Raccoons are able to adjust to living in a variety of environments and eat a variety of foods. This adaptability has served them well, they are able to survive almost anywhere and eat almost anything which means they will likely never go hungry.

So how about eating hot foods like jalapeños, do raccoons eat jalapeños? This article looks into it 

Raccoons do not eat jalapeños, this food is avoided by most animals except humans, and is avoided by raccoons too. The food’s spicy taste is what repels raccoons. The only other animal that eats this food is the Chinese shrew

Do raccoons eat jalapeños?

Raccoons are omnivores, they eat both plant and animal matter.

They are also opportunistic feeders, they eat almost anything. They are very creative when looking for food and will even go as far as eating out of your garbage to get a meal, but they will not eat jalapeños 

Why raccoons hate jalapeños:

When looking for ways to keep raccoons away, using hot foods like peppers and jalapeños will usually come up

Raccoons have a strong sense of smell, hot foods like jalapeños will irritate their olfactory receptors. They also have delicate palates, this makes them avoid spicy foods.

Using jalapeños is a great way to keep raccoons away. Raccoons will not eat this food even if they are fed it

The heat of peppers is measured using Scoville units. The lowest being zero and the highest being around 3 000 000. Jalapeño peppers are quite spicy to humans, they measure from 3500 – 8000 on the scale.

Humans can eat these peppers but raccoons will avoid them like the plague  

If you’re raising a raccoon, whatever food you give them will usually be hungrily eaten by them. Being fed by humans conserves energy as they don’t have to go out and forage for or hunt for food. Nonetheless, even if raccoons are offered jalapeños they will not eat them 

There are a variety of other foods that raccoons can’t eat. This article is a more in-depth look at what raccoons can’t eat

Will raccoons eat peppers? 

There are around 25 types of peppers in existence, they range from spicy to sweet, and can be used in different dishes. Raccoons will enjoy some of the sweeter ones and avoid the spicier varieties.

Both the hot pepper varieties, known as chilly peppers, and the sweet pepper varieties, known as bell peppers belong to the capsicum genus. Raccoons will enjoy the sweet pepper varieties which include bell peppers, basque fryers, and cherry peppers 

Raccoons will avoid the hot pepper varieties which include the poblano pepper, anaheim pepper, serrano pepper, habanero pepper, cayenne pepper, ghost pepper, scotch bonnet, rocoto pepper, peri peri, and the tabasco pepper.

Raccoons will generally avoid these peppers even if they are only mildly spicy, 

Do any animals eat jalapeños? 

The spicy taste of capsicum genus hot pepper plants are generally abhorred by a variety of animals, including stubborn animals like rabbits, deer, and rodents 

The only animal that eats and enjoys spicy foods, apart from humans, is the Chinese shrew. This is because their ion channel receptor TRPV1, which makes animals sensitive to the capsaicin in foods (the chemical that makes food hot) is less sensitive than other animals.

This means that the Chinese shrew doesn’t feel the pain of eating spicy foods as other animals do

Insects that eat spicy foods include tomato hornworms, cutworms, and armyworms 

What is a raccoon’s favorite thing to eat? 

Raccoons eat all types of foods but this doesn’t mean that they don’t have preferences and favorites. Raccoons enjoy eating sweet and starchy foods like berries, nuts, insects, and corn. 

Raccoons enjoy these foods not only because they are sweet and starch-filled but because they don’t need to be chased and caught as live prey does. These foods are also relatively easy to find in the wild 

These animals are able to eat a variety of other foods as well. This article looks more into what raccoons eat

Conclusion 

In conclusion, no, raccoons do not eat jalapeños, raccoons do not enjoy eating anything hot, this food is quite hot for humans and raccoons. When measuring using Scoville units, jalapenos are at 3500 – 8000 on the scale.

Hot foods like jalapeños are used as raccoon repellents, they also repel other animals. There are only a few animals that eat this food, namely Chinese shrews, humans, and some insects    

Foods that raccoons enjoy include sweet and or starchy foods like berries, corn, insects, and nuts. These foods are delicious to raccoons and they are relatively easy to find and eat in the wild 

If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other raccoon related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Do raccoons eat hummingbird food?, Do raccoons eat humans?, Do raccoons eat chicken heads?, Do raccoons eat grapes?