Raccoon young are usually born in April or early May with a gestation period of 63 days. The young are blind and helpless at birth. The mother will typically move the young to a ground nest by the seventh week. The young can survive without the mother at 3 to 4 months of age but will den with the family during their first winter. Adults are strong fighters and can defend themselves against predators such as owls, coyotes, foxes, dogs, and bobcats.
Raccoons are a major predator of ground nesting mammals and birds.
Proper habitat management for raccoons should involve adequate denning sites, aquatic environments, and food supplies. Leaving a few rows of corn unharvested along a fence row could be a valuable source of food. Raccoon-proof wood duck boxes by mounting them over water on poles with an inverted shield about 3 feet off the water surface. The male raccoon is called a boar. A litter can vary in size from 2 to 7 young.