Raccoons are far from athletic. They tend to be large and lumbering but in their youth, they are more energized. The raccoon is a much better climber than a jumper. The squirrel and vole and other native rodents are much more capable of jumping. The native vole can jump up to twenty times in body length and squirrels can jump even farther. The main difference is general size. The size of the animal and its ability to grip surfaces plays a large role in how they interact with surfaces. Like humans, jumping is not something we are especially good at unless you play basketball at a high level. But climbing is something almost any human at any age can achieve with even just a modicum of skill and abil8ity. The reason for this is our opposable thumbs that developed in our ape ancestors. The raccoon does not have fingers but does have a firth paw that looks like and functions like a thumb, how this advantageous evolutionary trait developed is unknown but what is clear is that raccoons, capable of manipulating matter like a human, are perhaps the most dangerous creatures in the wild. More dangerous than a Bengal tiger because a bangle tiger cannot kill you with its feces.
Raccoons are dangerous in so many innocuous ways that they can cause incurable death a small scratch or a little bite. They can kill you with feces as mentioned above and to say it is somewhat worse than leprosy is not a lie. The parasite is called a raccoon roundworm and cannot hurt the raccoon for reasons entirely unknown. The parasite can get into your mouth or nose and can travel to your lungs or digestive tract where they will grow and multiply at a rate unheard of in medical science. Each worm sheds millions of eggs a day and these eggs gestate quickly. The worms will fill every organ in your body from your skin to your brain and will even infest your eyes. There is no known cure for this illness which is why it is so important to call a trained professional to remove it. The life of your pets and family are far too important to risk. If you see a raccoon on your property the best assumption you can make is that they defecated. If you are worried they may have gotten into your attic then you should have the roof inspected. Raccoons have a baby season that lasts for a large portion of the winter, spring and summer.