trap Them

    Live trapping skunks, racoons, or opossums is also the most humane way of catching them as it won't injure the animal. Simply set the live traps in the right location where they hang out a lot. Also use a bait that smells irresistible to these creatures such as fish and canned pet food.


    N:B Consult your local department of agriculture or wildlife to confirm if it's legal to use traps in your area. If it's allowed, you can trap and release them in a suitable area specified by law.

    Takeaway

    Now that you're armed with the knowledge on how to get rid of skunks, racoon, and opossums, the ball is in your court to make sure they stop destroying your garden and yard. You can use one or a combination of 2-3 aforementioned methods. Just decide the options that are best for your situation.


    RELATED

    How to Get Rid of Moles, Voles, and Gophers

    How to Get Rid of Chipmunks


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