Raccoon Pauli and his girls Sally and Bella
From the perspective of an Aiderbichler
(written by Gisela Pschenitschnig)
Pauli’s sister Emilia sadly passed away seven years ago, and Pauli the raccoon had been living alone in his beautiful enclosure ever since. We were looking for a partner.
A few weeks ago, the time had come and Sally, Bella and Fin were taken in at the Gut Aiderbichl animal visitor centre in Henndorf. The three raccoons were about three years old and were now to come under the protection of Gut Aiderbichl. Everything was prepared: the raccoon enclosure was adapted for the new housemates and Pauli and his new friends were allowed to get to know each other in peace.
Europe is by no means the home of the raccoon
Raccoons live in the forests of North America. These beautiful animals belong to the small bear family and are related to coatis and pandas.
There are more than thirty raccoon subspecies in America, which can be distinguished from each other by their colouring. How did the brown and black animals get to Europe? Many decades ago, a pair of raccoons were released at Lake Edersee near Hesse in Germany. The intention was to settle the raccoons and it was impossible to keep track of how quickly the agile animals multiplied. Many raccoons also escaped from the fur industry’s breeding centres and longed for a life in freedom. As the raccoon population grew, the ecosystem was increasingly destroyed and the animals were released for shooting.
Who knows how Sally, Bella and Fin would have fared?
The raccoon’s worst enemy is cars on the roads, hunters and the occasional eagle owl. The hunters blame the raccoons for the displacement of other animal species.
The Aiderbichler raccoons would probably no longer be alive if people who love animals had not taken them in and given them shelter.
Raccoons are nocturnal animals and roam the woods, parks, gardens and rubbish heaps. When it gets cold in winter, raccoons hibernate. They doze off and as soon as the temperatures rise again, the raccoon becomes more active again.
What do raccoons feed on and why is the raccoon called a raccoon?
The raccoon adapts its diet to the season and is generally considered an omnivore. They hunt ducks, chickens, fish, mice and rats as well as hedgehogs. They steal eggs from birds’ nests and love fruit, nuts and cereals.
In the wild, raccoons fast during the winter months and feed on carbohydrate-rich food before the cold season.
The raccoon feels the food before eating and washes it in water if necessary. Our Pauli moistens his food in the small water pond and then eats it with relish. Pauli loves grapes, small pieces of apple and raspberries.
Animal welfare is education for humanity.
~Albert Schweitzer
Yours sincerely, Gisela
