Reducing conflicts between people and wildlife must be a neighborhood or community effort to be truly effective. If one person in a neighborhood is still feeding wildlife, that person is attracting the animals to the whole neighborhood. There are many complaints from people whose neighbors have been feeding wild animals. Often, the wildlife has become a nuisance and the caller wants to remove or kill them.

• Keep garbage in sturdy garbage cans with secure lids.
• Rinse cans and bottles before you store them for recycling.
• Keep your compost pile fenced from animals, or use a closed compost container.
• Do not leave food out for animals.
• Do not feed animals by hand or try to lure them into your house or yard.
• Harvest your fruit trees when the fruit ripens and remove any fruit that falls on the ground.
• If bears or other potentially dangerous animals appear remove bird feeders and other sources of food until they leave. Bears love sunflower seeds and suet and will come right up to your house to get them. They also love to clean your dirty barbecue grill for you.
• Do not feed your pets outside, or if you must, feed them outside during the day, and take food and water bowls inside during the night.
• Birdfeeders should be scrubbed clean at least once a week and disinfected with a ten-percent solution of bleach water. Allow the feeder to air dry before refilling it with seed. Clean and disinfect bird baths in a similar fashion.

Many people do not think about the neighborhood impact when they start feeding wildlife. Work with your neighbors and create a community-wide effort.