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Raccoons can spread viruses and bacteria to humans and pets, including rabies, canine and feline distemper, parvovirus, Salmonella, and leptospirosis. These can all cause a range of illnesses.

To keep animals away from your trash, you can spray store-bought ammonia-based cleaners on the bag or make your own spray. All you need is a spray bottle with one part ammonia and one part water. Once you’ve sprayed the bags, keep your kids and pets away.

Skunks spray as a defense mechanism to ward off predators. The active ingredient in their sulfurous, oily musk is n-butyl mercaptan, which evaporates into a powerful and smelly gas. Once the spray hits the skunk’s target, the stench can linger for days, and water and common cleaning kits aren’t enough to wash it away.

If you happen upon a skunk in your yard, try to back away slowly to reduce the chance of them aiming at you. Encouragingly, they don’t use their weapon casually, as it can take up to 10 days for their life-saving weaponry to refill. Paw stamping, hissing, lifting their tail, and arching their back are early signs they feel trapped or under threat and that it’s time to make a careful retreat.

Consider making some noise if you're looking for a straightforward way to put a damper on excessive frog croaking. You don't need to orchestrate a symphony—simple actions like stomping or clapping with gusto can work wonders. You can also try blasting music, but that won't help you make friends with your neighbors. A simpler solution might be learning to live with it. You can try soundproofing your bedroom with heavy-duty noise-reducing curtains.