1st Response Wildlife - Tucson's Humane Animal Trapping & Removal Services

Exotic mammals, reptiles, birds, and amphibians capture and removal in the Tucson area

Exotic animals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and arthropods can be found in Tucson and the surrounding areas of Vail, Catalina, Oracle, Marana, Green Valley and Sahuarita by the hundreds, if not thousands in homes, businesses and pet shops.  The business of selling, feeding, gifting, and breeding exotics is quite extensive and I have found that it is just another part of my business to get a call to search for, capture and rescue of exotics. 

While the list of exotics found in the greater Tucson area is quite long, I am called most often to help families, and occasional a retailer in recovering or capturing and escaped boa, python, monitor lizard, iguana,  a large African tortoise, or an injured exotic bird.  Some exotics that have been “adopted,” or brought into Arizona are either no longer legal to sell or legal to have as pets.  

Most reptile breeders and retail stores can tell you which animals, birds, or reptiles are legal and safe to have in your home.  If you have questions about something and are not sure as to whether it is ok to have it in captivity,  you can always look it up on the internet under posted articles that describe and name what is legal in Arizona and what is protected.  Using the following categories and reference numbers, you can easily check before purchasing or acquiring a new addition to your collection or buying one as a pet for a family member.

ARIZ. COMP. ADMIN R. & REGS. R12-4-406 - Restricted Live Wildlife

Article listing "restricted live wildlife" as defined in R12-4-401 is quite exhaustive and names what is restricted and not permitted.

Most of my calls for exotics entail capture of a pet that has escaped and the owner just wants it returned. This does not mean that the owner necessarily knows it has escaped.  Sometimes a neighbor will find a large monitor lizard wandering through their yard, a large African Tortoise walking up their driveway, or a 6’ or larger python hanging around a bird feeder trying to catch its lunch.  Other times, a pet iguana, (shown below) has escaped and, since the owner has raised it from when it was 6” long at the pet store, she just wants her pet back.  

In all of these instances, I am happy to work with the owner, neighbor, or business that has an exotic on their property, has one that has escaped, or found one that is injured.  For the most part, I will return the exotic to its owner, if known but, sometimes a large reptile may have been purposely released or abandoned-especially if it is a 6-9’ python, a 5’+ monitor lizard, or 100lb or more African tortoise.  In cases where no owner can be found, I will try and find a home at one of the rehabilitation organizations I work with, such as, the Desert Museum, or one of the licensed rescue organizations which accept large rescued reptiles, amphibians, and birds.  Please give 1^st Response Wildlife a call if I can help or if you have a question about an exotic that has escaped, one that has shown up on your property or you would like help identifying what it is that may be causing concern in regards to whether it might dangerous to your pets or children.

Thanks, Wildman Josh :)

Josh's Cell (24/7 Hours): 520-260-9517

Josh Waling is a humane Licensed Animal Trapper who catches and releases wildlife, removing animals including bobcats (lince), snakes, rattlesnakes (serpiente de cascabel), raccoons (mapache), pack rats, gila monsters (monstruos de gila), rabbits (canejo), owls, bats, squirrels (ardilla) , coatimundi (gato solo), skunks (mofeta), exotics,and domestic cats and dogs. He delivers service that is professional and fast and he is available 24/7.  Give him a call the next time you hear unusual noises in the attic or crawl spaces in your home or if you see wildlife eating your vegetation, creating nests, and raising their young too close to your pets or children. 520-260-9517 Thanks!

 

Tucson Humane Nuisance Wildlife Animal Removal & Relocation-Skunks

Skunks, Spanish name-mofeta, in Arizona and the Sonoran desert, represent one of the most useful and effective insect hunting mammals you will find in your neighborhood.  Of all the wildlife you don't see, skunks may actually, along with ringtails, be our most valuable nighttime friends.

Here in the Sonoran desert, you may see one or more of the 4 skunks which live in our state. (Hog Nosed, Hooded, Spotted, or Striped)  Below is a spotted skunk.

 

Fig. 1. 1st Response Wildlife humane skunk capture ready for relocation

These wonderful little animals have a bad reputation and often are, by home/business owners, considered nuisance animals because of either their reputation from folklore or the homeowner or business owner recognizing the presence of a pungent scent skunks are known for when they spray.  Skunks protect themselves in three basic ways: first; by trying to amble away from danger, secondly; by facing another animal or human that challenges them and stamping their front feet, and finally; if they still feel threatened, spraying-with great accuracy.

Because of their protective spray, with the exception of hawks, owls, and sometimes foxes, skunks have few natural enemies. Since Skunks do not see very well or run very fast, they are probably killed in larger numbers in urban areas as they try to cross roads than by predators.

Skunks are omnivores, meaning they eat almost anything.  In fact, they are a walking pest control in their own right.  Their diet consists of insects, berries, small rodents, and spiders many of which are exactly the pests you detest most-Black Widow Spiders, roaches, scorpions, crickets, gophers, grubs, and even rattlesnakes.  Skunks also love to go after bees and wasps as well as eggs, young hatchlings and almost anything they can find in their respective range.  They have a good memory as well, so if you have grubs, or there is food available in any quantity, skunks will return to look for a repeat meal and, as they raise their young, they have been known to bring them back and train them to look for food in the same areas again and again.

