Letter to the Editor

Editor:
I urge the community to take special precautions against attracting raccoons to our neighborhood. Due to the steady increase of garbage – partly the result of the increasing number of people and in-law apartments – raccoons are becoming more prevalent and more aggressive.
Crossing back and forth between Golden Gate Park and Lincoln Park, they stop to scavage or dig in to give birth and feed regularly. They will take up a spot on the sidewalk and hold their ground, defying one to cross in front of them. While they are adorable to look at, they are not so adorable when baring their teeth and slicing through flesh.
Raccoons can be quite vicious, as proven by the November attack on an Alameda woman and her dog by five raccoons, some of whom jumped out of trees onto her. They were stimulated to further aggression by the mere barking of the dog. (Both the dog and the woman were required to get rabies shots.)
I urge neighbors to please make a special effort to minimize garbage in our neighborhood so raccoons and other vermin will be less prevalent here.
Patricia Kimball