We had a raccoon for 14 years. She was wonderful and I miss her, so I had to see this video. Her name was Bonnie and her baby was Clyde. We gave her baby away though. I wish we could have kept him. ♡
Yes, I've owned one too, and think they are awesome. I used to walk all over the place with it on my shoulders. Unfortunately, I wasn't really equipped to give an animal like this what it needed around the clock. They don't have very good bathroom habits and I feel bad that I kept it outside in a cage at night and when I went to school. I'd love to have another one, but I wouldn't do it.
Its simply gives me hope when i see people like this gent treating and appreciating these amazing animals. They just try an survive among us humans who create the garbage and hence attracting racoons. They are just like every other creature, trying to survive in this harsh world. Please have empathy for racoons when you see them and let them be.
Ordinarily I say it's not wise to use your hands as a play toy for any animal, but he's pretty self controlled... he doesn't break the skin. I wouldn't even trust my cats to play that rough. He's a great wild pet; I wouldn't abandon him in the wild, but I wouldn't let him in the house either... they're too inquisitive and destructive. I'd build him his own house in the back yard, complete with places to explore, things to climb and toys to play with. He's fun to watch.
Thats an amazing idea! If I'm lucky to own a house, and have wild raccoons, Im building a play area for them, and then I can leave out water and the occasional treat for them! Just not too often, just so they dont rely on me on their main source of food. o3o;;
Moth Noetavano I live in the burbs and we have a handful of raccoons that come around at night. They are a handful and unfortunately can't be trusted not to bite because they're hardened street toughs. They get chased and attacked by dogs and people. American raccoons have a high incidence of rabies too. I do believe they are capable of being hand-raised and kept as psuedo-pets. They need a habitat if semi-domesticated. I plan on moving to the country and I'll try to keep many animals.
Theman As usual it depends on where you get that stat from; I've always heard they have a high rate, but anecdotally there is a clan of four raccoons that have frequented my neighborhood for a very long time and assuming they all are the same bunch, I haven't seen any evidence of sickness at all. There was an incident some months ago where my neighbor's dog got into a bloody scuffle with one and developed sepsis but no trace of rabies from that. Even if there have been reports, things can change, so unless we have current studies, we may not know the truth about it. One might call around to the veterinarians and animal control in their locale and ask what their current experience has been with rabies. They always test for it and I haven't heard of one case in the 40 years I've lived where I am.
he's just a nut You're just a nut, YOU'RE JUST A NUT, YOU'RE JUST A NUT, YOU'RE JUST A NUT, yes you're just a nut, yes you're just a nut, yes you're just a nut.
Judy FYI to everyone, when anything has rabies, you'll KNOW it just by looking at it. Rabies cases are the saddest, sickliest sight you've ever seen, abnormally approachable, but lacking the energy to actual pursue anything with purpose. Since it's a neurological disease, it makes animals aimlessly wander in klutzy, uncoordinated circles until eventually paralyzing them. The opposite of this bushy, chipper little guy. Also, rabid animals don't fear water, they just can't drink it and slowly dehydrate because their throats spasm shut. A very cruel & thankfully still rare disease that afflicts more bats than any other animal because of their congregate living habitats.
I had two raccoons, a female and a male, "Bandit" and "Rascal" one lost a front paw in a trap. I had to get special permission from the NC Wildlife Commission to believe this or not, take them with me to Okinawa, Japan. I kept them over there with me for over a year in a huge cage some military guys built for me because my husband at the time was the CO there. The Japanese name is Raguma or something like that meaning "masked bandit"....I decided to donate them to the Okinawa Childrens' Zoo and they had babies...I got a plaque in my name because they were the only raccoons in Okinawa and I got my pic/story in the Stars and Stripes....my husband used to call me "Ellie May Clampett" because I'm such an animal lover...they were doing very well when I left in 1979.
That's a very interesting story, and impressive that you could manage to bring a raccoon there where there weren't any. That you were even allowed to keep them in North Carolina is news too. I think permissions have tightened up since then, or that's what I've read. I wonder how many people got the "Ellie May" reference, too.
