A North Saanich woman is in hot water with her neighbours after admittedly feeding dozens of raccoons in her backyard over a period of years.
North Saanich residents have written to their municipal council to complain about the animals. Those letters will be read at council Monday night.
Neighbours say that while Olga du Temple's yard has become the raccoons' dining room, their yards have become the animals' bathroom.
"They are very cute," says the 85-year-old du Temple. "They don't make harm to anyone."
That's something neighbour Don Martin disputes, saying he routinely has to clean his yard of raccoon feces after the nightly feast next door.
And du Temple admits the animals can get ferocious at feeding time. "They are pulling their hair, they are biting their ears," she says.
However, both Martin and du Temple know that she isn't breaking any laws, per se.
"There is no bylaw about feeding raccoons," Martin says.
North Saanich Mayor Geoff Orr says there is no plan to change those bylaws just yet but council is eager to "move this forward without having to take drastic measures."
Du Temple says that she has decided to stop feeding the raccoons after hearing from her neighbours – for the time being, at least.
