Diet of a domestic raccoon. Raccoon habitat

The raccoon is the most recognizable member of the raccoon family. All raccoons are native to America, but the only species that has taken root in Eurasia is the raccoon, known for its manner of thoroughly rinsing food in water before eating.

Raccoons are the same size as cats, but due to their thick, luxurious fur they look somewhat larger. Adults grow up to 45 - 60 cm excluding the tail and weigh no more than 5 - 9 kg. The fluffy striped tail of a raccoon is about 25 cm long. amazing feature The animal has highly developed tenacious fingers, so the raccoon's footprint is very reminiscent of a human palm print.

Raccoons are predators, but they are easily tamed and do not let their owners get bored, so they are often kept as pets. Before getting an animal, you should take an interest in its lifestyle, find out what a raccoon eats in nature and, having made the appropriate conclusions, go to a nursery.

What does a raccoon eat in the wild?

Old mixed forests with ponds and swamps - favorite biotopes of raccoons. In such places there are many hollow trees where the raccoon rests during the day and goes out hunting at night. These animals have well-developed night vision, and they are also helped to navigate in the dark by sensitive vibrissae, which grow almost throughout the body: on the head, on the chest and abdomen, on the inner surface of the legs and near the claws.

Raccoons are omnivores, but their diet depends greatly on the time of year and for this reason. They are the only members of the family that fall into hibernation, gathering several individuals in a large hollow. After hibernation, in February - March, raccoons begin their mating season and the animals need protein food, so in the spring and summer their diet consists exclusively of animal food.

Raccoons catch large insects and frogs, hunt small rodents, deftly climb trees and destroy bird nests. To a lesser extent, they eat snakes, lizards and various aquatic life - crabs, crayfish and fish. And of course, they wash their prey thoroughly before eating it.

By autumn, raccoons completely switch to a plant diet, which includes berries, nuts, acorns and fruits of cultivated plants. In some areas, raccoons become a real scourge, raiding melon fields and fruit plantations.

The anthropogenic factor, which endangered the lives of many animals, did not harm the raccoons. These animals perfectly adapt to life next to humans and obtain food by digging in garbage cans. However, this does not mean that you can feed the raccoon everything.

What to feed a raccoon at home

Domestic raccoons, like raccoons in warm regions, do not hibernate, but reduce their normal activity. There is no need to adhere to a seasonal diet, all year round Your pet's food should be natural and balanced, including the following products:

lean meat (chicken, turkey, beef, rabbit);
any seafood, except fatty varieties;
vegetables ( green pea, carrots, zucchini, corn);
fruits (anything except citrus fruits);
porridge (buckwheat and oatmeal);
eggs and cottage cheese.

It is not recommended to overfeed your pet, especially in winter. Three meals a day in small (cat) portions alternating animal and plant foods is quite enough. Raccoons are smart and cunning animals; they often steal food with their tenacious hands, so you shouldn’t leave food on the tables, as this could be detrimental to your pet’s health.

What not to feed a raccoon

Some owners give raccoons cat and dog food. Such a diet should not be practiced in the system, only in extreme cases, when it is not possible to provide the pet with three natural meals a day.

The smell of smoked meats, salted fish, chips and cookies will certainly attract a raccoon, but neither the pet nor the owners need an upset stomach. Raccoons should not be given any flour or confectionery products, fried meat, or especially semi-finished products. A balanced diet will provide your pet with healthy and happy life, and raccoons live for about 20 years.

These fluffy animals with a cute face will not leave anyone indifferent, despite the fact that raccoons are predators. In total, 15 species of mammals belong to the raccoon family, and all of them live in tropical and temperate climate Northern and South America. Where does a raccoon live and what kind of life does it lead?

Where does the raccoon live

The most famous representative of the raccoon family is the striped raccoon. This small predator has a dense build. The height of the animal is about 35 cm, and the body length is no more than 60 cm. The weight of the mammal can vary from 5 to 10 kg.

