Raccoons ‘behaving oddly’ in Minnesota town, officials say. Residents told to stay away

Residents in a Minnesota town are being advised to stay away from raccoons, which are said to be exhibiting “abnormal” behavior.

Officials in Burnsville, about 15 miles south of Minneapolis, say animal control officers have “seen a recent increase in raccoons that are behaving oddly.”

“These raccoons have been observed to be staggering, experiencing seizures, unafraid of their surroundings and allowing people to approach them, or laying/slumped for an extended period of time,” the city of Burnsville said in a Tuesday, Oct. 10, news release.

Since July, animal control officers have seen 39 reports of sick raccoons, the city said. Burnsville had 17 such reports in 2022.

A raccoon taken to a veterinary clinic tested positive for distemper and salmonellosis, while a second raccoon that was tested may have died from salmonellosis, officials said.

Salmonellosis is a bacterial infection that lives in the intestinal tracts of animals, according to the Minnesota Department of Health. It can be spread to humans “by eating foods contaminated with animal feces.”

Raccoons could be infected with salmonella by eating infected wildlife or by consuming soil, water or plants that are contaminated, the National Institute of Health said in a 2008 study.

John Erb, a wildlife research biologist for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, told the Star Tribune raccoons can quickly spread disease “when they share a common food source, like a dumpster.”

The reports of the oddly behaved raccoons are widely spread in Burnsville, which covers 27 square miles.

“People are advised to stay away from raccoons or any wildlife they encounter and to protect children and pets from approaching wildlife,” the city said.

So far, there have not been reports of raccoons acting oddly outside Burnsville, officials told WCCO.

Anyone who sees a raccoon “displaying abnormal or concerning behavior” is asked to contact Burnsville Animal Control at 952-894-3647.

This story was originally published October 12, 2023 at 9:27 AM with the headline "Raccoons ‘behaving oddly’ in Minnesota town, officials say. Residents told to stay away."