Im an wild life rehabber in kansas and right now i have 11 of these guys im rehabbing anf thos is why i love it so much they just show their love and awesomeness in all they do
Racoon, Trash Panda, whatever you call them, they're amazing characters, nature's comedians, who can help but fall in love with such charming characters?
Awe!!!! I love Racoons!!! They are beautiful animals and I hate that people think bad of them...where we live there everywhere and I have familys that come to my back door and I do fed them but when it's time they go on there on...they can be very sweet and so funny
I bet a racoon would appreciate some cat toys. They hunt just like cats. You drag it around for 'em, and then they have something to beat-up and bite on. They're like little bears, too. God, so cute. The purring. I just love racoons. I hung-out with some in the Yucatan recently.
I raised a raccoon from a tiny bottle fed baby and when she was grown,released her into the woods behind my house. The next year just at dusk dark she returned to the home where she was raised and brought 3 young babies with her to show us. They ate our cats hard food and the babies played in the grass. They returned about the same time each evening for several nights only to disappear and never return. Molly was the coolest pet I ever had.
OMG he is adorable. What a funny little guy. He just loves playing SO MUCH lol. Very sweet. It must be difficult to bond with him and then release him into the wild. I wouldn't want to let him go. Though I realise that being in the wild is where he should be. It still wouldn't be easy to say goodbye to such a cute little guy.
awww! This makes me miss my Lefty Raccoon! They are so silly! Ours ran off when he was 7 months to find a lady friend and he definitely had all his big boy teeth by then!
I LOVE this video! I think raccoons are probably the cutest animal ever. I would love to have one as a pet but I have researched and found out they cannot be completely domesticated. That and being ones like these that live outside (this one maybe) can still carry rabies. I just think they are so darn cute and this lil guy's personality is incredible! haha! So much fun to watch thanks for sharing!
This is an excellent video! Shows how playful racoons can be. 1 time had my back sliding window broken for 3 nights in a row, & each night someone had to stand guard, so that the racoons that live in my neighborhood wouldn't come in. Raccoons are & have been regular visitors to my porch(es) & even when I lived in a 2 story apartment had the buggers bugging my cats. However, I got to witness how playful they are as they dashed around my yard @ 5 to 7am in the morning while I watched them for 2 of
As Lonnie W said, next to bats, in the eastern USA raccoons are probably the largest reservoir of rabies. While there have been no deaths in people proven to have been caused by a raccoon bite, this may be only because all people so bitten have been given anti-rabies prophylaxis.
This is one reason they are viewed as dangerous, and something I didn't know, and it's not rabies. Pet raccoons should be given roundworm medicine to make sure they are not infected. The raccoon roundworm is not like any found in cats or dogs, and is very dangerous, it cannot be killed with any disinfectants, and is found in the raccoon feces by the millions. The eggs live many years afterwards in the ground long after the raccoon feces has deteriorated. Most animals and humans die from this parasite but the raccoon can tolerate it and becomes a carrier. I really like raccoons, and enjoy watching them play, but I'm very cautious of their feces due to this. I had to clean some off the driveway and the only way to kill the eggs is by fire, so I blow torched it first, then blow torched the garden tool afterwards, it is to be taken very serious, Google raccoon roundworm for more info. The Dangers of Raccoon Roundworm The racoon roundworm Monsters Inside Me: Toddler Under Attack
***** Thanks, someone had mentioned using hot steam as well. After cleaning it up I did blow torch the metal garden tool. I don't think many people are aware of this, I certainly wasn't, and I've just hosed it off once in a while for years not knowing. It's a shame as the raccoons can't help the dangerous alien invader that gets in their bodies.
Have you ever seen a pissed off racoon? A friend of mine tried to shoo off a couple of mating racoons outside her window screen and she said she had never seen anything so vicious in her life. Guess they don't like to be interrupted.
raccoons are pretty awesome. When I was a kid I wanted one as a pet, but now as an adult I realize they aren't really meant to be pets. I still think they are cool anyways.
With all the terrible things humans do, saints like these who care for the animals and help them out are probably one of the few things that keeps God from nuking the planet... I love that little raccoon!
You say youre gonna take him back to the wilderness, but I'll be damned if anybody here would, I probably wouldn't.... Look how happy he is, he's clearly treated very well. Just keep him, you're part of his raccoon pack now.
