of problem wildlife from beavers, coyotes, flying squirrels, groundhogs and more. He also provides depredation permits, which are required to trap wild animals that are causing problems to a homeowner’s land or property.
“I received my license from Raleigh and have been doing this over the past two years. It’s going great. I would say that most calls, especially in the summer, are snakes and bats. I’ve also dealt with other animals that people have called about from raccoons to flying squirrels,” Richardson explained.

“A lot of times people hear a strange noise in their attic. So, they call me and there is a flying squirrel in their attic,” Richardson said. “There are a lot of guidelines I have to follow with different animals because of rabies or other requirements, but if I can, I always try to relocate the animal.”

Richardson said he really enjoys his job and is pleased that it has gone so well.

“I’ve lived here in Ashe County all my life and when I started doing this, I figured that most people in the county would take care of these things themselves,” he said. “I found out that a lot of people do call me. It’s the coolest job in the world. I had calls about flying squirrels today and yesterday. I get to meet some interesting people too – I really enjoy this job.”

Snakes are also a big source of business for him. “I’ve had all kinds of calls about snakes – black snakes, garter snakes – well, snakes scare anybody, but I’ve not ran into many poisonous snakes at all,” he added.
One call Richardson remembers very well involved a groundhog. “A groundhog had gotten into a small store somehow after the owner had closed up shop. It got in there and tore everything all to pieces. I was able to get the groundhog out so they could get everything cleaned up,” he noted.

For more information, call Richardson at Northwestern Wildlife Services at 336-620-1338.