While exotic pet baby raccoons are sweet and endearing, adult raccoons can bite and become destructive and vicious. Rarely does a exotic pet raccoon make a good pet. In some instances, raccoons have made successful pets but this is often not the case. Once a raccoon becomes an adult and unmanageable people want to set them free. A raccoon raised in a home, as a pet, has no survival skills to endure in the wild. If released he could starve and die. The raccoon will be unafraid of humans and could be shot.

I personally love the raccoon, everything about them, their personalities, their antics, even their odor. I am a raccoon person.

Here are raccoon pictures for you to enjoy.

Your path to raccoon facts and raccoon fact sheet. When searching for raccoon facts the word is oftenly misspelled racoon, an example racoon facts

I personally have had raccoons as exotic pets. I adore the pet raccoon. I love their intelligence and inquisitive nature. My heart melts when the raccoon takes his soft little paw and touches my face. Nevertheless, they are destructive.

My raccoon had his own bedroom. He was being a naughty little boy, biting and scratching so I gave him a short time out in his bedroom. I went to check on him about fifteen minutes later and did not see him. I felt something looking down at me. He had climbed the paneling in the bedroom and was standing above the doorframe. From that day on paneling was not safe in my house. They should have their own bed. They love to rip up holes in beds. I had one raccoon tear my bed to smithereens look at me as if to say, “Look mom feathers!” They are such a special animal, very endearing but so difficult to keep as an exotic pet.

What amazes me about the raccoon is how fast they can return to a wild state. I had two orphan raccoons brought to me. They spent virtually every minute of the day with me, bottle-fed from birth.

More pictures of raccoons




One day I took them outside to play. They decided they were staying outside and there was nothing I could do to convince them otherwise. They moved under an old shed and would have nothing to do with us ever again. We brought food and water to them for a period of time until we were sure they were hunting on their own. Occasionally still, we catch sight of them when the moon is full out by our fishpond making snacks out of our goldfish. We made sure there was plenty of “wild” food available to them since they released themselves and had never gone through prerelease procedures.



Housing
When raccoons become adults, they live solitarily. An adult raccoon will not do well with another raccoon in the house. There are exceptions.

A raccoon should not be raised in a cage. If he must be caged for short periods, the cage should be large. If a raccoon is kept as a pet, he must have the run of the house, or at least part of the house. He should have a room of his own. In his own room, he can have his own bed. Raccoons are very destructive and have a tendency to dig large holes in a bed to nest. He should have his own stuff then he will be less inclined to destroy your stuff. Your raccoon can retreat into his own room and should feel safe. Provide him with pillows, blankets, and sheets. Give him plenty of safe toys. They love balls, stuffed animals and many of the infant and toddler toys on the market.

Raccoons are destructive but if they learn from an early age on, they will learn to leave your stuff alone; maybe. Never, ever hit a raccoon. When disciplining a raccoon a firm no, maybe a tap on the nose to get its attention.

Your home must be raccoon proof. All cupboards should have locks. Raccoons are very proficient climbers. All knickknacks should be locked up. There is no such thing as being out of reach of a raccoon.




Training
Training a raccoon takes considerable patience. A raccoon can never be struck. He will consider it an attack and well attack back viciously. Or, may do so at a later date, when you least expect it.

A raccoon can be taught the word no. He might even listen and respond to the word no occasionally. If he chews on something of yours, substitute it for one of his toys. If he uses you as a chew toy stick a soft toy in his mouth and tell him no. It will take time but he can learn the word no; maybe.

Raccoons can be litter boxed trained. Though once they are trained, they will still express anger or displeasure by eliminating on something of yours. Raccoons will also leave marks during mating season. After mating season, they will return to using the litter box. This can't be helped and isn't a breakdown of litter box training.

A raccoon can get angry and throw a fit. Immediately show him or her your displeased and give him or her a time out in its bedroom. Do not let your raccoon climb you like a tree. While this is cute when their young a 50-pound raccoon climbing your body is not comfortable.

