Many people have a love hate relationship with wild animals. People who live in country-like suburbs, in particular, have had this issue for years. On one hand, these backyard critters like raccoons, squirrels and others are super cute, as they seem innocent and once in a while they bring a smile on your face when you see them.
But even then, you still don’t want them to stay around for long as these animals can wreak havoc on any home. They can sneak in and eat your food, create dens on your property, and before you know it, there is a health issue to deal with.
The good news is that these animals may be smart, but not nearly as smart as humans. There are creative ways to prevent pests at home and we will cover them all here!
What Attract Critters to Your Yard
Before we get to some of the natural ways to keep animals out of the garden, let’s first of all take a look at some of the factors that may actually be attracting them to where you are.
Food: Wild animals, just like humans, have one single goal and that is survival. Everywhere they go, critters will be looking for food. If there is plenty of that laying around in your yard, chances are you will be attracting a lot of critters too.
Weather: When the temperatures plummet, these wild animals will need a warm place to see through the winter. Ideally, they would prefer somewhere that also has plenty of food and water supply. In that case, it’s not uncommon to find increased wild animal activity in your yard during cold winter months.
How to Make Your Yard Less Hospitable to Critters
For most people, the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about pest control is to trap the critters. But this is just too much hassle and may not even be legal in some states.
Well, there are several less drastic and easy options you can do to prevent wild animals in the yard:
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Get rid of all food and water sources in your yard. As we have already noted above, critters will be attracted by food and water into your property. If it isn’t there, then they won’t have any reason to infest your yard.
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Keep your yard tidy and clean as well. Large trees or hedges provide the perfect hiding place for these wild animals.
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Seal off all access points that these animals may use to access your home. Small crevices, in particular, need to be taken care off to ensure there is no way in for the animals. Fix fence panels and other holes animals can sneak in.
How to Think Like a Critter
Sometimes you may also want to think more like a critter in order to outsmart them.
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For raccoons: These pesky animals have very sensitive paws, so you can easily thwart all their efforts by placing pepper in all the climbing areas they use to reach your house. It could be the fence poles or rock boulders around your home. The pepper will be a huge deterrence.
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As for skunks, they love to burrow. Just keep your eyes open for any openings on your property and seal it off immediately.
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Cute squirrels, on the other hand, will be attracted by nuts and fruits. If you really don’t need fruits or nuts, consider replacing those trees with others that don’t provide a source of food for squirrels.
However,
In case even after doing all these things the critters still remain, consider calling in professional pest removers to take care of the problem.
