Animal Control Report: Raccoon Mating Season is Upon Us

Animal Control officers in Alexandria deal with a variety of calls every week. Here's a glance at some recent incidents in the city courtesy of Patrick Cole, the director of communications and outreach at the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria.

Warning: It’s raccoon mating season — Alexandria Animal Control is reporting an increase in the number of calls for service regarding raccoons. Animal Control cautions that it is mating season for many species of wildlife. As the weather gets warmer, residents can expect so see and hear more activity and should not be alarmed if raccoons or other wild animals are spotted during daylight hours.

Animal Control urges residents to keep all pets indoors—especially at night—and to make sure animals are leashed or supervised when they are outside.

Animal Control will not remove any species of native wildlife that has not entered a living space, unless it is sick, injured or posing a safety threat.

Cat vs. Bat — On March 11, the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria’s on-call emergency service technician responded to a call for service in the 5800 block of Edsall Road involving a bat.

The caller reported that the animal flew into her apartment and was caught and injured by her cat.

Without touching the bat, the caller said she was able to cover it with a box and place it outside of the apartment.

The technician arrived and located the bat, which was severely injured. It was transported back to Vola Lawson Animal Shelter where it was humanely euthanized due to its injuries and for the purposes of rabies testing.

The technician called the resident to confirm that the bat had been removed and would be tested for rabies. The resident said that her cat had received a rabies vaccination in the past, but it was it possible it was not current. The technician advised the caller to check her records and call her veterinarian, and if not current, her cat should be vaccinated as soon as possible.

AWLA Baby Shower — It’s kitten and puppy season and the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria is hosting a baby shower on April 6 at the Vola Lawson Animal Shelter. Animal lovers are invited to the open house event to learn more about the League’s foster care program, which provides care to puppies and kittens until they are old enough to be adopted. Donations from the Foster Care Wish List are being accepted.

For more information about Alexandria Animal Control, visit the AWLA website.