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danceswithteddybears Dances With Teddy Bears
Pacific Northwest
Posts: 697

Rocky-7-07gd.jpgI'm enjoying these critter pics you're all sharing.   bear_flower
Here's mine.  We've named him Rocky.  Not very original, but he seems to like it. bear_tongue
He's so cute, we don't even chase him away.  bear_grin

TamiL Dolls N Dreams
Aurora, Colorado
Posts: 6,454

Awwwwwww he is adorable!!!!

Carolyn Green Draffin Bears
Auckland New Zealand
Posts: 5,354
Website

Rocky is so adorable and must like having a meal from your birdfeeder.

Hugs
Carolyn bear_flower

SueAnn Past Time Bears
Double Oak, Texas
Posts: 21,914

SueAnn Help Advisor, Banner Sponsor

WARNING TO SHELLI:  don't look!  I think raccoons are one of the cutest animals ever.  I didn't even mind when one got in our house by coming through the kitty door.  This one is tooooooo adorable!

tuppies teddies Tuppies Teddies
Lindenow, Central Gippsland
Posts: 1,969

He is cute looking...love the masks..

danceswithteddybears Dances With Teddy Bears
Pacific Northwest
Posts: 697

He is adorable, I agree.  But SueAnn, I must admit I'd rather he stay outside and not wander in through our doggie door.  They are rather large creatures. 
I'd freak out if I met up with him in my kitchen!  bear_cry
He has a "sweet tooth" for sunflower seeds.  I guess really for just about everything and anything.  bear_grin

Melbear Melbear's Quality Collectibles
Spruce Grove, Alberta
Posts: 527
Website

Oh my, he is soooo cute! I have only seen one ever in real life. We had one in out tree when I was a kid... the funny thing is that they are not from around here.. not this far north anyway. Animal control came and got him and took him more south..lol.  I think they are soooo cute.
hugs,
Melanie

thumperantiques Newcastle, Ontario
Posts: 5,645

Yep. they are cute, but boy can they be a nuisance and dangerous.  We literally had to bungee cord proof our garbage pails from bear and raccoons, when we lived up north.  We had a pair of them, living in a culvert on our street and they came out at night like clockwork, when it was time to put out the garbage bins.  They can be quite nasty, when they don't get what they want.  I do think they are cute but I guess I had my fill of them after 18 years, and I'm glad we don't have problems with them where we live now - only rabbits. 

                                                                                              hugs,

                                                                                              Brenda

Us Bears Pennsylvania
Posts: 1,479

He's very cute!
He's got a look like you caught him with his hand in the cookie jar.  (You did, in a manner of speaking!  bear_laugh )

If you are going to continue to feed him, you should set up another feeding station that is away from the bird feeder(s).  Raccoons will damage the bird feeders and scare away all the birds you worked so hard to attract to your yard.  It'd be a shame to spend all that time and money to make your yard a happy place for birds than have the raccoons mess it all up.  :(

Two things:

1)  Raccoons breed at a rate that is directly proportional to the amount of food in an area.  The more food you put out, the more coons there will be.  By summer's end, you'll have dozens of mommas and babies running all over your yard.  Think about whether you want that or not.  Coons can cause a lot of damage, especially if you have a garden.  They can mow a garden flat in just one night!

2)  Raccoons can carry rabies!
While rabies is more prevalent in some areas of the country, there is NO PLACE in North America that is "immune" from rabies.  When somebody says, "Aw, we don't have rabies around here." tell them it's a bunch of fluff!   bear_tongue
Coons will spread rabies to your cats and dogs then when they come into your house, they spread it to YOU!  Even if you don't catch rabies, it would be a shame to have to put your favorite dog or cat to sleep because it caught rabies.   bear_shocked

I like raccoons too.  My wife and I like to take drives around the local state park in the summer time to see how many raccoons and other critters we can spot.  But wild animals shouldn't become too acclimated to humans.

millie PottersHouse Bears
Ohio
Posts: 2,173

Rocky looks like he was caught in the act.  Raccoons are so sweet looking, but they sure are nosey creatures.  In spring and summer I have to double lock all of the feed and shut up the hen house at night to keep these nosey ones out of everything.

