Racoons As Pets In Mississippi.

[Azaniya]

Hi Jonathan!  My name is Sarah. Awhile back we trapped a raccoon. It was killing our chickens and Rabbits, so a neighbor shot it. When it was dead I noticed the furr  was thinning From around her teets. We found that she was pregnant. My husband couldn't bear it, so we performed a cesserian and ended up with three kits. We have been caring for them and have grown attached. We have been doing research and are finding that as adults they tend to be loners. We never thought that it might be illegal to keep them. Do you know if it is legal in Mississippi? I can't find anything stating that it is or isn't anywhere. At this point we are unsure of what to do. We never really expected them to live. It was a long shot that has led to such happiness. Our family does not wish to part with them, but the hardest part is that our children are the ones that have cared for them. We have only watched and instructed. They are attached, but they too want what is best for their babies. They hope to keep one, but we are not sure if it is legal, and we are not sure who can care for the others for release. We don't want a colony of them after our other critters.I think one will be difficult enough. After all. Raccoons will be racoons.   :-)

Any advice?

[Onslowe]

Dear Sarah

Thank you for your questions. I also want to thank the authors of the websites I used.

Please note that releasing raccoons can be very problematic. Raccoons can spread rabies and other diseases, can enter houses and kill livestock. I suggest that you contact a local wildlife organisation and a wildlife veterinarian. The raccoons will need to be checked for any diseases they may be carrying. I suspect that you would definitiely be breaking the law if you released diseased raccoons into your community.

As regards the legailty of keeping raccoons, the information is a bit confusing. Raccoons are not listed specifically as inherently dangerous under exotic animal regulations for Mississippi(http://www.bornfreeusa.org/b4a2_exotic_animals_state.php?s=ms#49-8-5). Despite this, they are wild animals and the law states that you must obtain a permit before taking possession of a wild animal. Before the permit is issued, you must provide proof of liability insurance in the amount of $100,000.00) for each wild animal up to a maximum of a million dollars. I don't know if this applies in your case as I would be very surprised if you could afford this kind of money(I know I can't). This is why I suggest that you contact a wildlife organisation and ask for advice. Alternatively, there may be a legal advice centre that may help. If you need a permit for the raccoons and don't qualify for a permit to keep them, you must dispose of them within 30 days of notification by the department. Each day of possession of the unpermitted wild animal after the thirty-day period constitutes a separate violation. http://www.yoyita.com/zoo/raccoon.htm says that most US states forbid people keeping wild raccoons as pets because of rabies, but doesn't state which states are involved.

I wish you well. Please contact a wildlife organisation as soon as possible and hope that the organisation will take care of the raccoons, without putting you in a difficult legal position.  While I appreciate that you had the best interests of the raccoons in mind, it is a pity that you didn't contact a wildlife organisation when you found out that the raccoon was pregnant. But it's easy to look at these situations from hindsight and I hope the fact that you have cared cared for the raccoons will help you out of a potentially difficult situation. You may also benefit from the fct that the state laws do not mention raccoons.

All the best

Jonathan