Raccoon Removal in Orlando, FL
Orlando Attic Animal Removal Pros helps homeowners in Orlando, Winter Park, Apopka, and nearby Central Florida areas remove raccoons from the attic, repair the soffits they tear open, and seal the roofline so the next raccoon stays outside. If you are hearing slow, heavy walking over the ceiling at night, call or send the quote form.
How to know it is a raccoon
Weight gives raccoons away. Where rats scratch and squirrels scamper, a raccoon walks — slow, heavy thumps you can follow across the ceiling, almost always at night. In spring and early summer, add vocal sounds: chittering, purring, or crying that usually means a mother with kits. Outside, the evidence is force rather than gnawing — torn or pushed-in soffit panels, bent vent covers, and a latrine area of droppings on the roof or in one corner of the attic.
Why raccoon jobs need more care than other species
Two reasons. First, raccoons are strong enough to undo weak repairs — a soffit panel screwed back in place is a door, not a fix, so sealing has to be structural. Second, the timing question: from roughly March through summer, the raccoon in your attic is often a mother with kits stashed in the insulation. Remove her without finding them and the kits die in the attic, which creates an odor and fly problem far worse than the footsteps. The inspection establishes whether young are present before any trap is set, and Florida has specific rules about how raccoons can be handled and relocated, which the removal plan has to follow.
What a raccoon leaves behind
Raccoons are the most destructive attic animal per night spent. They flatten and tunnel insulation, tear duct lines, and concentrate droppings in latrines that can carry raccoon roundworm — a genuine health consideration that makes attic cleanup a standard part of most raccoon jobs rather than an add-on. The inspection scopes how much insulation is affected so the quote covers the real job.
Removal, then exclusion, in that order
Once the attic is confirmed empty, the entry points get sealed with materials a raccoon cannot pry loose — heavy-gauge screening and structural repair at the soffit, not foam. Rooflines that funneled one raccoon in tend to funnel another, so exclusion work typically covers the vulnerable spots around the original hole, not just the hole itself.
Heavy footsteps over the bedroom?
Tell us when you hear it and where the sound travels. A raccoon job handled this week is consistently smaller than the same job handled next month.
Frequently asked questions
Are raccoons in the attic dangerous?
They are not looking for a fight, but they defend kits, and their latrines can carry raccoon roundworm. This is the one attic animal where staying out of the attic yourself is the strong recommendation.
Why does the noise sound like footsteps?
Because it is. An adult raccoon weighs ten to twenty pounds, so instead of the scratching smaller animals make, you hear deliberate walking and thumping — usually at night, when raccoons are active.
What happens if there are babies up there?
The removal timing changes so mother and kits leave together. Removing only the adult strands the kits in the insulation, which becomes a much worse problem. Checking for young is a standard part of the inspection.
Will sealing the soffit keep raccoons out?
Only if the repair is structural. Raccoons are strong enough to pull weak panels back open, so sealing uses heavy screening and proper fastening — and covers the nearby weak spots, not just the original hole.