Why Do Raccoons Enter Our Homes and Property?
First, like all wildlife, it is important to note that raccoons have no concept of human real estate ownership. If you have a house in an area near raccoon territory, they aren’t going to simply stop foraging at your property line. They are very intelligent animals that are extremely capable of finding resources in their territory and exploiting it accordingly. So, if there is a nice warm area for a den or a free buffet of food scraps, raccoons will find it and utilize it. A report published back in 2015 by the Toronto city government found that humans are the main cause of raccoon issues in urban areas. Basically, people are leaving compost piles, green bins and bird feeders out in their yards. They are also throwing food to pigeons in the parks. These behaviours are providing free food to the raccoons who, unsurprisingly, are more than happy to take advantage.Are We Hurting Raccoons?
Humans have created an almost perfect situation for raccoons in cities. They have easy access to plentiful food, numerous places to create dens and hide, very few predators (larger animals mostly don’t venture into urban areas) and little to fear. Although this may sound nice, it also makes the raccoons less capable of surviving on their own. In their natural habitats, raccoons are stealthy and somewhat skittish. They know they could be caught by predators, so they are careful. In urban areas, they sense the absence of the animals hunting them, so their caution and defences suffer. When those raccoons are removed to other areas, they have trouble surviving. By giving them a raccoon paradise, humans are harming these creatures and making them dependent on us.
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