Advice and help is best received from a Vet or an Animal Clinic!

NEVER: A little raccoon should never be fed with cows milk. That would kill it!!

Nevertheless do not forget, that you are dealing with a wild animal! You have to be sure that you are able to care for such an animal over a long period of time. Do you have the time? Do you live in the right place?

What will happen down the line, when the bears are six months old and start getting rowdy? Think about these things in advance and not when the little ones start to annoy you.

If you do not have the facilities to rear a raccoon-baby, try to find a family, that lives at the edge of a forest and love and adore animals.

I would like to point out that I live in Canada with "my" raccoons.

For me raccoons are wonderful creatures, which I love a lot. My knowledge is based on experiences which I have gained in those many years that I have lived with these animals.

I do not want to portrait the raccoon as a pet, because he will never become one. One has to adapt to him, and not the other way round.

This means: One should live on the edge of a forest, in order to give the raccoon the chance to move freely in nature and allow him to get to know it. That is the only way in which you can help these animals.

Wild animals may not be caged or confined. That would not be helping him but it would be cruel! A raccoon would never be happy....do you want that?

If you have any question, or need help, write to me.

Raccoon Orphans

Orphaned homeless raccoon-babies... The first step: warm the baby up

When Raccoon-babies are found, they are usually overcooled, as they are missing the warmth of the nest and that of their mother. The first action is, to get the normal body temperature back. In order to do this lay your foundling into a little basket, which has to be equipped with a hot water bottle. The hot water bottle may only be filled with lukewarm water and should be wrapped in a cloth. Here the baby will soon feel comfortable.

However you may not start feeding it straight away, this means don't force feed it. If you do, the animal will not recover, and may die.

After warming it up, you should try feeding it slowly drop by drop with a pipette sterilized (boild) water into its mouth. After one to two hours the small body should have stabilised itself.

Give the little one a lot of time, to get used to your hands. Most babies are traumatised as they don't know what is happening to them. They may get scared and might overreact and bite you. Loud surroundings are disturbing and may cause more fear and anxiety. Therefore talk to the raccoon in a soothing gentle voice, until he gets used to you taking care of him. Much, much luck and times is needed....and hope. At this point I want to specifically point out that any use of violence does not resort in positive effects but into the opposite.

The first feeding consists of Dog-puppy-replacement-milk powder mixed with one half boiled water and one half goats milk. Raccoon babies often don't take the bottle straight away, so try it with a pipette or a syringe and trickle the fluids slowly into the babies mouth.

When the first efforts have been successful, meaning, as soon as the raccoon-baby is stabilized, calm and used to getting fed by a pipette and got used to your hands, you should start feeding the little one with a baby bottle.

You should never stop your efforts towards the raccoon. That is the only way to take away their fear and gain their trust.

Never use tap water, as the babies gastric cannot handle the exposure yet. Also you may NEVER feed COW MILK or TIN MILK. If you do it could mean the little ones death.

Additionally feed vitamins (NUTRICAL). These vitamins can be obtained as a paste from a vet. It usually gets used for dogs and cats, which cannot eat directly after an operation. I always give the amount that fits on the point of a knife on to the sucker of the bottle, as NUTRICAL tastes sweet, and racoons love sweet things.

In case your baby does not want to drink, it is vital to infuse water. A raccoon baby becomes dehydrated very quickly which could mean death! Every year I get given babies which are very dehydrated and in order for them to survive I have to give them Lactated Ringer's Injections under the skin! When they have diarrhoea it is also very important to supply the little ones with water. If your baby doesn't want to drink it is important to contact a vet as soon as possible. He will help you and he will know what to do. Sometimes, when the diarrhoea is very strong, it is due to parasites. In that case the vet can give the right antibiotics.

Feeding is not that easy!

For this wrap the baby in a cloth and place it on your lap. It can sometimes take very long, until a raccoon-baby accepts the bottle. Best thing to do is to stroke it gently and conscientious over its back. This will remind the baby of its mother, which licks its back, thus animating it to drink!

You need to bear in mind, not to give too much food! If the little one stops sucking and only plays with the sucker he is usually full. Too much food can result in colic!

Even the following burp is important. For that purpose you lay the little one over your shoulder, exactly as you would with a human child. After the burp the stomach needs to be gently massaged, in order for the intestines to function and to encourage urination.

For faeces and urine I use a lukewarm cloth. Correct hygiene is very important, as the little ones have damaging parasites in their excrements. Clean the baby thoroughly. The colour of the faeces should have a similar colour to peanutbutter-. In nature their genital region gets massaged by their mother through her licking.

It is also important for raccoon babies to grow up in a group. Through that they can develop better, grow faster and have better chances of surviving in the wild.

On the next Page I would like to tell you about my life with the raccoon babies!

Feedingtimes:
Birth - 2nd week - every two hours all day and night
2nd - 3rd week - every three hours all day and night
3rd - 4th week - ever four hours all day and night