Animal Control does not trap wildlife unless it poses a public safety hazard (for example it is stopping traffic or is inside a home.) Animal control will respond to calls of injured, sick or aggressive animals. It is up to you to make arrangements for trapping healthy wildlife on your property.

Before you decide to trap you may want to consider alternatives. Why? Read on.

Ten reasons NOT to trap and relocate wildlife 

• It is not an effective solution. If you remove one animal from your property another will come to take its place. 
• You will never succeed in eliminating wildlife from your property as long as you have a source of food or shelter. Fixing holes, capping chimneys, covering trash cans and removing pet food will eliminate wildlife much more effectively. 
• Trapping is indiscriminate—you may trap your neighbor’s cat or another animal unrelated to your nuisance problem. 
• It’s not fair. Where do we expect wildlife to exist? They are trying to adapt to life with us in their traditional environment, can’t we show a little tolerance? 
• It is highly stressful to be relocated. Most animals do not survive in unfamiliar territory. Resident animals will drive off the intruder the animal will not know where to find food and shelter. A recent study shows more than 90% of relocated raccoons die within a short period of time. 
• Even Humane Traps can injure animals—or they can injure themselves trying to escape during the hours they are confined to traps. 
• Trapping out of fear is unfounded. Healthy wild animals have no interest in attacking you, your pets or your children. Their only reason for aggression is self defense and their first choice is always to escape perceived danger. 
• With a little effort we can coexist with wildlife. If they inconvenience you try to remember their only motive is survival. They have no concept of property or damage.

Finally--When you trap and relocate someone’s mother might not come home! From early spring until late fall the chances are 50/50 that the animal you trap is a mother whose babies depend on her for survival. Taking a mother away condemns the babies to starvation and death.