Raccoons are commonly referred to as the “masked bandit” for good reason. One of the interesting raccoon facts is that this animal can get into about anything. Literally, they can open doors, pull out drawers, open fish traps, you name it. Because of their nimble little hands, sheer determination, and natural curiosity when it comes to food, raccoons are notorious for making a mess as they search for something to eat.
Some of the other interesting facts about raccoons we have gathered are listed below:
- Geographic Location – Raccoons can survive just about anywhere, living and thriving from North America to the tropics as long as there is nearby water.
- Feet – Another of the fascinating raccoon facts is the feet. When walking, they arch the back, walking from heel to toe with non-retractable claws. The front and back feet have five toes, making it easy to grasp and hold things.
- Face – The face has a unique shape, tapering down to a pointed like muzzle.
- Babies – Interesting raccoon facts for babies are that the eyes stay shut until around three weeks of age. While young in captivity, babies drink warm milk mixed with water and a little bit of honey for sweetness. Once the bottle has been consumed, baby raccoons need to be burped just as a human baby would.
- Coloring – Most raccoons are brown with a little white and the black mask although some are more of a grayish color.
- Climbing – We also wanted to add to our list of raccoon facts that in addition to being excellent climbers, when ready to come down from a tree, the animal will shimmy down backwards and just before getting to the ground, they turn and jump down on all fours.
- Swimming – Most people are surprised to find out that raccoons are not only good swimmers but they actually love spending time in the water.
- Homes – Typically, raccoons will create homes in the wild but they also look for warm safe places, commonly getting down inside fireplace chimneys. Because of this, people should always have a chimney cap installed.
