Health Significance of Raccoons

Despite their cute appearance, wild raccoons are not at all "friendly" animals. In fact, a raccoon that appears friendly or tame is most likely either an escaped pet or is in the later stages of rabies. Raccoons can cause very serious injuries if handled incorrectly.

In addition, raccoons are known to be involved in the transmission of serious diseases. For example:

• Like most carnivorous mammals, raccoons are vulnerable to rabies, a viral disease that is fatal once symptoms have started to appear. Rabies is spread through the saliva of infected animals and usually is transmitted by a bite or scratch. Children are especially susceptible to rabies because infected animals may appear tame or "friendly," leading children to want to play with them.

• Raccoons also are carriers of Baylisascaris procyonis, a roundworm infection that is not harmful to the raccoon itself, but which can result in migration of the roundworm larvae through tissue (known as larval migrans) when the eggs are accidentally ingested by humans or other animals. This larval infection can cause serious illness, blindness, and even death.

• Raccoons can also carry fleas, ticks, and other parasites, many of which have been associated with the transmission of serious vector-borne diseases.