Weird Things You Need to Know About Your Pet Raccoon

Your pet raccoon will be the cutest varmint in the neighborhood. It will seem almost human sometimes as it opens your kitchen cabinets and dumps all the cereal into its water bowl. On the other hand when you see it hanging from your door jamb, relaxed and resting, it will seem particularly inhuman. It will love your upholstery, your mattress, your pillows. So you will want to provide ratty versions of all those just for pet raccoon pampering, and place them in the raccoon's private room. (Yes, raccoons like privacy sometimes.) You will have to teach Rocky or Raquel Raccoon not to bite, fight or climb its humans, because keep in mind it may grow to fifty pounds as an adult. On the up side, raccoons are active, curious, intelligent and funny. And cute, did we say cute?

Feeding Your Pet Raccoon

Here is a weird raccoon fact you may not know: Raccoons like to wash their food before they eat it. So provide lots of water, and expect lots of soupy messes. Raccoons are omnivores. In the wild they eat fish, frogs, small animals and fruit. In captivity, you have to be careful not to let your pet raccoon become obese. Fruit and vegetables are good, as is fish, even eggs. Red meat may be counter-productive to your intent to keep your raccoon svelte. According to Animal World, a ferret diet works well for raccoons.

Potty Training Your Pet Raccoon.

Good luck on this one! Actually, raccoons are smart, and they can be trained to use a litter box. Once trained, they may even use it most of the time. When they're little, and you see them "take the position" ( a sort of squat) pick them up and put them in the litter box. It's best if the litter smells "raccoony," so if you find raccoon doodoo (and you will) put a little in the litter box so the Masked Darling gets the idea.

Keep Your Pet Raccoon from Turning Into a Hottie.

During mating season especially, the Masked Man will want to mark territory and show sexual availability by leaving doodoo here and there, and leaking a little (even on you). This is less of a problem if you have your pet raccoon spayed or neutered.* Since you're going to (and must legally) buy your raccoon from a reputable breeder, ask the breeder about finding a vet who is willing to treat raccoons. Many are not. * Warning: Once you have Rocky or Raquel neutered, they can never be returned to the wild, where mating season gets pretty competitive. And even if you don't neuter them, they will still have to go to a licensed rehabilitator before being released.

You Do Realize that Pet Raccoons Have Hands? (Times Four)

He has hands, and sharp little claws. Your pet raccoon will be able to unlock anything you can unlock except locks that take keys. And if you give him the right key, he might figure that out too. In fact a favorite toy for pet raccoons is a box with ten or more locks. Keeps the little rascal busy. Coony can open cabinets, drawers, doors, refrigerators, tackle boxes, sewing kits. He may not even need the combination to your safe.

Grow Old with Your Pet Raccoon.

In the wild, the life span of a raccoon is about 7 years. But in captivity, raccoons can live 14 or 15 years. Deciding to keep a raccoon for a pet is quite a commitment, so think about it. If down the road you decide the Masked One is too much trouble, don't just turn it loose. It will try to find a way back into your house, and it won't be through the front door. Without months of rehabilitation, a once-captive raccoon cannot survive long in the wild.

Sources:

Raccoons as pets
What to expect from a pet raccoon
How to care for a pet raccoon