(Newser)
– In Toronto, which is emerging from a tight month-long closure next week, the pandemic has brought residents closer to their local wildlife and interactions have not always gone well. Public health authorities say there has been a 62% increase in reports of people being scratched or bitten by raccoons, CBC reports. Calls to Toronto Animal Services about sick or injured raccoons tripled year-on-year to more than 13,000 in 2020. Authorities say raccoons don’t become more aggressive, but people who stay home or take more walks in their neighborhoods he encounters sick animals and bites them when they try to treat them themselves. Some people have also been bitten or scratched when stroking or feeding wild raccoons, which authorities strongly discourage.
“It’s really like people are foolish,” says Derick McChesney, owner of a wildlife control company Guardian. “I’m face to face with them almost every day. One can be aggressive, especially if there are babies around. But for the most part, nothing has really changed with them. Instead, people are more at home and “Unfortunately, I’m also being stupid.” McChesney says many people who stay home all day realize for the first time that raccoons live in their penthouses or crawl spaces. “They’ve always had a unique ability to figure out where the quiet places in the house are,” he says. “They love to nest directly above the master bedroom,” because it’s usually quiet during the day, he says. (Raccoons are usually nocturnal, but moodiness can make them act like “zombies” during the day).