Raccoon Problem

I have a raccoon problem, as you can see from this photograph I took of one earlier today just outside my back yard. Many other residents of this area also have raccoon problems. Indeed, Charlotte County municipal authority has supplied me with a so called "animal proof" wheelie bin in an effort to stamp the problem out.

Normal bins are evidently easy prey for raccoons. What they do is knock them over and then help themselves to the contents. Of course, if you've chucked away particularly sensitive personal information, such as bank account records or credit card statements, then the raccoons can get hold of these and use them for identify theft. Apparently, it's not unheard of for raccoons to obtain driving licences and even extended credit in this way. In fact, it could well be a factor behind the present credit crunch.

Fortunately, however, my wheelie bin has a lockable lid, so even if the raccoons do knock it over, they won't get what's inside. I can therefore sleep easy at night, safe in the knowledge that I'm not unwittingly supporting a raccoon's recreational drug habit or crime spree, and nor am I allowing the global economy to sink further into the red.