Grooming
A raccoon should be bathed only once or twice a year. Do not bath him more often than that because of loss of body oils. Throughout the year without shampoo, fill up the bathtub with plain water and let the raccoon play in the water with his toys.

A raccoon should be gently brushed with a brush or wire comb. Once a year a raccoon’s fur will crack, this cracking occurs in early spring. The dead winter fur will come out in clumps. The fur becomes a tangled mess. Comb this matted fur out very gently.


Nutrition
Raccoons are omnivores. Feed the raccoon fresh fruits, vegetables, chicken, turkey, and fish. Red meat is not good for raccoons. A high protein, low ash, poultry based dog food can be fed. Though it will benefit them greatly if you stick to a more natural diet closely resembling what they would eat in their natural habitat.

Raccoons raised domestically are very susceptible to obesity. One of the most common causes of death in a raccoon is heart failure due to obesity. Obesity can cause other health problems such as fatty liver disease and hip dysplasia.

My raccoon and skunk are not seeing eye-to-eye today.

A raccoon needs lots of exercise and space to run around. If the raccoon does not get plenty of exercise, he will have serious health problems.

Raccoons are notoriously messy diners. They mix their food with their water and end up with a big soupy mess every time.


Legalities of Owning a Raccoon
Rabies can be a danger. Though rabies is not as widespread as the media, lets on it can be a danger. Even if you are certain your raccoon does not have rabies or he has been vaccinated against rabies if he bites someone and it is reported he will have to be tested for rabies. There is no recognized quarantine period for the raccoon as there is a dog or cat. There is only one procedure recognized to test for rabies is that the raccoon is killed and the head sent to a lab for testing. No wild animal is exempt. He will die.

In many states, it is illegal to own a raccoon. In many other states, it is legal as long as you obtain a permit before purchasing a raccoon. Check the local, states laws thoroughly before purchasing a raccoon, and obtain the permits you will need. If you have a raccoon in an illegal state or without a proper permit, the raccoon can be seized and destroyed.

A raccoon can and will bite. Make sure you have a liability insurance policy to protect you when he does bite and scratch someone. Don't let other people that aren't close to you near your raccoon. Even your best friend may scream the raccoon bit me someday and cause the demise of your pet raccoon.

Raccoons do not make good pets for children. In fact, never ever leave a raccoon alone with a child.

Purchasing a Raccoon
Here is a healthy baby raccoon(kit)Purchase a raccoon with shiny fur and bright eyes. Usually the quieter babies make the gentler pets.

Pet raccoon breeders can be found under subjects and then breeders and sellers.

Health Issues
Roundworm is a serious problem for raccoons. This parasite is named the Baylisascaris Procyonis or the raccoon roundworm. It can be transferred to humans and other pets. This roundworm can cause blindness, central nervous system damage, and death! A wormer is available but must be administered regularly. Discuss this with a vet that is familiar with raccoons.

My article on the raccoon roundworm Raccoon Roundworm

A raccoon needs to be vaccinated for distemper. Distemper can be airborne, so even if your raccoon is always in the house he still needs to be vaccinated. Distemper is a very disabling disease and is usually fatal and never reversible.


Summary
Owning a raccoon is a way of life. They require a great deal of time and attention. You will have to continually provide him with entertainment. They can be vicious and they do bite. Raccoons are destructive and messy. They do make a delightful pet for some people but it takes tremendous time and patience to live with a pet raccoon. Give serious thought before purchasing a raccoon. If you do indeed feel you can live the totality of a lifestyle with a raccoon, enjoy that cutie with all your heart. Yes, I do indeed love the raccoon.

***Raccoon roundworm
***Raccoons - How to Care for the Pet Raccoon
***Coatamundi - How to Care for the Pet Coatamundi
***Kinkajous - Pet Kinkajous


How to travel with raccoons Car Travel with Exotic Pets


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