Is a raccoon active during daylight sick or rabid?

My grandaddy told me that if I see a raccoon during the daytime, it's rabid!

Raccoons are strictly nocturnal, right? - MYTH! It's very common for perfectly healthy raccoons to be active during daylight hours. While raccoons are primarily nocturnal (active only during the night), they commonly have things to do during the day. For example, a new female raccoon with a litter of young has a lot of extra obligations, for extra nutrition and care of the babies! Thus, it'll often have to forage during the daytime. Or perhaps any raccoon that didn't find adequate food last night will make up for it by searching during the day. A female with active young may have to be up and about to chase after them during the day. A displaced raccoon could be on a hunt for a new territory. There are many reasons a raccoon might be up and about during the day.

What if I see a raccoon sleeping during the day? - Believe it or not, we get many inquiries about raccoons spotted in trees, on roofs, etc during the day. They're doing what they're supposed to do! They often find different denning areas to make a bed, and sometimes people see them. Sure, like any animal, they wake up a few times here and there and look around. Again, this is totally normal behavior. You don't need to do anything.

How Can I Tell If A Daytime Raccoon Is Healthy? - If it is moving with purpose, looks alert, looks like it's doing something useful, it's likely healthy. If its limbs are working properly, if it is able to move without trouble, it is probably healthy. If it is not afraid of you, or just sits there looking at you, it is still probably healthy, because most urban raccoons are not afraid of people. It will soon walk off, in good health, to forage elsewhere.

How Can I Tell If A Raccoon Has Rabies? - If you come across a raccoon that seems to be acting erratically, during daytime or night, you may want to step away and keep your pets away as well. This is not to say that every raccoon you encounter during daylight hours has rabies. But it is always better to err on the side of caution when dealing with wildlife. It is a good idea to know what the normal actions of a raccoon are so that you can distinguish normal from abnormal.

Normal Behavior - Raccoons are generally nocturnal animals. However, you may see an occasional, healthy raccoon during the day, foraging or looking for a mate. Mating season runs from January through March. During those three months, you may see more raccoon activity during the day than during the rest of the year. Sounds that come from healthy raccoons vary. Depending on what the raccoons want to communicate, they can whistle, chatter or even snarl. Some raccoons hiss like a cat when confronted. They are very good climbers. They can climb up, down and around a tree just like squirrels.

Social Behavior - Other than during mating season, raccoons prefer to socialize with their own gender. A couple of females from the same family may live together. Males may live in groups of four or five, generally unrelated to one another. Living in a group gives them some protection. Mother raccoons will raise their young without help from the male. Males do not tolerate their young very well and tend to be aggressive toward them. When you see baby raccoons out with their mother, the babies must be at least two months old. Baby raccoons cannot walk before that age.

Food And Housing - In urban neighborhoods, their food supplies are more readily available. They dig through trash cans and will eat pet food left outside. They will eat just about anything they can find. Raccoons seem to like the texture of food when it is wet. Outside urban developments, raccoons like to have their dens in mixed forests, preferably near a source of water. Their living quarters more often than not can be found in the hollow of a tree or some protected recess or furrow above the ground. However, raccoons are very adaptable animals and do not mind sharing your back yard with you. Considered to be pests around human habitation, they may try to find warm cozy attics or sheds in which to live and raise their young.

Symptoms Displayed By Rabid Raccoons
- Disoriented or erratic movements
- Daytime presence
- Seizures
- Paralysis
- Collapsing
- Excessive salivation
- Aggression
- Hydrophobia
- Eating strange non-food things

Infected Raccoons - Should you see a raccoon during the day, be cautious but don't be alarmed. However, if you see a raccoon at any time that walks or runs erratically in a disoriented manner, chose safety over curiosity. Observe the animal from a safe distance only. It may walk around in circles without knowing where it is going or what it is doing. This is certainly not normal behavior. It may be dragging a leg or a paw. It may also collapse and get up again. It may chatter, hiss or snarl non-stop. Don't assume that you can help the critter by taking it to a vet. Don't get near it. These are symptoms of rabies.

Aggression - Raccoons with rabies often display aggression toward anything and anyone. This is especially dangerous if you have a dog with you whose natural instinct is to protect you. Your dog will want to confront the raccoon, but will expose itself to rabies at the same time. When the raccoon's mind is ravaged with rabies, it will not know fear. It will chase you and your pet if it sees you as a threat.

Salivation And Hydrophobia - Rabid raccoons will display signs of hydrophobia, the fear of water. This is not because they suddenly don't like water but because their throat muscles are subject to painful spasms. Swallowing water causes the infected animal enormous pain. That's the only reason why rabid animals fear water. Increased salivation is another sign of rabies. They drool because they won't swallow their saliva for the same reason they won't go near water. Foamy mucus may collect around the mouth, making the raccoon's mouth look frothy. Another alert would be the chewing on non-food items. Observe the animal for seizures and for paralysis of its rear or front legs.

Get Help - If you or your pet is bitten or scratched by a raccoon, seek medical or veterinary help immediately. This disease is fatal if untreated. With immediate treatment and cleansing of the wound as fast as possible, however, the virus can be killed and the person or pet can be healed. The rabies virus is transmitted through the saliva from the salivary glands in the raccoon. From the site of the bite, the virus travels to the central nervous system where it causes viral encephalitis, destroying nervous tissue of the brain. Vaccination of your pets against rabies is vital. For effective ways to solve a raccoon problem yourself, or to find local help, click the below buttons: