US News

Woman flees home in Washington state as over 100 raccoons demand food



A woman had to leave her home after being surrounded by 50 to 100 raccoons demanding food, harassing her day and night.

In Poulsbo, Washington, she had been feeding a family of raccoons for years, which seemed harmless until their numbers grew rapidly, with some even scratching at her door and car.

Some of the raccoons were aggressive, according to Kevin McCarty, a spokesperson for Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office.

Footage from the sheriff’s office showed the large number of raccoons milling around trees outside the woman’s home.

“She described the raccoons as increasingly aggressive, demanding food, and hounding her day and night – scratching at her home and car, surrounding her whenever she went outside,” Mr McCarty said.

“They saw her as a food source, coming back for more and expecting to be fed.”

“This is a nuisance problem that she has brought upon herself and needs to address,” he added.

Read more from Sky News:
Hurricane Milton makes landfall with 120mph winds
Taylor Swift leads celebrity hurricane relief donations
Former Premier League footballer found dead in pool

Feeding large carnivores like bears or cougars is illegal, and while some areas may have local bans on feeding other wildlife, it is not against state law in Washington, according to Bridget Mire, a spokesperson for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife.

However, the agency discourages feeding wildlife as raccoons can carry diseases and attract other predators like coyotes and bears.

“The raccoons seem to have dispersed now that they are no longer being fed, and we are pleased with the positive outcome of this case,” she added.



Source link

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.