The question of how long do raccoons stay together with their mother is a perennial one. The fact is that they do not separate from their mothers during the day. Instead, they stick together with their siblings until they are around eight weeks old, when they leave the den on their own. A baby raccoon will remain with its mother for several months, or even a whole winter. The question is, how long can a raccoon survive alone? The answer is a long time!
Female raccoons give birth to one litter of two to seven young. The young are blind at birth but open their eyes around three or four weeks. They start exploring their environment around six to eight weeks of age and weigh about 1.5 pounds. At around three to four months, they leave the den to look for food on their own. Young raccoons stay with their mother for a year before they can independently hunt and gather food.
Unlike humans, raccoons have two to three days to move out of a new area and return to their mother. If their mother is pregnant and cares for them, they won’t bother moving out of their habitat and will be much more likely to return if you leave them alone. But if a raccoon is orphaned, it is especially important to handle the animal with care. If you’re not sure how to handle the animals, call a wildlife rehabber as soon as possible.
When do raccoons start mating? They begin mating around eleven months of age. During this time, females have up to eight pups, but it is unusual for a mother to have more than one litter at a time. Male raccoons do not begin sexual activity until around two years old. Therefore, the female raccoon may have two litters in her lifetime.
Although raccoons are intelligent, they are highly adaptable to varying environments. Despite their ability to survive in urban areas, they have one of the shortest life spans of any North American mammal. Typically, raccoons live between two and three years in the wild. So how long do raccoons stay with their mother? They may even leave their home as early as three months old!
Raccoons do not usually leave their nest until they are around eight to nine weeks of age. However, the mother and baby raccoon are almost certain to be separated from their young. In urban areas, multiple raccoon dens have been reported. And adult raccoons live in groups of four to five. Moreover, raccoons prefer to stay in small groups of four to five members.
A recent study published in the Journal of Mammalogy reported that raccoons stay with their mother for about three years. While most of these animals live solitary lives, a mother and her young may share a den. The mother and baby stay together until they are about six years of age. In the wild, the mother and the newborn will spend up to two years with the mother, but the younger siblings can stay together for as long as they are in close proximity.
