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3 · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, April 8, 2009 Rough day for trapped raccoon By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF A local raccoon may want to reconsider those late night snacks after becoming stuck in the hole of a Pinewood Avenue Park tree, late last week. A homeowner, whose property overlooks the park, spotted the raccoon's posterior at around 11 a.m. on Friday as it desperately tried to free itself from the tree. "I saw her legs and tail flailing and I went and made some noise and noticed that she couldn't dislodge herself," said the Cedar Grove Boulevard resident. "I thought at that point it was likely that she was pretty stuck." The Oakville and District Humane Society was called with Animal Protection Officer Renata Helmich arriving on the scene moments later. Helmich, who had dealt with another problem raccoon earlier that day, could not assist this raccoon as the hole it was stuck in was several metres off the ground. "It's surprising," said Helmich, gazing up at the raccoon's rear end. "Cats and raccoons can usually get themselves out of anything." To free the raccoon, Helmich called for the assistance of the private company, Humane Wildlife Control Inc. Because of where the animal was and how far into the hole it was stuck, Brandon Crawford, a technician supervisor with the company, knew his task was not going to be an easy one. "It's going to be tough to get it with a snare pole," he said. "At least, I know it's not going to get its head out and bite anybody." Eventually, Crawford settled on a plan to mount a ladder, pull the raccoon out most of the way with his gloved hands and then, for the sake of safety, attach a pole snare around its waist and pull it the rest of the way out. "She's really stuck," said Crawford, as he grabbed onto the raccoon's two back legs and began to pull. "The good thing is there's no blood, so she hasn't gotten to the point where she's desperate and has started gnawing at herself." With the raccoon partially pulled out, Crawford secured the end of the pole snare around the raccoon's waist and continued to pull and it was at that moment that the reason for this precaution became clear. As the raccoon's head began to emerge from the tree it could be heard frantically snarling. It also PHOTOS BY KAREN NEWMAN / OAKVILLE BEAVER HOW EMBARASSING: Brandon Crawford, technician supervisor for Humane Wildlife Control Inc. (above) surveys the scene of a raccoon stuck in a tree (below left) behind a Cedar Grove Boulevard home on Friday afternoon. The embarassed raccoon was eventually freed and caged (below right) for transport to the Oakville Humane Society for examination before eventually being released into the wild again. began biting and clawed at the pole snare that held it. With the raccoon free of a tree, the toll the experience had taken on it could be seen. Besides being generally exhausted from trying to get itself out of the tree for several hours, the creature's back legs appeared to be asleep from being stuck in the same position for so long. In light of this, Helmich secured the raccoon in a cage for transport back to the humane society where she said the animal would be exam- ined to ensure it was in good health before releasing it in the same area. Crawford hypothesized the raccoon, which he said was a young female, might have gotten stuck as a result of weight gain through pregnancy. "We're crazy with babies right now. Everyone is trying to find a den site," said Crawford. "She might have been living in that tree for a while and going in and out of that hole with no problem, but then she gets pregnant and suddenly that hole isn't big enough."