Raccoons are capable of making more than two hundred different types of sounds to interacting with each other. They are extremely vocal and make use of these sounds for different purposes. Although it is not possible for the wildlife experts to understand the meaning of all these sounds, their continuous research has identified most of the important sounds that the raccoons make.
Why Do Raccoons Scream?
When they communicate between themselves, raccoons make screeching sounds like an owl to call each other. When they can sense any potential threat or danger, they make growling sounds. Raccoons also make various loud noises such as snarling, whimpering, screaming, and snorting in the night. Raccoons scream when they are under stress and bark when unhappy.
Why Do Raccoons Growl?
Although a raccoon living in captivity is comparatively safe, the animals living in the wild have to struggle every day for their existence. There are a lot of hungry predators out there in the wild who are eagerly waiting to make raccoons their prey. That is why raccoons growl to alert each other whenever they can sense the danger of predators or hunters or any other potential threat.
Why Do Raccoons Purr?
Raccoons are very caring mothers and they love and protect their babies with everything. When they lick the babies out of love and affection, the young offspring make purring sounds out of pleasure, satisfaction, and joy. At the same time, the mothers also make this sound when loving their babies. Purr is an indication that the baby raccoon and its mother are interacting with each other.
Why Do Raccoons Hiss?
Raccoons are normally not known to fight much between themselves. However, a few exceptions are for food, shelter, defending themselves, and protecting their babies, when the raccoons may get involved in a fight. Another reason when male raccoons fight with other males is to compete during mating season. They make hissing, growling, and yowling sounds when fighting each other.
Why Do Raccoons Tap?
Raccoons are curious animals and they have a bad habit of entering your house and making nests in the attics. If you hear a tapping sound from the walls of your house, especially at night, you will realize that a raccoon family is trying to establish themselves in your attic. It indicates the sound of tearing of the network of ducts as well as the digging inside the insulation.
Why Do Baby Raccoons Cry?
Baby raccoons are totally dependent upon their mother who takes care of them and feeds them after every four hours. Just like human babies, the offspring of raccoons also cry when they are hungry. It is an indication that the baby raccoon is now hungry and needs to be fed milk by the mother. Raccoon babies also make a lot of other sounds like whining, mewing, and purring.
Final Words
Every year a huge number of raccoons die due to a deadly disease called rabies. When they are attacked by the virus, raccoons not only undergo a change in their behavior but also make strange noises. They can make screeching, chattering, and peeping sounds in high pitch when rabid. So, you should be extremely careful when you hear these kinds of sounds from the raccoons.
