Every summer I go to the family beach house.
It is a stilt house, located right on the shoreline. It is too remote for me to consider living there, but whenever I have vacation time I always like going there to relax. Last summer was problematic, for several reasons. There had been some bickering in the family, so no one had used the place in almost a year. It had sat empty, with no one even checking in on it. When I went there last summer, I found the interior to be damp and dank, and possessed of the most unpleasant odor. Thankfully the central HVAC system still worked, so I turned it as low as the thermostat could go in order to drive out some of the excess humidity. After 24 hours of the AC running continuously the house was much cooler, and a lot more dry, but it still smelled funny. I am not the most handy person in the world, but I know how to use tools, and I unscrewed the grate from one of the air vents. When I shone my flashlight into the air duct beyond, I saw the telltale pawprints of raccoons in the dust. This could have meant a dead raccoon hidden somewhere deep in the ductwork, or it could mean a live one who had built a home for itself. I do not know what the next step is, do I call the animal control hotline first or do I contact a local HVAC tech to give me all the available options?