PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Residents in Northwest Portland’s Alphabet District say they’ve contacted multiple local agencies about an uptick in raccoon attacks, but officials claim there isn’t much they can do.
According to resident Jordan Barbeau, at least two people and three dogs — including her own — have recently fallen victim to these attacks.
“He had puncture wounds in his front leg and she had her ear torn and had to have it glued back together,” Barbeau said about her dogs Bodhi and Rosie after the raccoon attack.
A week later, she and her husband heard a woman screaming and a dog yelping outside their home near NW 22nd and Johnson Street.
“We rushed out and there was a woman and her German Shepherd mix being attacked by the raccoon,” Barbeau said. “And when she went to the E.R. to get treated, they said she was the second person that had come in to be treated for a raccoon bite just that week. So at this point it’s multiple dogs, multiple people.”
Residents have begun to place signs around their neighborhood to warn others about the aggressive family of raccoons, and to be careful after dark.
“We called around to see who might be able to help remove them from the neighborhood and it’s just a dead end every time,” Barbeau told KOIN 6.
She said that neither Multnomah County Animal Services nor the Portland Police Bureau deal with raccoons. Barbeau added that the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife will euthanize aggressive animals when necessary, but they won’t trap them.
ODFW does not relocate raccoons due to research demonstrating their potential to spread disease to new areas and low survival rates following relocation.
“It just doesn’t feel like the city or county or state are really going to do anything to prevent any more of these injuries from happening,” she said.
Instead of relying on local agencies, the Barbeaus have hired a professional wildlife control company and put catch-and-release traps around their property in an effort to capture the aggressive raccoon.
ODFW reported that the raccoon involved in the incident has several offspring, and it isn’t uncommon for raccoons to be aggressive toward dogs — especially when protecting their young.
The officials also said the animals are most active at night, when they may close to houses in search of food.
ODFW is now offering raccoon traps and trapping permits to residents in the Northwest Portland neighborhood.
To reduce the chance of further conflict with raccoons occurring while this situation is resolved, ODFW suggests that people in the area be aware of their neighborhood and where raccoons might be congregating. They said to avoid those areas when walking dogs at night, and keep dogs on leashes.
Wildlife officials also recommend mitigating potential attractants — for example, accessible food waste, pet food, and fruit from bushes and trees — which may also reduce raccoon presence in urban neighborhoods.
