Encounters with wildlife in and around your property can be both fascinating and challenging at the same time. While sharing the environment with local fauna is part of the natural beauty of living in South Florida, there may come a time when you need assistance dealing with unwelcome guests in your home or on your property. But how do you know who to call–animal control or wildlife removal? Animal control and wildlife removal services may sound similar, but they serve very different purposes.
Assessing Your Need for Wildlife Management
As human populations continue to grow and South Florida gets more crowded, urban areas often begin taking over the habitats of existing wildlife, such as the Everglades, leading to increased interactions between humans and animals. While these interactions can be a delightful part of our lives, they can sometimes present unexpected challenges, including property damage, safety concerns, and the transmission of unwanted diseases.
Understanding the distinction between animal control and wildlife removal is essential in determining the right approach to address these issues and protect both your property and the wildlife involved.
What is Animal Control?
Animal control typically refers to the management and regulation of domestic animals, particularly pets like dogs and cats. This may include services provided by your local animal control agency or animal shelter. Animal control professionals are trained to handle domesticated animals safely and enforce local regulations related to pet ownership in the community.
Common tasks performed by animal control officers include:
- Stray Animal Handling – They respond to reports of stray dogs or cats and safely capture, impound, or return them to their owners.
- Animal Licensing – They ensure that pet owners comply with local laws regarding pet licenses and vaccinations.
- Nuisance Pets – Animal control may address issues related to nuisance pets, such as excessive barking, aggressive behavior, or abuse/neglect.
- Public Safety – They handle cases involving dangerous or aggressive pets, such as those that pose a potential risk to public safety.
- Animal Welfare – Animal control agencies are often involved in rescuing and rehabilitating abused or neglected pets.
Although Animal Control can manage domesticated animals, they are not qualified or equipped to deal with most types of nuisance wildlife.
What is Wildlife Removal?
Wildlife removal, on the other hand, focuses on the humane and ethical management of wildlife that has entered residential or commercial properties, creating potential conflicts or hazards. This involves the removal of wildlife species that are not typically considered domesticated animals, such as raccoons, squirrels, bats, skunks, and birds.
Key responsibilities of wildlife removal professionals include:
- Humane Trapping and Removal – Wildlife removal experts are trained in safely capturing and removing wild animals from residential or commercial properties without causing harm to the animals, property, or humans residing there.
- Structural Repairs – They address damage caused by wildlife, including repairing entry points, such as holes in roofs or walls or attic restoration in order to prevent future intrusions.
- Exclusion Services – Wildlife removal specialists can install barriers and exclusion devices to keep wildlife out of specific areas without harming them.
- Emergency Response – They respond to situations involving injured, sick, or potentially dangerous wildlife on your property, including in emergency situations.
- Educational Outreach – Many wildlife removal services offer educational programs or resources to help homeowners understand how to prevent wildlife conflicts and coexist peacefully with local wildlife.
Wildlife removal services focus on addressing the issues caused by wild animals in a humane and environmentally responsible way while taking into consideration the safety of humans, the environment, and animals.
Animal Control vs Wildlie Removal: Choosing the Right Service to Call
The decision of whether to call animal control or wildlife removal services depends on the nature of the issue you are facing. If your problem involves a domestic pet, such as a stray dog or cat, or issues related to pet ownership and community safety, you should contact your local animal control agency.
However, when dealing with wild animals that have entered your property and pose a threat or nuisance, it’s advisable to contact a wildlife removal service. These professionals are equipped to handle and relocate wildlife, ensuring both your safety and the welfare of the animals involved.
One of the biggest differences between animal control and wildlife removal is the ethical approach taken toward animals. Animal control primarily deals with domesticated animals and focuses on issues related to pet welfare and community safety. Wildlife removal, on the other hand, utilizes a more specialized approach to the humane and ethical removal of wild animals from residential or commercial properties.
Contact Nuisance Wildlife Rangers Today
By choosing the right service for your specific situation, you can ensure the safety of both humans and wildlife while promoting coexistence with the natural world around you. If you suspect you have a wildlife issue, consult with one of our South Florida wildlife removal professionals. They can assess your property and provide recommendations to minimize future conflicts.
At Nuisance Wildlife Rangers, our wildlife removal professionals specialize in the humane and ethical removal of wild animals from residential or commercial properties. We have been in existence for the last 5 years and we provide exceptional wildlife removal services. Please call today to get started.