Unusual Number of Raccoons Spotted in Brooklyn
Have you seen any raccoons lately? We’ve had reports of sightings from all over Brooklyn. A reader in Clinton Hill sent in these photos of a family of five in the backyard. “The raccoons are getting out of hand,” the tipster wrote. “Tried calling city for help, but was told its my problem.” They have…
Have you seen any raccoons lately? We’ve had reports of sightings from all over Brooklyn. A reader in Clinton Hill sent in these photos of a family of five in the backyard. “The raccoons are getting out of hand,” the tipster wrote. “Tried calling city for help, but was told its my problem.” They have invaded people’s houses on the block as well. Another reader posted in the Forum (under the headline “Raccoon BIG problem Park Slope”), “We have raccoons on our deck, in our yard. We saw two of them on our neighbor’s roof. We have heard scratching noises on the top floor of our brownstone…One of them bit and scratched our dog (vet gave her an additional rabies shot and antibiotics.)…They are everywhere, walking down the sidewalks at night…Any ideas of what to do or who to call?” Meanwhile, a friend who lives in Greenpoint posted on Facebook, “I am sitting here minding my own biznatch reading quietly on a lit screen and I look up and there is a goddam raccoon, a raccoon!, walking up the short flight of steps to the second floor where I sit, not five feet way. Of course I left the back door open, but still! After we evicted two living in the attic for two or three years, it’s theirs, isn’t it?” The solution, according to another Forum poster: “New York City does not take the raccoon problem seriously, though you should file a 311 complaint anyway. Call a licensed wildlife control company, not an ordinary exterminator.” In July, an NBC news article said raccoons were trashing Greenwood Heights, and residents speculated the warm spring had caused  “an explosion in the raccoon population.” The city does not normally respond to calls about raccoons, unless they appear dangerous, hurt or sick. Legislation to change the policy has gone nowhere. “Last summer, state Sen. Tony Avella of Queens introduced legislation that would require the city agency to remove raccoons if asked to do so by the public, but the legislation remains in limbo,” said NBC.
Brooklyn Residents Ask City Agency to Help with Raccoon Infestation [NBC]
Raccoon Burglarizes Park Slope Apartment [Brownstoner]
My neighborhood (Astoria – upper Ditmars area) is full of them. They roam freely at night. Called 311 but got no help.
Although I’ve heard tales (and horror stories) of raccoons in blocks closer to Prospect Park, they seem to have migrated to my block closer to the Gowanus, where they’re terrorizing local cats and clawing through trashbags. One evening in July I left the back door and went upstairs for 10 minutes and, hearing odd noises, went back down to find the kitchen floor covered with the contents of the trashcan, as well as the contents of 2 previously unopened boxes of cookies that had been on the counter. I’m much more cautious about leaving the door open now, and instead the raccoon(s) only destroy the compost bin a few times a week.