Most of these predators are gray-yellow in color, with darker sides and backs. Alternating light and dark stripes can be seen on the tail. Distinctive feature The animals have a “mask” on their muzzle.

The striped raccoon is considered an indigenous inhabitant of the central and northern regions of America. Today they can also be found near open reservoirs in some Asian and European countries oh, where they were brought from the American continent.

These small predators prefer to settle close to deciduous and mixed forests, building their burrows in the lowlands. At the same time, there should be a body of water near their home. Sometimes these mammals settle right on their shores. Animals are loyal to people and can often be seen in city parks and botanical gardens. In North America, they sometimes cause significant damage to local farmers, attacking chicken coops and the homes of other poultry and small animals, or raiding vegetable crops and orchards.

Characteristic lifestyle

Since raccoons are predators, they primarily lead night look life. During the daytime, they hide in their burrows or other secluded places, emerging again for prey immediately after dark. Each animal has its own personal territory - the radius of which can reach 2 km. Here he has several holes at once. At the same time, another animal cannot occupy this shelter. There are situations when the border properties of raccoons overlap. In such cases, there is often a real competition for the right to control one or another area.

Thanks to their well-developed hearing and vision, raccoons are first-class hunters. The animal's tenacious paws allow it to quickly move through the trees. However, raccoons themselves can become victims of a wolf, coyote, bobcat or owl. Young animals can be attacked by a snake.

Nutrition

Near bodies of water where raccoons live, they can hunt frogs, arthropods, fish, turtles, hamsters and musk rats. They can also feed on insects, bird eggs, worms, larvae of various beetles, berries and nuts. Sometimes predators raid villages; they can feast on poultry, rabbits, grain crops, fruits and berries.

Reproduction

By nature, male raccoons are polygamous, that is, during mating season, they try to impregnate as many females as possible. The pregnancy of these mammals lasts 9 weeks. As a rule, a female is capable of producing from 3 to 4 babies at a time. Sometimes more than 7 little raccoons are born.

For the first 3 weeks of life, the cubs are completely blind and absolutely helpless, so they are completely dependent on their mother. After this they become independent.

At home, predators live more than 11 years. As for animals that live in their natural habitat, then average duration their life is 5-6 years.

Those who want to have such an animal at home need to be prepared for some inconveniences, since raccoons are nocturnal animals. During the day, they mostly sleep in their shelters.

These charming and interesting creatures are considered one of the most resilient in nature. Environment very favorable to raccoons. As they say in North America, the homeland of the raccoon, raccoons are found where they can chew something edible.

Raccoons are nomadic by nature. Their location directly depends on food supplies, and can change depending on the year’s harvest. Also, raccoon habitats can be determined by soil fertility. Raccoons are always attracted to productive land.

Raccoon paradise, ideal raccoon habitat

Raccoons are very partial to forests. If there is a river, pond or even a swamp in a wooded area, then you can be 100% sure that this is a place where raccoons are found. Of course, meeting a raccoon during the day is unlikely. These animals lead twilight-night image life. During daylight hours, charming cunning creatures with striped tails while away the time in their nests, sleeping off for the upcoming night outing.

In addition, they take root in the steppes, in the mountains, in floodplain river valleys, on islands, etc. The only conditions for raccoons to live are the presence of a reservoir and food. These resources are always where raccoons live in the wild.

Regarding food, raccoons are omnivores. However, these people have certain preferences charming creatures still exist. In late winter, spring and until the onset of summer, raccoons happily gobble up food of animal origin. In summer, autumn and winter, these cute animals eat nuts, vegetables, fruits and berries. If the earth is rich in these gifts of nature, then this is exactly the place where raccoons live.

In winter, raccoons can hibernate, especially striped raccoons, so frost, blizzards and snowfalls are not a threat to this species. A raccoon can hibernate for up to 4-5 months.

Where won't you find raccoons?

Raccoons do not like dry areas. If there are no bodies of water in the region, then you definitely won’t find a raccoon in this area.

