Look Both Ways Before You Cross the Road

The raccoon is a mammal native to North America.  These animals look like cute, cuddly bandits, but they can be quite fearsome when approached.

Racoons are round, fuzzy creatures with bushy tails and a black mask of fur that covers their eye area. White fur surrounds the mask and there is a stripe that runs from the forehead to the nose with white fur around the nose. The animal has a bushy, ringed tail and black paws with five toes.  The paws look a little like human hands. 

Raccoons can be very aggressive and will bite or scratch if they feel threatened.  Healthy raccoons will not attack people but they can be curious and come close to you.  If spooked, they could bite or scratch in self-defence. Because they are wild animals it is best to leave raccoons alone.  

If raccoons are in your yard they are searching for food or shelter.  Unsealed or open garbage cans, unattended pet food or bird seed, openings under decks, chicken coops, climbable trees and vegetable gardens are the things that will attract raccoons to your yard. Raccoons aren’t fond of spicy smells, so spraying a pepper solution of cayenne pepper, hot sauce and water around your plants and bushes can keep raccoons away.

Raccoons are nocturnal in nature so they are mostly active at night time. They enjoy the dark. If you want to keep them at bay, placing a flashlight in a strategic spot can be a deterrent. Because they have found food and shelter in your home or yard, these pests won’t leave without intervention.

Raccoons play an important role in the ecosystem.  They help maintain healthy populations and they distribute seeds from what they catch or forage. Raccoons are omnivores, eating both animals and plants.  They eat just about anything. They are not shy about going through the garbage to find a meal.

The preferred raccoon diet contains food found in or near water.  They have been known to eat crayfish, frogs, fish, turtles, snakes, muskrats, rabbits, squirrels, mice, rats, gophers, and birds.  They also like to eat insects, eggs, fruits, vegetables, and nuts.  Raccoons are not experts at hunting prey, but they can occasionally catch a young mouse, rat or squirrel. 

Raccoons are very adaptable.  They live in a wide range of climates and habitats.  Raccoons change dens frequently.  Sometimes they move on to a new den every night. During the breeding season and harsh winter conditions, they will remain hunkered down in their den for a longer stay. When a mother raccoon gives birth to babies, the young raccoons will start leaving the safety of their den at eight to nine weeks old. The youngsters will move from one place to the next with their mother.

Hawks, owls, and humans are the raccoons' major predators. Snakes may eat young raccoons.  To avoid being preyed upon, a raccoon will stay in its den during the day.

These are the words of advice from a Raccoon I found on the bookmark.

• Unmask your talents

• Climb to new heights

• Be curious

• Look both ways before you cross the road

• Avoid junk food

• Always wash your hands

• Enjoy the nightlife!

Here are my comments as I read the advice from a Raccoon.

• Unmask your talents - don’t hide your gifts and talents, share them with others

• Climb to new heights - keep growing, reaching up to climb closer to your dreams

• Be curious - try new things, keep learning something new

• Look both ways before you cross the road - be alert and check out things in all directions

• Avoid junk food - eat a healthy diet

• Always wash your hands - good advice to continue to follow even after the pandemic

• Enjoy the nightlife! - take advantage of the opportunities to go out and look up at the stars.  

My picture today is one I took while visiting the BC Wildlife Park near Kamloops, BC. This masked bandit is a rescue animal.  I am not sure how this raccoon was injured but maybe he or his Mom forgot to look both ways before crossing the road. 

# living life abundantly    # published author    # travelling tuesdays