Are Raccoons Smart?

Raccoons have learned to survive and adapt to an urban environment, which makes them crafty animals that have the ability to infest a home. It is important to know the behaviour of these creatures think to avoid an infestation.

Are raccoons clever creatures?

Raccoons are a challenge to catch, because of their clever ways of avoiding detection and capture.

When chased by hounds looking for their scent, a raccoon will enter a stream to wash off its scent. Wade in the water for a distance and then return to dry land to escape. Raccoons may also climb a tree and then return to the ground after breaking the trail of its scent. These creatures may also climb a fence top where a predator cannot follow it.

Despite these clever ways to avoid predators, raccoons display certain behavioural patterns that do not make them as smart as people think they are.

If you suddenly find a raccoon rummaging through your garbage bin and flash a light on them, they will not scamper away afraid of a potential threat to them. However, if you make a noise, these animals will quickly dash away.

These contrasting behavioural patterns may be more instinct rather than actual intelligence. A raccoon’s survival instinct in the presence of something that wants to eat it, will make them respond in the way they are made to.

In 1907, raccoons were put on the spotlight of psychology as psychologists Lawrence W. Cole and Herbert Burnham Davis made them subjects of a study. The study revealed that these animals had a “tolerable basis” of reaching the phylogenetic scale of development after testing using the puzzle-box methodology.

Scientific and popular naturalists argued that raccoons had traits such as mischief, cunning and curiosity, which Davis and Cole, also believed to be true. Cole made the assessment that raccoons, in certain cases, learn to solve a puzzle box after being put through it by an experimenter.

The survival of raccoons despite people flourishing and turning their natural habits into urban environments is a testament to their ability to adapt and learn.

Effective Raccoon Removal

Raccoons are clever creatures that may infest a home, if you leave vulnerable entry points. The ideal way to get rid of these animals is with the help of a professional raccoon removal company.

Raccoon removal experts such as Skedaddle Humane Wildlife Control have the experience and expertise to make sure raccoons do not re-infest your home after their service. They implement humane and effective solutions to removing mothers and babies from your property.