In addition, they avoid coniferous forests(except walnut forests Central Asia where the raccoon lives). Apparently, the pine needles have a very pungent aroma that these charming masked sneaks cannot get used to.

Also, “striped hooligans” are often exterminated by other predators. The eternal enemies of raccoons are:

Alligators
Wolves
Coyotes
Jackals

Besides them, the places where raccoons live are full of hunters who cannot live without the meat and skins of these animals.

Of course, raccoons are natural tacticians and strategists. If the odds are in favor of the raccoons, then the most dangerous predator may receive a worthy rebuff. Raccoons are dangerous fighters. Behind the charming mask and elegant striped tail hides unbridled wild power, which often relies on hefty cunning and excellent ingenuity.

But it also happens that, for example, a flock of jackals or coyotes follows the trail of our animals. The outcome of this confrontation is a foregone conclusion, of course, if the raccoons do not leave the “dangerous” territory in time. This also happens often, because raccoons have well-developed intuition.

Raccoon habitat

If we talk about striped raccoons, the habitats of the “striped hooligans” are North America, from Panama to Canada. In Eurasia, the striper lives on Far East, V Krasnodar region, in the Caucasus, off the Black Sea coast, in the Donbass, in the south of Belarus, in the Baltic countries, and raccoons also live in Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Dagestan and in Germany and France.

In Europe, the gargle was introduced artificially. In this area, sneakers do well. The fact is that even before the breakup of the lithospheric plates, when Eurasia and North America were one continent, raccoons successfully migrated from Europe to America. The European raccoon was exterminated by wyverns, but the North American raccoon was luckier; it has survived to this day almost unchanged.

At the beginning of the 20th century, gargle began to be bred artificially. Central Europe is where the raccoon lives in the wild. From the release points, this cunning animal quickly spread to most of Central Europe and became well established in many countries.

The closeness of a raccoon and a person. Where do raccoons live?

Raccoons are ubiquitous. The proximity of a person does not bother these “striped eccentrics” at all.

The habitats of raccoons are city parks and public gardens; this applies to both provincial suburbs and large regional centers or even capitals.

Animal connoisseurs can... For example, in America, cases are often common when a wild “masked bully” turns into a completely tame creature living in a human family. Wild raccoons, of course, are difficult to domesticate, but in the hands of an experienced trainer, the wildest “hooligan” can become a good pet.

Living in populated areas, these animals often frequent landfills with household waste.
The favorite place for raccoons to live is a hollow tree. Raccoons try to climb higher, into as spacious a hollow as possible. There are cases when up to 10 individuals can live in one hollow.

If the raccoon’s habitat does not include hollow trees, then the raccoon can settle in old buildings, in rock crevices, and in the burrows of other animals. Raccoons do not know how to dig holes, so they willingly use the work of other animals. It can even go so far that the raccoon successfully survives the owner of the hole from his rightful place in order to establish his refuge there. A raccoon can drive a badger or a hare, for example, out of a hole.

Almost everyone considers them the cutest creatures, so it is not surprising that many began to keep raccoons at home. Owner reviews on this matter are not as positive as they might seem. Of course, these cute animals cause a lot of positive emotions. However, you need to understand that these animals are not yet as domesticated as dogs or cats. Therefore, one cannot expect obedience or sincere affection from a raccoon.

Before bringing such a fidget into your home, you should think several times, since today cases of raccoon abandonment have become more frequent. Sometimes they are even thrown out onto the street. Let's try to find out more about this cute-looking animal at first glance.

General information about raccoons

These animals are native to America, but today funny stripers are found in almost every corner of the planet. This is explained by the fact that the animal is perfectly able to adapt to almost any habitat. IN wildlife raccoons prefer to live in forests mixed type. A prerequisite is the presence of a nearby body of water.

The animals are distinguished by a rather strong physique and small dimensions. An adult raccoon rarely grows larger than the average dog. These animals weigh no more than 10 kg.

