The likelihood of wildlife encounters increases when we feed wildlife, either by providing direct handouts to animals or making food, such as unprotected garbage, available. When animals find that food is available near people, they can quickly lose their instinctive fear of humans and may even become aggressive.
Preventing conflicts in your garbage
When an animal consumes garbage, it may harm the animal and pose a threat to you, your family and the community. To prevent garbage-related conflicts:
- Use garbage containers that have tight-fitting lids and store them in a shed or garage.
- Put garbage out the morning of pickup, not the night before.
- If you do not have curbside pickup, take garbage to the dump frequently.
Handling conflicts with your garbage
Wild animals are attracted by the smell of food in garbage and will continue to return to the source as long as it is available. If you discovere an animal has gotten into your garbage:
- Clean up the garbage immediately to avoid attracting more animals.
- Wildlife-proof garbage containers or find a safer location to store your garbage until the morning of pickup.
Read more on how to handle a conflict with a specific wild animal in your garbage.
