What to do if there is Animal or Human Feces in Your Pool

Human feces does not usually carry disease. Some animal feces can carry diseases and parasites, so to be safe we treat all animal feces as if they carry diseases. Raccoon feces can sometimes contain the eggs of a worm called Baylisascaris procyonis, which can infect humans, particularly children, and cause severe neurologic illness. Other animal droppings can contain germs such as E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter, or Cryptosporidium.

If a human or animal has defecated in your pool you have two choices:

  • Call us for a intensive treatment!

    We can super chlorinate (shock) your pool, clean your filter and run your pump for 24 hours. We come back the next day and adjust the chemistry and clean the filter again so you can use your pool sooner.

  • Take Care of it Yourself

    Remove the fecal matter in using gloves. Do not swim in your pool for 72 hours. Your properly chlorinated pool will kill all the germs and filter the water in that time.

What if there is staining from the feces?

If there is staining, we offer an special citric treatment which will remove 90% of the stains or we can drain your pool and acid wash it. If you chose to do the acid wash we wont need to super chlorinate since we will be draining your pool water. These treatments are additional and depend on pool size so please email us for pricing.

How can I prevent animals from coming back?

Raccoons and ducks are the most common culprits of animal poop we encounter in South Florida. Raccoons are known to come back to the same spot over and over again. They love shallow pool steps for doing their business. Here are some helpful hints to discourage them from coming back.

  • Make sure no food or trash cans are nearby

  • Keep your pool fence closed

  • Consider covering the steps or your pool or blocking them off

  • Buy a floating alligator head to scare animals away

You can also contact Palm Beach County Animal Services at 561-233-1200 or a licensed local wildlife removal company if it you have a recurring animal issue. Organized Pool Service is not licensed to catch or remove wildlife.

Do you have a question or a concern? The best way to contact Organized Pool Service is via Email. We answer promptly and when we receive emails we can save our communications historically on your account.