Raccoon Removal in Texas

Where do raccoons den in a Texas house?

Texas Parks and Wildlife names attics and outbuildings as den sites. Its raccoon page does not mention chimneys.

A city page does. Dallas Animal Services describes a chimney with no cap as a way in for raccoons and squirrels (page as captured September 28, 2026). If the noise is low in a wall beside the fireplace, say so on the call.

When are young raccoons likely in an attic?

Texas Parks and Wildlife gives raccoon mating as mid-to-late summer, with up to four cubs born 60 to 74 days later. This page adds no dates of its own.

If you hear high chattering or crying as well as heavy movement, say so. Ask the operator how young in the attic change the plan.

What does Texas law say about a nuisance raccoon?

• It is a fur-bearing animal. The Parks and Wildlife Code lists the raccoon with the opossum, skunk and fox (Section 71.001).
• A landowner may take one that is causing damage. The code leaves a landowner, or someone acting for the landowner, free to take a fur-bearing animal that is causing damage on that land (Section 71.004). Texas Parks and Wildlife says no hunting or trapping license is needed for that.
• It may not be kept or sold. The department says an animal taken this way cannot be kept, and neither can its pelt.
• Moving it elsewhere takes written authorization. Releasing a captured fur-bearer on another property needs a letter from the department’s Wildlife Division, the consent of the owner of that property, and monthly reports.
• Transport is restricted statewide. A rabies quarantine rule makes it illegal to transport a live raccoon, fox, skunk or coyote in Texas (25 Texas Administrative Code, Section 169.34). The rule lists who is exempt.

The operator who takes a job answers for following these rules. Ask which exemption or authorization they work under.

Will the city remove a raccoon from my attic?

Not in the five cities read for this site. Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin and Fort Worth each say the city does not trap a healthy wild animal in an attic. Fort Worth still looks into raccoons, which it lists among high-risk rabies animals, where a person or pet may have been exposed (page as captured May 3, 2026).

The city lookup gives each city’s answer and the date its page was read.

What happens when I call about a raccoon?

You describe the noise and give your ZIP code. Where an independent operator works at that address, the request goes to that operator, who inspects, names the entry point and gives a price before starting. This site takes no part in the job.