A raccoon’s most noticeable characteristics are the black fur around its eyes and the alternating light and dark rings on its tails. Their facial coloring may reduce glare and enhance night vision, but to humans it brings to mind a bandit’s mask, giving the animals an increased reputation for mischief. These mischievous looking animals are actually very smart and nimble. Their intelligence and agile forelimbs means they can unscrew jars, uncork bottles, and open door latchesand door knobs.

Secluded and Semi-Solitary
Related females often share a common area and occasionally meet at feeding or resting grounds, while groups of unrelated males (up to four) live together to secure their positions against foreign males during the mating season. Raccoons avoid open areas and climb vertical structures when they feel threatened. They prefer tree hollows and rock crevices for sleeping and litter dens, but will also use abandoned burrows and dense undergrowth, as well as garages, attics, and abandoned houses.
Limited Life Cycle
Raccoons breeding peaks in Georgia in February and March, but can occur at any time from December to June. After a gestation period of about 63 days, one to seven young, known as “kits” are born. The kits are raised by their mother in relative isolation (some males show aggressive behavior towards unrelated kits) until late fall. Captive raccoons have been known to live over 20 years, but life expectancy for raccoons in the wild is only 1.8 to 3.1 years, depending on the local conditions (traffic volume, hunting, and weather severity).
Omnivorous Diet
Usually nocturnal, raccoons will sometimes scavenge for food during daylight hours. As omnivores, they’ll eat almost anything they can get their paws on. Some of their favorite foods include: birds, eggs, fish and shellfish, frogs, fruit, insects, nuts and seeds, and snakes. When raccoons move into urban areas, they are  more likely to eat human food (often from overturned trash cans).
Prevention and Removal
Raccoons invade your yard or home in search of food. By eliminating any potential food sources, you make your yard less inviting. Clean up your leftover food, drinks or pet food (including birdseed) as well as fallen berries, nuts, and fruits. Make sure your garbage bins are tightly lidded and secured against tipping. If you need raccoons removed from your residential or commercial properties, call Wild Trappers. Our state certified wildlife trappers will remove raccoons and any other nuisance wildlife from your property via safe and humane animal trapping and removal techniques. We repair any animal damage and clean-up droppings and nesting materials. We’ll also inspect your property inside and out, top to bottom, to identify the entry points and potential problem areas and offer you safe and cost effective solutions. Call us today at Wild Trappers for a quote or inspection.