Hello all! This is my first post on this site. I've been lurking for a bit, and it's been really great looking at the site and all the good info.
I just moved out to the country, so have no real experience with wildlife. We just discovered a small raccoon hanging around the house. It doesn't seem frightened of us at all, although it hisses when we get too close. (See attached Picture)
It seems to have a injured front leg, and we were surprised to see it out in the daytime. My wife was reading up on raccoons and read about distemper, which has symptoms in raccoons, such as them being out in the daytime, and paralysis. Distemper sounds like a pretty nasty disease, and eventually fatal.
I'm concerned about my dog getting into a tangle with the raccoon, although my dog, which is sort of a southern coon-hound type dog, is terrified of the raccoon! My dog’s shots are all up to date, but I’d rather there not be an incident.
Suggestions? I've got a live animal trap of the right size, and could relocated the animal, or take it to animal control. Alternatively, if it truly is diseased, maybe the most humane thing is to put it out of its misery.