After birth, a baby raccoon lives with its mother and drinks her milk. It is the mother raccoon that takes care of the baby and protects it from all kinds of odds including the predators. The baby is generally weaned at the age of eight to ten weeks. After that, the young raccoon starts eating grown-up food almost like a matured raccoon consisting of smelt, chicks, and mice.
How Many Babies Do Raccoons Have?
Raccoons usually give birth from two to five babies at a time which is known as their litter. Normally there is only one litter for a raccoon per year. The offspring are born in the months of March and April that is early spring and they are called kits. If the first litter of a mother raccoon does not live, she may give birth again in late June and it will be considered as her second litter.
What Do Baby Raccoons Eat?
Being omnivorous animals, raccoons have a tendency to eat just about anything that they can get. However, baby raccoons or kits are totally dependent on the milk of their mother. They are fed by the mother raccoon after every four hours which means on an average five times every day. The mother often goes out in search of food so that she can produce sufficient milk for the baby.
How Can You Understand How Old A Baby Raccoon Is?
After about one week of birth, the baby raccoon tends to grow pigmented tail rings. At this time, the head seems to be much larger than the body. They are still unable to walk or even stand up. When the baby raccoons are three to four weeks of age, their weight can be about 250 grams and they can measure from eight to ten inches in length.
Why Do Baby Raccoons Cry?
Just like a human baby and most other mammals, baby raccoons also cry when hungry. They will make whine, chatter, or twitter-like sounds similar to a bird which is an indication that the baby raccoon is hungry and needs food. If you can hear these types of crying sounds from the attic especially during the day, you will understand that a raccoon family has taken shelter in your home.
Why Do Baby Raccoons Purr?
A baby raccoon usually makes a purring sound when receiving love and affection from its mother like licking. When you hear this sound, you can understand that the baby is interacting with the mother raccoon. Similarly, the mother raccoon also makes this purring sound when loving their kits. It is an indication of love, affection, happiness, pleasure, and joy between the mother and her baby.
Final Words
If you are thinking of adopting a baby raccoon as your pet, firstly you will have to search for a good breeder. He will be the best person to guide you on how to handle and interact with the baby, how to tame the wild animal so that it does not bite you or your family members. The breeder should also provide you with all the necessary information relating to the baby’s origin and health chart.