The main feature of raccoons is their passion for cleanliness. It is this habit that touches people so much. Before eating food, a raccoon always washes it. At the same time, the animal is distinguished by great intelligence and unprecedented energy.

Why is it difficult to keep a raccoon at home: reviews from owners

Many owners of clean animals note that before getting such a pet, they did not study the required amount of information about it. For example, some people don’t even realize that raccoons are predominantly nocturnal and prefer to sleep during the day. This becomes a huge problem, since in the dark the fidget literally begins to disassemble small parts everything that falls into his paws.

According to reviews from owners, raccoons should not be kept at home if a child under 7 years of age lives in the apartment. You need to understand that a wild animal will not calmly respond to games and tail tugging, as a dog or cat would. If a raccoon is in discomfort, it may bite or scratch anyone who touches it.

Raccoons get along well with cats and dogs at home. However, if there is a hamster, parrot, fish and other small animals in the house, then the restless animal will perceive them exclusively as food.

In addition, many noted that if a raccoon appears in the house, all possible cracks, ventilation holes and other holes will have to be sealed using a strong metal mesh. Otherwise, the pet will definitely climb there or begin to hide its treasures there.

Also, in reviews of owners about raccoons at home, the resourcefulness and ingenuity of these cute animals is often mentioned. Unfortunately, in this case this is not their advantage. The fact is that raccoons easily open doors, latches and bolts, so you will have to think about more reliable protection.

To accustom a striped raccoon to a litter box at home, you will have to spend all your nerves. This animal is used to going to the toilet wherever it feels like it. During the rutting season, they even begin to mark their territory.

Characteristics of a raccoon

You should not assume that the pretty appearance of this animal matches its nature. These animals are distinguished by obstinacy and stubbornness. If a raccoon plans something, he will definitely bring it to life. On the one hand, the animal shows its peacefulness towards its owner and in some cases even experiences warm feelings towards him. On the other hand, if a raccoon is offended by something, it will definitely take revenge. This means that the fidget will begin to destroy interior elements, thereby showing his resentment.

During sexual activity, raccoons become very aggressive and can bite or scratch their owner for no apparent reason. To prevent this from happening, it is recommended to castrate males.

Where to place a new pet

Speaking about how to keep a raccoon at home, many note that it will be very difficult to get along with it in a small apartment, since it is usually given a separate room. If we're talking about about the big country house, then the pet will feel much more at ease there.

It is best to build a wooden enclosure for a raccoon. big size. It can also be placed in an attic or attic. However, you need to take care of the locks that a nimble baby will not be able to open.

It is imperative to place bowls of food and water next to his sleeping place. In hot weather, these animals love to swim, so it won’t hurt to please them with a basin of cool liquid. In this case, the water will have to be changed very often, since raccoons constantly wash everything.

As a sleeping place, you can build a small house in which you need to put rags and sawdust.

Good to know

If you decide to keep raccoons at home, reviews from the owners will come in handy. From them you can learn not only about keeping a pet, but also get a lot useful information. For example:

The predator does not like to be lifted high above the surface of the earth. In this case, the animal begins to behave aggressively.
For a raccoon, the word “no” means absolutely nothing. Therefore, abandon the idea that he can be trained.
Raccoons have a very strong immune system, so they hardly get sick. However, in most cases they die from canine distemper or rabies.
The animals live quite a long time, up to 25 years.
In February-March, raccoons begin their mating season.

What to feed a raccoon at home

As mentioned earlier, these animals are not picky eaters, so it is important to monitor their diet. A fidget's diet should be very varied. However, this is very easy to achieve.

Experts and “experienced” animal owners recommend periodically feeding the animals:

dog or cat food;
small rodents, birds and frogs;
eggs;
fish;
nuts and acorns;
berries.

Giving sweets and canned fish to raccoons is strictly prohibited. As luck would have it, this is the kind of food that fidgets adore most, so you will have to be vigilant. There are also several products that are recommended to be included in the animal’s diet.