Michelle Helen Chaska, Minnesota
Posts: 2,897

I love raccoons. We use to feed them in Florida. We would go through 40 loaves of bread a week. I don't see many in my back yard in MN....your picture brought back fond memories!!  bear_wub  bear_wub  bear_wub

Bumpkin Bears Bumpkin Bears
Antwerp, Belgium
Posts: 2,190

wow I think Rocky is so cute - I think the birds in my garden would get quite a shock if they saw one of these!
Hugs
Catherine x

danceswithteddybears Dances With Teddy Bears
Pacific Northwest
Posts: 697

Rocky seems to be amazingly well mannered.  He'll nibble a bit, then leave.  Our birdie friends just wait patiently in the nearby bushes. 
Our yard is large and on the wild side.  ..Bird and critter friendly. bear_grin
I agree, a separate feeding area set up for Rocky would be nice.  But how do I convince Rocky to eat from there, and not here??? 
I could hang a sign but Rocky would simply ignore it. :crackup:
We bungee-lock our garbage cans, too.  Just in case.  bear_whistle

Us Bears Pennsylvania
Posts: 1,479

My parents live near the woods and they had a lot of trouble with raccoons tearing down the bird feeders and squirrels eating all the bird seed.  They put out wooden boxes with hinged lids on them to divert the critters away from the bird feeders and that seems to work.

If Rocky isn't tearing up your garden or pulling down the feeder to get at the seeds inside it might be just as well to keep the status quo.

Shelli SHELLI MAKES
Chico, California
Posts: 9,939
Website

Shelli Retired Help Advisor, Banner Sponsor

Raccoons are the spawn of Satan.  See photo, below.

Once upon a time, I had them coming in and out of my doggie door, leaving footprints on my countertops, where my babies (now teenagers) ate their meals.  One of them once stared me down at 4a.m.  Lolling slowly side to side, its swollen, overfed torso swaying to a crazed cadence only the raccoon could discern, it eyed me drunkenly, contemplating its next rabid meal.  Its beady, glowing eyes shot daggers of malice across the four feet that separated us in the thick blanket of darkness. 

I bolted upright and made myself huge; I yelled and demanded, "Get out, evil demon thing!" (not really, lol...).  Eventually, it turned and loped away, ever so slowwwwwwwwwwwly, shooting me the stink eye over its hackle-raised shoulder as it left. 

When it finally exited the doggie door, I rushed to blockade hell's portal; the passage through which it had entered and left my home.  My efforts complete, I turned toward the safety of my bedroom, but then froze, terrorized, terrified, in my tracks.  Lucifer's furry, masked child lay in wait, a mere two feet from me, only the thin panes of our French door separating me from its crusty talons and razor-sharp, flesh-hungry teeth.  Still and silent, it peered at me through thin windows in a quiet rage, its eyes glowing madly, all the evil in the world seeping dangerously from its sockets like diseased, putrid, liquid waste.  The cold fury of its frothy-mouthed death wish passed over me, and I was chilled to my very core. 

Yes, that's exactly what happened.   :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:

RaccoonSpawnOfSatan5.jpg

Shelli SHELLI MAKES
Chico, California
Posts: 9,939
Website

Shelli Retired Help Advisor, Banner Sponsor

You know, upon closer inspection of your original picture, danceswithteddybears, I think you can see exactly what I mean.  Hmmm...

RaccoonPicEdited.jpg

SueAnn Past Time Bears
Double Oak, Texas
Posts: 21,914

SueAnn Help Advisor, Banner Sponsor

SHELLIIIIIIIIII . . . I warned you not to look!!!

Shelli SHELLI MAKES
Chico, California
Posts: 9,939
Website

Shelli Retired Help Advisor, Banner Sponsor

bear_tongue  bear_grin  bear_tongue  bear_grin  bear_tongue  bear_grin

danceswithteddybears Dances With Teddy Bears
Pacific Northwest
Posts: 697

You guys have me rolling on the floor in hysterics.  You are too too funny. :crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup:   
Love Rocky's transformation!!!
Shelli, if you're not already ..you should be a writer.  That was great!
Rocky has been to obedience school where he was taught etiquette. bear_grin

Angela Angela's Bear Garden
St. Catharines, Ontario
Posts: 495

:crackup:  :crackup:  :crackup: You are too much! You make these critters sound horrid!
I know they can be destructive, but they are sooo cute!  bear_wub  I've always loved raccoons, but you gotta respect them!
They are strong and smart...they can learn to turn taps on and open doorknobs with their great little hands! They can be mean, like a bear!
They can be real sweet and loving, even becoming friends with dogs! (I studied up on raccoons a few years ago when I wanted to design one in soft sculpture)
I love the picture! Thanks for sharing!

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