MidnightMuse said:
Stupid things, always fornicating in my yard at night.
And you know this because you stay up and watch them through your nifty night goggles
As Haggis said, get a dog for the squirrel, problem solved.
Aggressive raccoons are not always rabid--that's a fallacy. There can be any number of reasons for their percieved aggression. They may be protecting their young or a food supply, neither of which will be visible to you. They're not always nocturnal--they hunt for food whenever they need to. For example, following a snowfall, during which time, they hibernate, they're going to be starving, and in a bad mood as a result--they'll forage for food regardless of what time it is. They'll simply come out when they wake up. Same w/ coyotes, btw. They're not always nocturnal, either.
If you see a rabid raccoon, it's unmistakable; their gait is wobbly and spit is usually dribbling down one side of their mouth or the other. Yes, that's in the later stages of rabies. If they're aggressively approaching you, for no apparent reason and there's no brush/woods nearby (which would hide babies or a food supply), in other words, you're completely out in the open, then I would be suspicious.
I've had raccoons come up to my door, sit up and all they're doing is begging for food.
How do I know so much about raccoons and wildlife in general? My very good friend runs a wildlife rescue/rehabilitation and release center, here in CT. She's a wildlife biologist. I volunteer for her and have done so for a number of years, now. She's trained me well. I've personally rescued numerous raccoons and other animals for her. I've also raised a couple of raccoon babies, which I hand-fed (bottle-fed) until they were old enough to eat on their own. The mom was killed by a car.
A lot of what we try and do is educate the public about raccoons. They're incredibly smart animals.
