When it comes to estimating the sizes of common wild animals, people are notoriously inaccurate. Because many urban mammals have fur, they often appear significantly larger than they are in reality. Coyotes, for example, are sometimes mistaken for german shepherds, but they weigh as many as 35 pounds less. Raccoons are considerably smaller animals, but they can be equally hard to size up. Here is what you need to know before calling raccoon removal services.

How Big Are Raccoons?

Typically, raccoons weigh between 5 and 25 kilograms, or 10 and 55 pounds. In rare instances, however, raccoons can grow much larger, making them among the most varied mammals in terms of maximum size. The largest recorded raccoon ever weighed an astonishing 28.4 kilograms or 62.6 pounds. As with most mammals, female raccoons are typically smaller than males, and females in measured populations are 15 to 20% smaller on average.

Because raccoons tend to carry most of their weight in their midsection as fat, their overall outline usually varies less than their weight. From head to hindquarters, raccoons are usually between 40 and 70 centimeters or 16 to 28 inches. To their shoulders, most animals are under 12 inches or one foot. As is common in mammals, raccoons living in colder areas tend to be larger than ones in warmer, southern areas.

Raccoons are not considered to be large mammals and generally consume food sources that are smaller than themselves. Though they often act as scavengers or predators of small species, they can attack larger species if cornered. As an average-sized animal is roughly the size of a cat or fox, raccoons can wind up in conflicts with both species in urban areas.

Why Are Raccoons so Hard to Spot?

If you live in a suburban or urban space, you are likely surrounded by dozens of raccoons at any given time. This may be surprising, as you may not have seen an animal directly. If you rarely venture out late at night, this makes perfect sense. Raccoons are nocturnal and have little interest in maintaining contact with humans. In fact, raccoons and other species often do their best to avoid humans at all costs. You shouldn’t, however, take this to mean that they are likely to have a hard time getting into your home. 

How Do Animals Get Into Your Home?

Raccoons are very adept at finding entrances to homes through garages, siding, porches, and roofs. Once they have located an appropriate breach, they can widen holes to allow themselves and their families in. Because they often appear larger than they are, they sometimes fit into spaces that seem impossibly small.

Raccoons are excellent at climbing and sneaking over obstacles at night. For this reason, homeowners often become aware of the presence of unwanted guests only well after they first set up shop in their homes. Because raccoons like to secure their young by establishing multiple dens and hiding places, they may travel between a number of locations, spending only some of their time at each. 

Raccoons are continuously adapting to urban life and expanding their populations. For this reason, professional wildlife control in Milwaukee has become extremely adept at finding and expelling unwanted animals from urban and suburban residences.

If you have recently discovered an incursion of masked bandits into your home, call animal removal services at Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control as soon as possible. At Skedaddle, we remove animals ethically so they not only survive removal but safely relocate afterward. Our process makes use of a heated placement box for young kits so a mother animal can relocate them as soon as she has found another safe location. Call or contact Skedaddle today for experienced service.