Raccoons Make Bad Neighbors

What's worse than a bad neighbor? A bad neighbor that could give you rabies. "Do you know who our neighbors are? Raccoons!" cries 75-year-old Florence Levine, explaining the reason why one Flushing block has become paralyzed with fear of ever leaving their houses. An abandoned building on 32nd Avenue has reportedly become overrun with the possibly rabid creatures, and is making some residents mad with hyperbole. Lee Lack told the Daily News, "I've seen raccoons come out of that house, some so big you can put a saddle on them!" (Guess they learned something from the brownstone-loving raccoons in Park Slope.)

Levine's husband says they are now afraid to leave their house at night, and neighbor Dr. Jugal Agrawal says the city needs to fix the house up or tear it down. However, the Health Department claims they've gotten no complaints of raccoons or pests about the property. Well sure, why file a formal complaint with the Health Department when you can just bitch to the Daily News? At least the block can raise some revenue by strapping on those saddles and offering raccoon carriage rides.

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By Jaya Saxena in News on January 2, 2011 3:45 PM

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LaurieMyrick0409

Stories like this drive me nuts! Are people REALLY that stupid and uneducated about the wildlife in their own backyards? Yes, raccoons CAN carry rabies. So can cats and dogs and well, YOU. All mammals are rabies vector species. Doesn't mean we should start shooting people just because we see one out in the daylight, does it? Seeing them out and about doesn't mean they've got 'the' rabies for crying out loud! Raccoons are VERY adaptable creatures and they're opportunistic. They go where the food is. If you don't want them living in your neighborhood, get all the bleeding hearts who are feeding the stray kitties to STOP and if they won't stop, at least get them to use the common sense approach to feed the kitties during the day and pick up their food at night. Raccoons are nocturnal. Don't feed your yard dog or pets at night people! Secure your garbage cans, etc., It's really THAT simple! Oh yea, don't pet one, don't lick one, don't bite one and they should be safe from YOU. Ignorance is the leading cause of death in raccoons!!!!