Can Raccoons Swim?

Spring is knocking on our front door, and we are all quite ready to throw it wide open to welcome the new season with open arms. The signs of its arrival are unmistakable. The first buds pop out overnight on the branches of trees that have been naked for months now, the skies fill with flocks of birds returning from their winter vacation spots and the rivers and lakes begin to swell with snowmelt. You eye the swimming pool in your backyard and sigh a dreamy sigh as you imagine the day you can take your first dip of the season. Do you ever wonder what other creatures might take advantage of the crystal blue waters when you aren’t looking? You might be surprised to know that one of them could be your neighbourhood raccoons! If you discover that these local creatures are now your unwelcome houseguests, give the professionals in humane raccoon control Ajax a call for help.

Adrift on the Water

Raccoons are highly adaptable animals. Their natural habitat is in wooded areas, but they also prefer to be close to a water source. They are intelligent, which makes them great at solving problems, and they have claws and hands that allow them to dig, grip and generally manipulate their surroundings. One of the skills they’ve developed is the ability to swim. You may think that the stream you have running through your backyard protects you from the animals in the woods beyond, but it won’t stop the masked bandit! They are quite capable in the water, even though their bodies are a little heavy to be really efficient swimmers. They manage the task better in the spring when they are sleek and svelte after a winter of sparse eating.

Swimming for the Gold

Raccoons are omnivores, so they’ll eat just about anything they can get their little paws on, even if it’s the questionable leftovers you discarded the night before. They do quite enjoy the flavour of fish, so when the mood strikes and the opportunity arises, they’ll take the plunge. On warm days, your pool may be too inviting to pass up! It is likely the furry swimmer saw something in the water that looked like a tasty treat, but it isn’t always clear why these animals take a dive in people’s swimming pools. Though they won’t set any speed records, raccoons can maintain a respectable five-kilometre-per-hour clip. Raccoons are capable of staying afloat for several hours. When it spies dinner swimming below the surface, it can dive down to depths of 1.5 metres to catch it. Oh, and don’t even try to enter a contest to see if you can hold your breath longer than a raccoon; the raccoon will win every time. It can remain underwater for several minutes without coming up for air.

Sending Them Packing

Raccoons are well adapted to living in urban areas, and they’ve discovered the advantages our homes and yards provide. These animals take any opportunity available to them for easy access to food and shelter. There are steps you can take to prevent them from setting up camp on your property but installing a pool or moving next to a river won’t stop them. The best thing you can do is to store your trash bins inside your garage until collection day, enclose your gardens — pick your veggies as soon as they’re ripe — and seal off any potential entry points into your attic and basement.

Removing Unwanted Houseguests

If you do discover raccoons living in your attic, Skedaddle is here to help. Our technicians utilize humane and safe methods to remove the animals from your home. They relocate them far enough away, and into a more suitable habitat, that they won’t make their way back to your house. When you need assistance contact our raccoon control Ajax specialists.