You may not see skunks much during daylight hours, but observe them at dusk or dawn crossing the road or in areas where there are flood lights or driveway lights.  This is crepuscular behavior, which means they come out to hunt and feed at dusk and dawn.  It does not mean you will not see them at night as well but typically, if you see a flash of slow moving shuffling white fur in the evening or on your way to work in the early morning, you are looking at a skunk. Of the four skunks we find in Pima County, with the exception of the smallest member of the skunk family, the spotted skunk, skunks do not climb.  What this means is that if you think you have a skunk or family of skunks living in your neighborhood, it is probably living under a porch, under a mobile home or mobile construction module, a shed, garage, in a den it has assumed from another animal, or one it has burrowed itself. 

Some of the signs which suggest you have skunks living nearby, beyond having a consistent strong and unmistakable odor in your area, can be mild to moderate destruction of your lawn or landscape evidenced by signs of shallow digging (grubbing), debris from ground bees/wasp hives, parts of insects, or, having one of your pets getting sprayed.

If you feel that you have a skunk or family of skunks which have become a nuisance in and around your home or business, have a skunk that has been injured, or have questions regarding what might be rooting in your lawn or landscape please call 1^st Response Wildlife @ 520-260-9517. 

I have had great success in capturing and relocating skunks but, if they are not causing any trouble for your pets, are not grubbing and digging up your landscape, or spraying, I may recommend you let them alone to eat insects and generally act in a preventative way to help keep your cockroach, spider, scorpion, and ground bees under control.  In fact, the lures that I use reflect the primary components that make up a skunk's diet.  Below is another great shot of a spotted skunk that was quite drawn to food that smelled, tasted, and looked like a favorite food.

 

Fig. 2. Spotted Skunk searching for more of my lure

My customers sometimes find that they think they have a skunk problem but, after further discussion and inspection of their property, together we determine that, if they had a skunk, it had
moved on while others have found evidence of an animal grubbing in their yards that is actually the work of a raccoon family.  I am happy to discuss and inspect an area with my customers to help determine what approach is best for the homeowner or business owner.

Thanks, Wildman Josh :)

Josh's Cell (24/7 Hours): 520-260-9517

Josh Waling is a humane Licensed Animal Trapper who catches and releases wildlife, removing animals including bobcats (lince), snakes, rattlesnakes (serpiente de cascabel), raccoons (mapache), pack rats, gila monsters (monstruos de gila), rabbits (canejo), owls, bats, squirrels (ardilla) , coatimundi (gato solo), skunks (mofeta), exotics, and domestic cats and dogs. He delivers service that is professional and fast and he is available 24/7.  Give him a call the next time you hear unusual noises in the attic or crawl spaces in your home or if you see wildlife eating your vegetation, creating nests, and raising their young too close to your pets or children. 520-260-9517 Thanks!

Animal Removal & Relocation ~ Rock Squirrels

Here in greater Tucson and the Sonoran desert, we have a fairly large ground squirrel, the Ground Rock Squirrel (Spermophilus variegatus) Spanish name- ardilla. Weighing up to a pound and equipped with excellent digging claws, the Rock Squirrel can be quite a nuisance and harbor fleas-which are known to spread bubonic plague. 

Rock Squirrels look similar to a tree squirrel but its ears are set farther back on its head and its coloration, as seen in the one pictured here, may be a combination of speckled  grayish brown- with a long bushy tail.  They are good climbers, and although you may see them in trees in springtime feeding on young buds, these squirrels dig and live in burrows underground.

My customers most often call for trapping and removal of Rock Squirrels when they find their landscaping, yard, or surrounding desert has been invaded.  When these squirrels move in, they tend to dig several burrows with holes large enough to cause a child, horse, or even an adult to trip and possibly get injured.  In addition, especially in a landscaped area, the mounds of dirt they excavate when digging their burrow, destroy the contour of the surrounding area and make that area look messy.  I try to also remind my customers that, beyond creating a mess in the yard, Rock Ground Squirrels also can carry disease.  Because ground squirrel’s fur is constantly in contact with the soil, they can harbor fleas, which can be transferred to your pets, your living area, and back yards where your children play.  Fleas have been known to be a source of bubonic plague and, for this reason, I wear gloves when handling any of them-alive or dead.

Rock Squirrels can be seen throughout the year, here in southern Arizona.  On the coldest days of December through to March, they may be seen less because they are spending time in their burrows to stay warm, coming out on the very warmest days for a few hours.  In higher elevations of Arizona, these squirrels will go into hibernation but, this happens less so here in southern Arizona with these animals instead, taking shorter periods of inactivity in their burrows, known as Torpor.  (Torpor is similar to hibernation, in that an animal will reduce its heart rate, drop its temperature and conserve energy.  Rock Squirrels, however, do not stay in this state long, here in southern Arizona-usually 1-4 days).  You can expect Rock Squirrels to emerge from their burrows during the warmest part of the day in winter.

If you find that you have a problem with Rock Squirrels in your yard, surrounding desert, or feel uncomfortable and believe they have become a nuisance, please give 1^st Response Wildlife a call.  Also, if you have a pet who has been injured or you find a Rock Squirrel that you would like removed to a rehab center because it cannot fend for itself, please give me a call for that as well. 

Thanks, Wildman Josh :)

Josh's Cell (24/7 Hours): 520-260-9517

Josh Waling is a humane Licensed Animal Trapper who catches and releases wildlife, removing animals including bobcats (lince), snakes, rattlesnakes (serpiente de cascabel), raccoons (mapache), pack rats, gila monsters (monstruos de gila), rabbits (canejo), owls, bats, squirrels (ardilla) , coatimundi (gato solo), exotics, and domestic cats and dogs. He delivers service that is professional and fast and he is available 24/7.  Give him a call the next time you hear unusual noises in the attic or crawl spaces in your home or if you see wildlife eating your vegetation, creating nests, and raising their young too close to your pets or children. 520-260-9517 Thanks!