Meet our fluffy raccoon, who is living at our TIERART Wild Animal Sanctuary along with many other raccoons!

The raccoon, which originally comes from North America, was introduced to Germany in the 1920's – primarily for the production of fur for the fashion industry. Isolated animals escaped from such breeding farms and reproduced in the wild.

The raccoon's preferred habitat is deciduous and mixed forests. When there is imminent danger, he climbs trees at lightning speed and sets up his caves for the young animals there. Raccoons are great swimmers and seek proximity to the water, where they find most of their animal food. The twilight and nocturnal animals spend most of the day sleeping in tree hollows. These active little animals love to keep busy, and therefore our dedicated caretakers have to prepare enrichment for them. 

Since 2016, in Germany, the law prohibits the release of raccoons into the wild – without any exception. Therefore, the number of raccoons at TIERART Wild Animal Sanctuary is always growing.

TIERART is currently building a new special station with an indoor and outdoor area for young raccoons. In addition, another new outdoor enclosure with more than 100m² of space will be created this year, which will be equipped with climbing and retreat facilities, as well as a pond with a watercourse. This way even more raccoons can be saved!