If you discover a nest of baby raccoons in your property, how can you tell how old they are? Young raccoons are independent at around 12 weeks of age, so if you can make an accurate assessment of their age, you’ll have a good idea of how long it will be before they leave your home.
here are some guidelines to help you or you can call our raccoon removal Toronto services:
- Raccoon babies are born with a very light covering of fur and with a faint mask. At a few days old, raccoon kits’ eyes and ears are closed, and they can just about crawl spread-legged.A newborn kit weighs 100 grams or less and measures just 4.5 to 6 inches from nose to tail.
- At one week old, pigmented tail rings begin to appear, and the kit’s head appears too large for its body. When hungry, the babies twitter, chatter, or whine like birds. Week-old kits are still unable to stand or walk.
- At three to four weeks old, the kits weigh around 250 grams and measure roughly 8.5 to 10 inches long. The kits’ eyes are open, and their ears open shortly afterward. At this age, baby raccoons are extremely vocal, growling, hissing, and snorting in alarm if disturbed.
- At 5 to 6 weeks old, a raccoon kit will weigh around 550 grams and be between 12 and 14 inches long. At this age, the kit will be able to walk, climb, and run.
- Between 9 and 12 weeks, the kits are weaned, eating solid foods, and becoming active and more independent of their mother. At this age, the kit weighs around 950 grams or more. Male babies tend to be larger than females. Baby raccoons of this age will play-fight and imitate adult defence postures.
Note that if you find a baby raccoon that appears to have been orphaned, under state legislation, you are not permitted to keep it as a pet or release it into the wild if you live in Ontario.
The best course of action to take is to contact a wildlife removal contractor for advice. Do not try to catch the raccoon.