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So. Tuesday, I found this orphaned raccoon on the walk to the end of our road to wait for the kids bus to summer school. I guesstimate it is around 6 to 8 weeks old, but it is hard to tell for sure because the little guy is half starved.

It has claimed the orphaned kitten (8 weeks old) that I have. They are now best buds. It is so absolutely cute. They eat, and sleep together, but the raccoon still isn't sure about the kitten's games. The raccoon tries to protect the kitten from the dog, even though the dog and the kitten get along just fine.

This being the 3rd day of having him, he is already bulked up some, and he is really getting used to riding on my shoulder. He is like a restless toddler though, always trying to get where he shouldn't.

He doesn't know how to hunt, so I suppose I will be spending some time in the ditches this year trying to show him how to catch frogs, worms and minnows. It's a good thing I suddenly have allot of free time. LOL

I am trying to get some stuff together so I can make him a little tree house in the back yard. I hope he decides to stay when he is old enough to be on his own.

Oh my goodness, how sweet! I can just imagine the two little critters having adventures like Todd and Copper. It's great that you can help the little fellow and I wish you the best. ^_^

Yes. I am aware.

They also carry a rather dangerous type of worm... sweatdrop

With rabies being bad this year, I took several precautions before I introduced him to any of the other family or pets. I waited to be sure he could eat, drink, and breathe.

I would have turned him over to the conservation department, but since raccoons are not scarce around here, and since he is so young and would need a year's worth of attention (and money), not to mention the rabies alert, there is a pretty strong likelihood he would have been euthanized. gonk

He has taken to the name "Trick"...

It has been a week now, and he has integrated well with the family... people as well as animals. He has nearly doubled in size! He has also adopted my orphan kitten as his charge. He is very protective of her.

We are going to start going out through the fields and ditches this weekend, to start working on foraging skills. I have the wood to start a little tree house for him, and hopefully he will be good to move into it by the end of June.

I think I found out what happened to his mother. There was a dead female a ways up the road and out in a field. She probably got hit by a vehicle, and then drug around by dogs... crying I never found any more kits, which is kind of sad, since racoons seldom have one single kit.

Trick needed more room to roam, and I wanted to get him used to not having me around so much, so I moved him (and his kitten) back into my shop. He is triple the size he was when I picked him up! He would get so bored inside my small house, and he would start trying to climb the walls, and doors. I didn't want to keep locking him in a bathroom or a kennel at night, so we opted for the shop.

There is plenty of climbing space out there, and more kittens, so he doesn't get bored now. My other kittens are older, so they are more his size now- He still protects my little one.

I should have his treehouse done and up by the weekend, then he can live outside like he should. 3nodding

When he has his own place and full freedom, I will start posting pics in my Facebook. At the moment, I don't want everyone in my area knowing about him. It would suck for people to start dropping in to say hi to my "pet". rolleyes He isn't a pet, but allot of people don't get it.

Some people around here seem to think that any wild animal is a pest, and would b***h about my having a 'dangerous' animal near my kids, or gripe that I should have let nature have its way with him, as it would have been one less diseased nuisance for everyone to worry about... I don't want to deal with Social Services or the Conservation Dept... or neighbor farmers for that matter.

Anyways, I got the frame of his nesting box laid out and the walls cut. I Hope to get it put together this afternoon, and get it up in the trees tomorrow. Wish me luck.

It sounds like you're having a lot of fun rehabilitating him. smile I totally get keeping it quite for a while. People have a lot of prejudices when it comes to raccoons, and some "Good Samaritan" might try to call animal services for you.

I suppose that if I should start somewhere, this is as good a place as any.

Hello, all.
I am pleased to be here; it has been a spell since I participated in a guild.