Do raccoons attack people?

Raccoons are known to be aggressive, and, beyond any doubt, they are good at defending themselves from other predatory animals. They are equipped with long, sharp claws. Their jaws are well adjusted to hunting and fighting, and they will serve great purpose in fighting with other animals and other raccoons. Not only that raccoons are equipped with great assets to hunt and fight, but they are also equipped with great instincts and senses. They have sharp eyesight and hearing, as well as precise coordination and balance of movements. Joined together, all these make a raccoon an animal that is very well equipped to put on a decent fight. People, however, are often concerned over whether or not raccoons will pose a threat to humans. Are raccoons capable of attacking people? Will raccoons attack and injure people?



Whether or not raccoons will attack people depends on the situation. Raccoons will attack if they feel threatened and particularly if they are sick. Raccoons will attack people only if they feel threatened, and they can inflict serious injuries. Not only that raccoons can hurt a person with scratching and biting, but they can also transmit serious diseases, like rabies. Even though raccoons will not purposefully attack humans to prey on them or kill, they will attack in self-defense or to defend their litter. For these reasons, people are not recommended to try and trap raccoons on their own and try to transport and relocate them outside of cage traps.

Raccoons will definitely attack in self-defense. The examples of these situations are numerous, like if a homeowner surprises and scares a raccoon in a small space, where the animal can’t escape safely, or when a homeowner attempts to grab a raccoon using their hands. Another example of a risky situation is when a homeowner attempts to move the animal out of the trap on their own, touching the animal and not giving it the space to escape and find shelter. Trying to handle a raccoon on your own can be particularly dangerous if a person is not absolutely sure that the animal is not protecting their litter, which can be near. In this situation, a raccoon will act aggressively to protect its young, and this is a situation where a raccoon will try to chase a person away with biting and scratching. Normally, the animal’s reaction would be to try to get away and attack only in cornered, but protecting a litter is the strongest instinct in animals, and this is the situation where a raccoon will decide to purposefully attack a person.

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