Woman versus wild: Making a business of wildlife

Don't touch the raccoons!

No, seriously, don't touch them. That's the one message professional animal trapper Heather Lackey wants to get out more than any other to residents of Carson Valley.

"People should educate themselves about wildlife, what to do and what not to do. You don't want to learn the hard way," Lackey said.

The 36-year-old Minden resident, who is married to state wildlife biologist and bear expert Carl Lackey, is rounding out her third year of owning and operating Carson Creature Catchers. The one-woman show, with her big red truck and plenty of traps, offers nuisance wildlife control from Reno all the way down to Topaz. Lackey can handle raccoons, skunks, bats and other rabies vectors, not to mention badgers, beaver, muskrat and rattlesnakes.

Business is literally proliferating in the warm spring weather, but we'll get to the business part of the story in a moment - first, a public service announcement of sorts.

Last month, Lackey caught two sick raccoons in downtown Gardnerville who had distemper, a destructive and often fatal viral disease that can infect domestic dogs and cats.

"I was actually in Smith Valley collaring a lion when I got the call," Lackey said. "When I got back to the Valley, there were 6-7 calls about a sick raccoon just stumbling around and drooling. By the time I got there, people were already gathered around and looking at it."

Four days later, Lackey got another call in the same area.

"This one was so sick that the caller was able to coax the raccoon into a cage. Now, that's a sick raccoon," Lackey said.

She also trapped three raccoons near the Minden Townhomes. Unfortunately, she said, somebody let the animals go. Tampering with licensed traps is illegal, but instead of going to the police, Lackey posted a notice in the vicinity warning the anonymous liberator to seek medical attention immediately.

"Ethically, that was the most important thing to do," Lackey said.

Distemper is just the tip of the iceberg. Raccoons are hosts for a number of viruses, bacteria and parasites, including roundworm and rabies. Blood, saliva, feces, urine, contaminated soils and water can all spread the diseases. Thus, people should never approach a live or dead animal, but rather call a professional for proper handling, Lackey said.

"People just don't know," she said. "I don't want to put down any more animals than I have to, but it's the law."

Lackey said it's not uncommon to have a client uncomfortable with animal euthanasia.

"I don't like doing it, but it has to be done to protect people," Lackey said. "People come first."

On March 16, Lackey was out in the spring sunshine setting floating traps on a homeowner's pond off Foothill Road. She kneeled down on the banks of the pond and sliced fresh apples and oranges to bait the metal stop-loss traps, which, attached to wood floats, were then sent drifting out on the glassy surface.

Muskrats love fresh fruit, Lackey explained.

"They sneak through the canals and find places to hang out," she said. "The problem is that they dig holes into the underside of the bank and undermine the rocks around the pond, tearing away the foundation."

Lackey pointed to a boulder submerged in the water.

"The rocks fall in, and that's why you have boulders out in the water like that," she said. "Getting a couple of them each season stops their prolific breeding."

Lackey, who has a corporate office in Carson City, said her business has been getting stronger each year.

"A lot of it is that this is a small town, and people recognize the 'Carson Creature Catchers' name," she said. "It's word-of-mouth. We have a lot of repeat customers, and then we'll have someone who has an animal problem, and their friends will say, 'Hey, I know the perfect person to call.'"

Lackey said the best business model is based on honesty, hard work, customer service, and a real passion and knowledge of the job.

"Every job I get is different," she said. "Outsmarting animals is challenging, but I love it. I really do work with people's budgets, too. If you got skunks under your house, they have to go. It's a real problem, and I'm sympathetic to that."

"In this economy, it's hard," Lackey said. "Everyone wants it for free, but I have to make a living, and this is what I do. There are other people in the Valley who trap, but the difference is that I'm licensed and insured. That's what separates me from people who do it as a hobby."

Lackey said not all her business calls are for nuisance wildlife. She's also helped track and catch stray pets.

"Every now and then, I'll get domestics," she said. "A ferret in a backyard or a dog or cat stuck somewhere. People usually call animal control, but if animal control can't help them, then they call me."

Lackey said she recently helped a lady in Topaz whose cat was stuck in a drainage culvert.

"I got down there and first thing called out, 'Here kitty, kitty,' and the cat came running out," Lackey recalled. "The lady said, 'You're the cat whisperer.'"

So what does the future hold for the cat whisperer, for the renowned wildlife wrangler who's also the proud mother of a 1 1/2-year-old son named Tristan?

"I want to keep doing what I'm doing, but I don't want to get too big for my breeches," Lackey said. "I want to stay small and honest. To me, in business, you just have to make a little money, enough to survive and support your family."

For more information, visit www.carsoncreaturecatchers.com or call (775) 315-7124.