Nuisance Wildlife vs. Wildlife - What Is the Difference
As our reach in the community and on social media expands, we continue to read, hear, and see push back from some community members and neighbors towards what we do. Some think we are just “trappers” set on seeing how many pelts we can nail to the side of our barn within a year. This could not be farther from the truth.
Huntsman Wildlife is a NUISANCE wildlife control company here in the Cincinnati area. We help homeowners and property owners remove unwanted wildlife from their homes and properties because most have no idea where to start. So we remove the animal(s), clean up the mess the animals made, and repair the damage those animals created.
Nuisance wildlife is a game or non game wildlife species that is causing physical or financial damage to a structure, crops or other physical property, and/or is a danger to the health and safety of the community (to include livestock and domestic pets). That is what Huntsman Wildlife is dedicated to the trapping, deterrence, and exclusion of.
For instance, if Joe Smith called us because a squirrel was in his attic, we would gladly help Joe Smith solve his problem by removing the squirrel, and repairing the attic space so no future squirrels could enter.
If Bob Johnson called us because a squirrel was eating out of his bird feeders, we would recommend to Bob to look into squirrel resistant feeders, using different feeds that are not attractive to squirrels, or cease feeding birds all together. What we would not do is set traps in this situation.
Now that is a pretty cut and dry scenario. Let’s dive into a recent difficult issue we had up in West Chester.
We were hired by a client to trap an alleged “feral” community cat that was reportedly attacking the client’s domestic cat when it would go outside. We interviewed the client who strongly assured us that the target animal was indeed a danger, so we proceeded to set traps in hopes of removing this dangerous cat from the neighborhood.
Half way through the trapping program, we were informed by the client’s neighbor that the cat we were attempting to capture was in fact considered the neighbor’s pet, is the offspring of the client’s domestic cat, and has never shown aggression to any other cat in the neighborhood including the client’s cat. According to the neighbor, the client was looking for retaliation for the neighbor capturing and spaying the client’s cat so the cat population in the neighborhood would balance out as the client’s cat had birthed three litters in less than two years.
As much as this sounds like a made up soap opera, it is a real scenario that we are unfortunately in the middle of that is quickly involving more than any of us bargained for.
According to the client, this cat is a danger to the community and needs to be removed. According to the neighbor the opposite is in fact true. As the wildlife control operators hired in this situation, it fell on Kandace and I to determine if the feline was truly a nuisance.
Between my 15+ years in pest management and wildlife removal, and Kandace’s 5 years of shelter experience, we weigh heavily on all of the facts, the biology, behavior, and history of the wildlife we are charged to manage.
We take NO pleasure when we have to euthanize an animal. No matter how mean it was, if it bit us, scratched us, sprayed us, or created a mess in our vehicle. Taking the life of an animal is not something we find joy in, but we do find is sometimes necessary.
The Ohio revised code requires that all raccoon, opossum, skunk or fox trapped on a property must be either released on the property it was captured, or euthanized. Oftentimes that can mean we use live capture traps to remove the animals from the area the client does not want them in (such as an attic, under a deck or patio, or in a shed), then once the animal is detained, we quickly perform exclusion techniques and repairs to not allow reentry, and release the animal on site.
If repairs can not be made in a timely manner, or the client does not have the budget for the repairs, then our only option available to us by law is to take the animal away from the property. If we did not take the animal away, it would likely just enter in through the access point it created or had found earlier and the cycle would continue.
Our job, and our passion, is to protect our community from the damage and dangers of nuisance wildlife. The wanton removal of wildlife (without purpose or reason) is not what we do, nor will it ever be what we do. And despite the uneducated and ill informed cries of the few that call us murderers and heartless, Kandace and I sleep well at night knowing we are helping to protect our community, and at that same time, be stewards of the wildlife put in our charge.
Till Next Time… See Ya Folks.