Grapes, nuts and dried fruits

About 2 kg of grapes will be required per month. However, it is worth considering that not all raccoons love it. Therefore, you should not buy a lot of berries at once.

Raccoons can be given any nuts. A pet can eat up to 1.5 kilograms of almonds, cashews or other types of this treat per month. As a result, you need to be prepared to spend up to 700 rubles monthly on this.

Also, many pet owners note that their pets love dates, various candied fruits and raisins. You will also have to buy about 1 kg of them every month.

Quail eggs

Raccoons are real gourmets and cannot live without this delicacy. Therefore, feed the baby quail eggs will have to every day. However, giving more than one at a time is not recommended. They contain a large number of nutritional elements. There should be no excess of them.

Cookies and other products

There are a lot of jokes about the fact that raccoons are very fond of these flour products. This is actually true. However, do not forget that sweets should not be given to animals. Therefore, you need to buy cookies without glaze, preferably with the lowest sugar content. If you do not limit the raccoon in this delicacy, then it can eat up to 4 packs of flour products per day.

However, sometimes a raccoon may refuse its favorite type of cookies, so it is better to have several packs of different varieties in stock.

Sometimes you can pamper your pet with cottage cheese and shrimp. Also, some pet owners note that raccoons love chicken hearts. However, it all depends on the pet’s mood. If he wants to play, he will simply smear food on the floor and go about his business.

Based on all of the above, it is obvious that not everyone can afford to keep a raccoon at home. Even having come to terms with complex character animal and the fact that it will destroy things it doesn’t like, you need to be prepared for the costs of feeding the baby. In addition, you need to remember that raccoons are not pets. They are very accustomed to freedom and can behave unpredictably.

The animal raccoon can compete with the agility of its forelimbs by human hands – his actions are so dexterous and precise. With its front paws, a raccoon is able to grab any objects, including food, as well as confidently hold them and even wash them. In this, the raccoon’s action is somewhat reminiscent of gargling, which is why one of its varieties received the name “gargle.”

What does a raccoon look like?

A raccoon is very easy to recognize by its dark “mask” around its eyes. and the same dark transverse lines on the tail. The body of the raccoon is very dense, stocky, the paws are short, the fur is fluffy and long, grayish-brown in color, the tail is the same tone, very fluffy. The raccoon has rounded ears and a wide head, which gradually turns into a thin, narrow and quite cute muzzle, decorated with a black “mask” with a light fur trim, somewhat reminiscent of sideburns. There is a dark brown spot around the raccoon’s eyes, and a stripe of the same shade runs from the tip of the nose to the forehead. A raccoon's tail usually has 5 to 7 wide black rings.

Where do raccoons live

The raccoon is a typical inhabitant of North and Central America, where it is extremely widespread to the present day, occupying not only wet places (its usual habitat areas), but also suburban areas. In the 20th century, this valuable fur animal was brought to one of the European countries - Germany, from where it began its “conquest” of the rest of Europe. Today, the largest concentration of raccoons is in the Netherlands and France, where they have acclimatized well. Then the raccoons were transported further east, and now raccoons can be found in Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Dagestan, the North Caucasus, the Far East, the Krasnodar Territory and even on the islands of the West Indies.

Raccoon habitats

The animal raccoon is mainly an inhabitant of wet places., therefore it always settles near fresh water bodies, from which it gets its food. In the wild, as a rule, this is:

rivers;
swamp;
ponds;
lakes.

The raccoon does not neglect places near settlements , since the proximity of human habitation does not bother the raccoon at all - on the contrary, it often visits farms in search of food. In general, the raccoon animal easily adapts to any conditions, populating the outskirts of gardens and fields, forest plantations, squares and abandoned empty buildings. It can also live in attics, basements, and unused chimneys and drainpipes. It loves hollows, where it mainly settles, preferring old trees in mixed forests. It is installed 20-30 meters from ground level. It also inhabits rock crevices and abandoned burrows. The raccoon does this forcedly because it is not able to dig the ground. Spends most of the daytime in trees.

