“Animals can live with humans, but humans have a hard time living with the animals.”

If you’ve had a problem with varmints in the past few years, you might have met up with Jamie Roe.  Roe has been trapping animals since he was a kid, and now he helps other people get rid of them when they’re a problem.

Whatever kind of wild animal you’ve had troubles with, chances are Roe has had experience with them. 

“I’ve been to Hopedale twice,” Roe said.  “Once to take care of some beavers.”

He said beavers will dam-up ponds and chew-up trees.  And, tearing out the dams doesn’t necessarily keep the beavers away.

“People can spend money to hire a back hoe and tear out the dam, but they’ll be right back,” Roe said.  “The best thing is just to get rid of the beavers.”

Muskrats, too, will erode stream and pond banks, making them dangerous for cattle and farmers.

It’s isn’t just rural folks who have to deal with animals, either.

“I’ve done probably 10 raccoon jobs just around here,” he said. 

Roe said the main thing about keeping raccoons away from their homes is keeping things like bird seed, dog food and cat food out of their reach.  Homeowners also need to make sure areas of their houses, such as facias and soffits are intact so raccoons and other animals can’t get in under the roof.

“And, keep your yard clean so they don’t have anywhere to hide,” Roe said.

He also said that raccoons or other animals born in attics or hidden places in homes, “will always be an attic animal.”  He said they would be more likely to find those kinds of places to hide and live.

“It’s just like a den in a tree to them; it’s shelter.”

Roe said those places also are warmer, so they attract animals.

“A lot of times, people don’t even know there’s something living in their attic until it has babies or maybe a couple of them are fighting.  Animals can live with humans, but humans have a hard time living with the animals.”

But, Roe points out, often the animals are causing damage to a home or even posing a health risk to the homeowners.

Roe is licensed by the state to catch vermin, so he has regulations he must follow.  While he tries to catch or move nuisance animals without killing them, some he is required to kill.

• See the complete story in the Friday, April 23, print edition of the Clinton Journal or now in the Journal E-Edition for subscribers.