We could hear a family of raccoons in our attic. Called SOS on a Thursday - they came out Monday morning. They were able to remove the 5 babies but the mother got away. They set up a one way door on an obvious entry point and then secured the babies in a box with some insulation on the roof in front of the entry point. Over 8 hours had passed and the babies still sat out in the March cold. I called SOS as I was concerned about the welfare of the newborn babies. Sherwin returned in the late evening and I told him at that point that I saw the mother on the inside of the attic near the door. He then left to pick up materials to build a warming box for the babies. After having built a wood box with heating pads inside for the babies he left. I wish they had used a warming box earlier in the day as it was very cold out. Nonetheless, I could hear the babies crying and that assured me they were still very much alive.
We set up another appointment for them to return on a Friday to seal up the entry points ($100 each and there were 7 of them).
Prior to them returning, I called them up to let them know I could hear the mother and her babies in another part of our attic (above my bedroom). They came over Friday at 7:30am. I was still in bed and not a happy camper about this early morning wake up call. Either way, they were able to capture the mother raccoon and her babies. Only this time, there were just 3 babies. The other 2 were dead inside the warming box. I was really saddened to learn this because even though they were in my home and would probably cause destruction, they are still sentient beings.
Sherwin and Jamie sealed up 4 entry points to our home and removed the warming box. Instead of charging us for 4 entry points they charged us for 3 plus the $250 and $80 for removal of mom & babies. With tax, it came out close to $800. That was about $500 more than what I thought it would cost. (As it turned out there were 4 easily compromised points and not 7 as earlier thought).
Overall, the kindness and concern given by Sherwin and his team was very much appreciated. I can't blame them for the deaths of the two babies because they could have died from any other reason. Sherwin did return in the evening twice to protect the babies.
Overall, I would highly recommend them. And if Sherwin is every by this way during the summer... please feel free to stop in for a coffee. Thank you, Sherwin.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $800.00
- What could this company do to improve their services?
- Because they know it is baby season, they really should have insulated boxes for the babies.
- Any advice to offer fellow homeowners facing a similar project?
- Call SOS. They do care.
- Company Response
Hi Ling, thank you for your detailed review. When there is babies involved in animal removal it becomes a lot more complicated. The babies are removed and placed in a box with a blanket to keep them warm while they wait for their mother to come and collect. They are left alone until the mother feels it is safe to come and collect them. Some mothers take longer than others as they may sense danger or it may be there first time having babies and are unsure what to do. It is very unfortunate that two of the babies died and as you said may have been due to multiple reasons. But the animals had to be removed and sadly if the babies are a day or two old this is a risk involved. I'd like to thank you for your review and high recommendation. I hope you are animal free for a long time to come.