Types of raccoons

The raccoon is part of the genus of mammals, the family of predators. There are two types of this animal:

raccoon;
raccoon-eater

The striped raccoon is the most commonly encountered species of raccoon. It is the most typical representative of the raccoon genus and is the most widespread. A raccoon weighs on average about 6 kilograms, has a height of up to 35 centimeters at the withers, a body length of about 65 centimeters and a tail of 25 centimeters.

Habits of raccoons

Raccoon is a nocturnal animal. During the day he sleeps and at night he goes out in search of food. It does not move far from the home, preferring a distance within a radius of one and a half kilometers. It has excellent ability to see in complete darkness. This provides him with not only well-developed night vision, but also vibrissae, tufts that the raccoon has on the head, on the stomach, on the chest, and on the inside of the limbs, near the claws. Raccoons are also not afraid of water and can swim well.

Before putting food in its mouth, a raccoon always rinses it in water first. Scientists attribute this rather not to the hygienic requirements of the animal, but to curiosity: its actions serve to better study its prey. In general, the animal grabs with its fingers everything it encounters on its way.

IN northern regions Raccoons hibernate in winter, without leaving the hole for weeks until the strong sub-zero temperatures, snowfalls and cold winds recede. At such times, their metabolism slows down, their heart rate and body temperature drop (but only slightly). For example, in the Canadian zone, raccoon hibernation can last up to 4 months, and in regions with more warm climate- few weeks. Animals occupying the southern parts of the range are active year-round.

What do raccoons eat

Raccoons are not picky about food, so they consume everything:
insects;
frogs;
small rodents;
walnuts;
apples;
various berries;
acorns;
eggs;
arthropods;
birds;
crustaceans;
fish and so on.

Adult raccoons are especially omnivorous. However, their most traditional foods are grains, fruits and fish. Living within the reach of human habitation, raccoons also rummage through garbage cans and landfills - their dexterous fingers on their front paws easily remove lids from any containers. It happens that adult animals sometimes raid chicken coops and farmland.

Raccoon Hunt

Raccoons are most often hunted with a dog. The most effective is hunting a raccoon with a husky in autumn time , on a dark moonless night, with fallen leaves. The fact is that the raccoon is most active in the dark and then it is less careful than on bright moonlit nights.

In addition to the gun, the hunter must have 2 electric flashlight:
one is small, pocket-sized, just to illuminate the road along which you are to move;
the second - with a more powerful reflector and power supply, which is used to detect a raccoon hiding in a tree.

The search is made easier by the fact that When foraging for food, a raccoon usually walks along trails. Well baited hunting dog quickly stops him, driving him up a tree. If the husky did not do this, having captured the raccoon on the ground, then you need to carefully monitor (by squealing and growling) the progress of the fight and quickly rush to the place of the fight, because the raccoon is able to go into a hole or into the water. But calm barking indicates that the raccoon is in the tree, therefore, you can approach slowly, since the animal will not try to escape.

Having arrived at the place, the hunter must use a flashlight with a powerful light beam and begin to carefully examine the tree: the raccoon often hides in the forks of branches, without reacting in any way to a dog barking. You can easily find the animal by the bright shine of its eyes, reflecting the light of a flashlight. Having shot one animal, you should take a closer look at the tree trunk - there may be a whole family on the tree.

Having a well-trained husky, you can hunt a raccoon during the day: looking for the hollows in which it lies. But the shooter should remember that the positive outcome of such prey depends on the depth and height of the location of the hollow - it is better that it is shallow and located near ground level, since it is easier to smoke a raccoon out of such a dwelling or drive it out by tapping the trunk.

How to learn to relax?

I can’t afford to watch a movie without ironing my clothes, walk in the park just like that, and not going to the store, read a book not for 15 minutes while I’m on the subway, but for half a day, lying on the sofa, at my own leisure...