URGENT, PLEASE HELP: options for juvenile "pet" raccoon

[Noelle Night]

Hi everyone,

I've been caring for a raccoon- I think he's around six to eight months old (not sure what the real gender is but I call him a "he"). He born in captivity and was rescued 3 months ago from horrific living conditions where he had no substantive human interaction (presumably his captors would stop by and slop some food into his cage). He had already been taken from his mother at this point as far as I can tell (and weaned.) I'm trying to figure out the right situation for him: a release somewhere he can be really safe and still have food available, a sanctuary, or living in someone's home?

I assume probably not the last one, but it seems like despite their best intentions a lot of sanctuaries can only provide raccoons with somewhat larger cages, fresh air, and other raccoons, which I feel like isn't necessarily that great when considering the risks that entrusting him to an institution for 15+ years of his life entail... I've heard some horror stories about santuaries closing down or changing owners and animals being sent God knows where...

I figured that because of his background he would never be safely releasable into the wild and wanted to wait and either find the perfect sanctuary or see if he could be happy in a human home (if spoiled to death with every possible enrichment, tons of space, freedom to wreak as much havoc as he wanted, tons of time invested in his care...) This little guy has consumed my entire life and my partner and I are madly in love with him but want what will make him happiest, and, this might sound kind of hokey, but I feel like he's telling me he wants to really be wild, not at a sanctuary, despite never having been outdoors. Wild raccoons have such short lifespans, though, and people are just sadistic to them- I don't know if the survival rates for rehabbed raccoons are really very good.

More about this little guy: He's not neutered. He's still very wary of humans other than my partner and I, and although he has a bond with us, he's still not "tame" in the way a pet raccoon you'd see on Youtube is. He lets us pet him, particularly if he's eating/we're hand feeding him, likes to play the occasional game of fetch-the-ball or wrestle over a squeaky toy with me, and isn't afraid of physical proximity (if he's motivated by treats, he'll crawl all over us, and he sleeps next to my head on a pillow on the windowsill- though the windowsill is his favorite spot regardless so maybe that has nothing to do with me.) He is attached to me in terms of going to me for reassurance and wanting a greeting (touching my fingers with his nose) when I come home, BUT that has taken a very long time, and we still can't pick him up.

He's extremely independent minded and skittish/standoffish compared to a traditional "pet" raccoon. He will take a treat from a stranger's hand, if he's tucked in a place he feels safe and the human stands back and just reaches out with the treat from far enough away that he can take it without being too close or exposing himself too much- he's definitely scared of them, just not terrified like he was as a baby when he got him.

I made inquiries at a couple sanctuaries in the past but they couldn't take him or were a poor fit. What's freaking me out right now is that he's been pacing by the window sill, sometimes for 30 minutes at a time, probably for hours a day. Recently he's started pacing faster and more frantically, and panting, like he's overstimulated- he often just gets worked up and acts like he has a bad case of adhd and jumps back to pacing the windowsill even if he was just doing something else. He'll pace, come out and do something like eat treats, randomly run back and pace for a few seconds, come back and eat treats... We thought he might just be burning off extra energy and a bit restless, rather than unhappy and seriously troubled by anxiety (whether boredom driven, trauma based, whatever), because he'd also happily and SUPER enthusiastically play every night with his toys, water, his jungle gym... especially when he was younger.

I bought him a giant rock fountain, like you'd see in a rich person's garden, and I'm going to put that together tonight. He also has puzzle feeders. I'm absolutely desperate to do something to make him calmer and happier as soon as possible- I can barely stand even being in my room because his pacing makes me so anxious, I've gotten depressed and can't focus my mind on anything else but him. I've taken some time off of work so I can devote myself to him and finding him an ideal home as quickly as possible.

Thanks for bearing with me through this long message, and please please please get in touch in you have any advice, perspective on whether a wild release/soft release (where someone would still be living around who could keep and eye on him/leave him supplementary food) would be appropriate and if so, how to prepare him for that, or if you know of ANYONE who might be able to provide a place like that.

Noelle