A man with his raccoon
Raccoons are seen as a pest. The masked trash pandas can steal pets food, make a mess with your garbage, and turn a hole in your wall into their home or even worse, their bathroom. Poison eradication is grossly inhumane, and trapping the entire family for relocation is unlikely. Besides, raccoons like everything else have their place in the environment and jobs they excel at. In rural areas, raccoons will help with the distribution of seeds, feeding on plants and fruits and carrying those seeds with them until "nature calls". When they dig for worms and insects they turn over the soil, promoting decomposition and plant recruitment. And they are of course also prey items for larger predators such as big cats, snakes, crocs, and birds of prey. In urban settings, raccoons are a form of pest control, feeding on frogs, toads, snakes, rats, and wasp larvae.
If you've been having issues with raccoons in your area, follow these steps and you should see your problems solved.
Photograph by Thomas R. Blackledge, M.D.
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