← Outdoor Survivalist Trainer Your area

Food guide

Raccoon and opossum: catch, clean and cook

Raccoons and opossums come out at night along every creek; both are fat, filling meat once they are cleaned well and cooked all the way through.

Page numbers below are from the US Army Survival Manual (FM 21-76) unless another source is named. Each one opens that page.

Before you rely on thisThis teaches what the survival manuals say, for a real emergency. Outside one, your state's hunting, trapping and fishing laws apply. Cook all wild meat all the way through, and never eat an animal that looked sick.A learning tool, not a replacement for training. In an emergency, call 911.
What the law usually allows

In many states, raccoons and opossums are furbearers. You may hunt or trap them only in their fall and winter seasons, with a hunting license and a fur taker permit, and only with legal traps that are marked and checked as the rules say. Snares and deadfalls are illegal. Check this year's state rules.

Ways to catch it

A raccoon in a metal cage trapLegal trapping in seasonLicense and season

Raccoons and opossums follow creek banks and the same trails every night. A licensed trapper sets a legal trap where tracks show they travel and checks it as often as the rules require.

Needs a hunting license and fur taker permit, in trapping season, with legal traps. Check this year's rules for trap types, marking and how often to check.

p. 99
Hunting at night in seasonLicense and season

Raccoon hunters walk creek bottoms at night, often with dogs, and look for eyes shining in a light.

Needs a hunting license and fur taker permit, in season. Check this year's rules for night hunting.

p. 99
Drawing of a noosing wand: a pole with a wire loop on the endNoosing wandPractice only

A long pole with a wire loop at the thin end. The manual uses it at a den: hide nearby, and when the animal pokes out, slip the loop over its head and jerk it tight. Carry a stout club.

Not a legal way to take a furbearer in many states. Make the wand to learn it; do not use it on an animal.

p. 106
Drawing of a drag noose over an animal run, a wire locking loop and a funnel of sticksDrag noosePractice only

A loop hung from a crossbar laid on two forked sticks over a trail. The animal pulls the crossbar loose, drags it, and gets tangled in the brush. The manual says hang the loop above head height so a foot cannot step in it.

Snares are illegal in many states. Build the trigger on a table to learn how it works, then take it apart. Never set it outdoors.

p. 102
BaitLicense and season

Use a bait the animal knows that is not already all around. Scatter a few bits near the trap so the animal gets a taste and loses some of its fear. Guts from your last catch make good bait.

Bait is fine with a legal trap in season. Check this year's rules.

pp. 100 to 101

Clean it, step by step

  1. Wear gloves. Raccoon droppings can carry roundworm eggs, and both animals can carry other germs. Keep your hands away from your face (general food safety, not the manual).

    p. 99

  2. Lay it on its back. Cut the skin from the throat to the tail, around the sex organs, with the blade edge up under the skin.

    p. 121
  3. A man preparing raccoon, fox and bobcat skins on a table

    Cut along each leg from the foot to the body cut. Pull the skin off, cutting the tissue that holds it. Save the hide if you can use it.

    p. 122

  4. The manual says to cut out the musk glands. On these animals they are small, waxy, bean-shaped lumps under each front leg and inside the back legs (where they are: general practice, not the manual). Cut them out whole; if you cut into them, the meat tastes bad.

    p. 121

  5. Open the belly without cutting the guts. Pull the guts and chest organs out. Pinch off the bladder and cut below your fingers.

    p. 122

  6. Check the liver. Smooth, wet and dark red is good. Throw away a spotted liver.

    p. 122

  7. Cut off the head and feet. Trim off most of the fat; raccoon and opossum fat tastes strong.

    p. 122
  8. A raccoon skin nailed flat on a board to dry

    To keep the hide, scrape off all fat and meat and let it dry completely with no folds. The manual cuts dry skins into strips for rawhide lashing.

    p. 162

Cook it, step by step

  1. Cut the meat into legs and back.

    p. 122

  2. Boil it first until it is tender, and pour off the first water. Scavengers should be boiled well; the manual boils scavenger birds at least 20 minutes, and the same care makes sense here.

    p. 121
  3. A whole roasted raccoon on a pan

    Then roast or bake it until well done. Opossum baked with sweet potatoes is a classic Southern dish (not the manual).

    p. 123

  4. Cook to 165 F inside, all the way to the bone (general food safety, not the manual).

    Military Survival and Rescue Guide, page 87

Stay safe

See where it lives near you

The app shows what has been seen near your ZIP code, with photos, and can read a photo you take.

Open this guide in the appFind it near you
Photo credits
A raccoon in a metal cage trap: Infrogmation, CC BY-SA 4.0, sourceDrawing of a noosing wand: a pole with a wire loop on the end: US Army, FM 21-76 (1992), figure 8-10, Public domain (US government), sourceDrawing of a drag noose over an animal run, a wire locking loop and a funnel of sticks: US Army, FM 21-76 (1992), figure 8-6, Public domain (US government), sourceA man preparing raccoon, fox and bobcat skins on a table: Marc St. Gil, U.S. National Archives, Public domain, sourceA raccoon skin nailed flat on a board to dry: Kürschner, Public domain, sourceA whole roasted raccoon on a pan: Strange Times, CC BY-SA 4.0, source

More food guides

Squirrels and chipmunksCottontail rabbitGroundhog (woodchuck)Muskrat and beaverWhite-tailed deerFrogs