#RACCOON SKAT FULL#

Toddlers are probably most vulnerable because they're more likely to eat dirt, or mouth contaminated bark or other objects.įinal step: Pour a teakettle or two of boiling water over the area after you've cleaned it (and, of course, wash your hands with soap and water). Note: Inhaling particles isn't the problem it's swallowing the eggs. Wear disposable gloves and a drugstore dust mask to gather the poop and an inch of underlying soil, and then get rid of it all in a sealed bag.

#RACCOON SKAT FULL#

Raccoon scat is dark, about the size and shape of your thumb, and often full of seeds. Next: Be on the alert for raccoon latrines (this study has photos), and clean up the scat as soon as you find it. Bird feeders and fishponds may be lures, too. Though the illness is unnerving, there are good ways to protect yourself and the neighborhood kids without ridding the world of wildlife.įirst, tightly cap the trashcans and compost piles that are luring raccoons to your yard, and bring pet food dishes inside at night. And though Page and other experts are sure that's an undercount, fatal infections are still certainly rare, so inherited or other factors may shape who gets sickest.

And put down the shotgun.įewer than 20 serious human brain infections from raccoon roundworm have been documented in the last 30 years. (Dogs, but not cats, can become infected too, apparently vets say the worming meds you regularly give your dog will eliminate any threat to the canine). Page says her findings, to be published in the September issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases, dovetail with other studies suggesting that between 20 percent and 80 percent of raccoons in various regions are infected with the worm.Ĭities have been hit, too even Brooklyn had a couple of human cases last spring. Wheaton College ecologist Kristen Page and her students found that scat from 21 such spots was heavily contaminated with the worrisome roundworm Baylisascaris procyonis. Raccoons tend to choose elevated spots for doing their business - decks, patios, woodpiles, flat roofs and playhouses. So chock-full of parasites.Ī recent survey of 119 backyards in suburban Chicago turned up 'raccoon latrines' in roughly half.

Raccoon skat