Are pet raccoons legal in your state? Click on the thumbnail below to find out.
DISCLAIMER: Many considering pet raccoon ownership decided against the 20-year commitment after 1) realizing your pet raccoon could be killed in your front yard by wildlife control if you live in a state where they are not legal, and 2) after volunteering with a Wildlife Rehabilitator and seeing what all is involved, especially when their hormones kick in and they want to be free, so they will tear up your home and even you trying to honor their natural callings.
We certainly aren’t trying to scare potential raccoon Moms and Dads from adopting, but we believe in telling the truth about what you could potentially be signing up for. If the tone here is frightening, it’s because we’ve seen the pain and suffering in the eyes (and bodies) of former ‘pets’ who were dumped into the wild at six months old when their hormones kicked in. They come to us half frozen to death from not knowing how to find shelter, ripped to shreds by other other, more established raccoons (especially older males), they have zero survival skills to build dens or find food, and they are so despondent from missing their former family that they literally starve themselves to death. So if you’ve seen what we’ve seen, trust us, you’d be very passionate about this subject as well.
Raccoon ownership is completely different from owning domestic animals.
• Raccoons are extremely intelligent and naturally inquisitive, which also makes them very destructive (picture a human toddler hopped up on Monster energy drinks 24/7).
• There is a reason why medical labs stopped using raccoons as test subjects! Most are master escape artists, and their natural instincts to burrow into the knothole of a tree leads them to destroy your drywall, dig holes into your mattresses/sheets/covers, shred your couches to climb inside, and demolish furniture trying to hide inside drawers.
• Please see videos and photos below, compliments of long-time pet raccoon parent and #1 raccoon advocate, Kathy Elliott, to fully understand what you may be signing up for.
• In at least three U.S. states, even your legal, fully permitted pet raccoon could be confiscated and euthanized if you do not get a “wildlife travel-through” permit. Even then, it is still up to the wildlife conservation agent whether or not they enforce the rabies laws for their state. Raccoon owners, even legal ones, have to constantly be looking over their shoulders to protect their babies.
• It is extremely difficult to find veterinarians who not only have experience with wildlife, but are willing to spend extra money to insure and sponsor rabies pre-vaccines for their team members (normally $1200 per person). Because they are so rare, most veterinarians who treat wildlife are normally booked weeks to months in advance. It is against the law for veterinarians to treat non-licensed/non-permitted raccoons, so they understandably would not risk losing their own license to treat your animal, so BE SURE YOU HAVE A VETERINARIAN ALREADY LINED UP BEFORE CONSIDERING RACCOON OWNERSHIP.
• It is nearly impossible to go on vacation because there are no apps for “raccoon sitters” and even if there were, raccoons are extremely intelligent and calculating. The moment the sitter is distracted, they will use the opportunity to escape.
• If you get a work promotion and have to move out of state, rehoming a pet raccoon is nearly impossible. Not only because pet and wild raccoons are illegal in most states, but also because raccoons form much deeper emotional bonds to their owners than any other species. Some pet raccoons have literally grieved themselves to death from being rehomed, no matter how amazing their new family was.
Raccoons come with extraordinarily unique rules.
• The rabies vaccine is not officially labeled for raccoons. And raccoons BITE – whether they are scared, angry, or just playing. So even if your pet is legally permitted and fully vaccinated, if they were to bite or scratch someone visiting your home and that person went to the authorities claiming “rabies”, there are no guarantees that your fully permitted pet raccoon could not be confiscated and euthanized to be tested for rabies. Pet raccoon owners must be hypervigilant 24/7, or they could end up being unfortunate statistics such as in this article or this one.
• As stated before, even with a fully vaccinated and permitted pet raccoon, you must get a special “travel-through” permit if driving cross country with them because some states have the authority to confiscate and euthanize them at the wildlife officer’s discretion.
• Raccoons have specific, often expensive dietary needs and can be extremely picky eaters.
Raccoons are the poster children for “It’s my way for the highway”
• They bite. Especially when you try to make them do things they don’t want to do.
• They are very temperamental.
• They are the masters of selective hearing.
• Normal canine training methods do NOT work on raccoons, they have no desire to please you!
• They are extremely intelligent, inquisitive, and destructive by nature. Punishing them for this behavior creates bitter, angry, resentful, biting raccoons.
Raccoons have different personalities. Even the most thoughtfully-bred raccoons may not remain docile after hormones kick in at a few months old.
Even when bred in captivity, that cute, adorable, and affectionate pet raccoon could turn into a hormonal catastrophe, even AFTER being spayed or neutered. Docile raccoons are the exception rather than the rule. And once the “wild” switch turns on inside a raccoon’s soul, shutting it off would be like trying to prevent a pre-teen human boy’s voice from changing octaves.
Mother raccoons normally spend a full year teaching their kits how to assimilate into social hierarchies, forage for food, build dens, and find shelter. Many Rehabbers have rescued “pet” raccoons from near death because they were kicked out with ZERO skills on how to “raccoon” once they turned into biting, aggressive, angry, uncontrollable adults who destroyed the owner’s home because they were following their natural instinct to go outside, climb a tree, and have a family of their own.
Releasing a pet raccoon into the wild is a death sentence.
❌️ Without a raccoon Mom to guide them their first year, they will be torn to shreds by other raccoons already established in that area.
❌️ They will die a long, slow, painful death from starvation, if not attacked by a predator or other raccoons first.
❌️ They have no network of other raccoons to commune with, so they will have a hard time finding safety from the elements.
❌️ Some Rehabbers have likened it to dropping a 10 year old human child into a foreign country and telling them to go find food, shelter, work, and resources.
❌️ Does the raccoon in this video appear to be able to fend for himself? Or how about the one below?
Choosing a responsible, certified, licensed breeder
On the other hand, we’re also completely addicted to raccoons and can totally understand why you would want to make all the sacrifices to have them in your life too. And they deserve to have as good of a life as this beloved girl Biscuits whose videos we just live for: https://fb.watch/hVkP9Luwyd/
So here are the steps we would recommend to finding your new lifelong little buddy:
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Be sure pet raccoons are legal in your state by checking here (this list also contains several legit breeders we would personally recommend).
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Do your research and homework to ensure your breeder is reputable. Check your breeder’s references extensively.
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Do NOT send payments or deposits electronically. Meet in person with the breeder, pay cash, check their credentials, be sure to get an official receipt/permit #, and confirm that they are willing to follow up with you to confer on diet, enrichment, and medical care since legit breeders want to make their babies are being well cared for even AFTER the sale.
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Never buy an animal from an auction. These breeders are usually extremely irresponsible, only in it for the money with little concern for the animals, lose tons of animals due to overbreeding, and take babies away from their mothers way too early, causing psychological/physical damage as well as long-term health issues for their animals. A reputable breeder would never sell you a baby raccoon at an auction because genuine breeders are more interested in checking your references to ensure their animals are well cared for long-term.
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Responsible, conscientious breeders will also ensure their animals are spayed or neutered before or after selling them to you.
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Call around to ensure you have a veterinarian lined up who can and will treat your pet raccoon if they become ill. It is extremely difficult to find veterinarians who have experience with, are willing, or even have time to treat raccoons. Veterinarians understandably will NOT treat unpermitted raccoons because they could lose their license.