Could a Raccoon Be Your Next Pet?

If you’re a city-dweller, you know them as those garbage-raiding critters who always manage to work free any type of closure you have on the wastebins stored at the side of your house. In short, they’re wildlife that’s more annoying than threatening.

But according to a publication in LiveSciencePlus, the urban raccoon may well be on its way to becoming a domesticated animal. Yes, just like dogs and cats.

Now, over the centuries, domestication of animals has occurred in an intentional, almost transactional manner. We need stuff from them (labour and food being at the forefront), and they need something in return – food, shelter, and care. Both sides are willing to “play nice” in order to have their needs met.

However, University of Arkansas zoologist Raffaela Lesch, who co-authored a study into raccoon domestication, suggests that the give-take factor may not need to be present. "I wanted to know if living in a city environment would kickstart domestication processes in animals that are currently not domesticated." In other words, "Would raccoons be on the pathway to domestication just by hanging out in close proximity to humans?"

Okay, so here’s the science part of it. In order to move the theory forward, the study included not only the brazen, behavioral changes of these cheeky little critters but also physical changes. And that last segment of their work actually noted that urban raccoons had shorter snouts than their rural counterparts.

“Big deal”, you may be thinking. But it is a big deal, because reduced facial structure is a significant trait of domestication. You see, it’s called “domestication syndrome” and refers to domesticated species having anatomical differences to those of wild animals, such as curly tails, floppy ears, depigmentation, smaller brains and reduced facial skeletons. Hence, those shorter snouts caught the attention of the research team, who had reviewed nearly 20,000 images uploaded to the iNaturalist website - specially to compare the facial structure of raccoons living in urban versus rural areas.

In addition to the physical adaptation, a reduced fear response is noted to be significant in domestication because animals adapt to their “new niche,” which includes the presence and acceptance of humans.

For Lesch, that new niche they refer to is the nighttime garbage bin raids and ultimate access to easy food. This particular nocturnal activity has been the catalyst in the shift toward raccoon domestication. "All they have to do is endure our presence, not be aggressive, and then they can feast on anything we throw away."

So, similar to a pet dog or cat, raccoons have figured out how to work the system known as humans. The caveat being that most states and provinces in North America prohibit owning raccoons as pets. For now!