Wildlife!

[DrKMcK]

Last night Yoda and I heard noise by the back door. I went with a flashlight, took one look and ran for my camera. I had forgotten to take the cats food in when it started getting dark. I really have to do better with not leaving the cats food around. I am also going to feed the cats in the house in the evening. Look at what I found:

Raccoons: Smokey & the Bandit?

Two?





Little Bandit



I think I am also going to try to get the cats to stay in the house at night.

They are cute though.

[Elliiy]

wow what a surprise lol those are some mighty cute raccoons but do be cautious those guys sure are feisty lol

[cypher]

They are so cute!
I know you have to be sensible with wildlife but really they just look so adorable I want them in my back garden lol!

[WinnieTheHam]

Aww how lovely. I'd love to see one in person

[velma]

How conflicting, a pest but adorable! I think it's like when I get grey squirrels in my back garden. They are so funny to watch with their tails bobbing up & down but we had to change the bird feeders so they can't pinch all the food. I like to watch them but if they get in your loft, your electrical wiring is probably doomed so I have to be careful not to encourage them.

[DrKMcK]

Originally Posted by Elliiy

wow what a surprise lol those are some mighty cute raccoons but do be cautious those guys sure are feisty lol

I know. They can be aggressive, which is why I really don't want them around. I read a whole article on them. It seems they are urbanized and aren't afraid of humans. They will go away if there is no food avaialble. So, it's my job to make sure to take the cats food in before dark.

Originally Posted by cypher

They are so cute!
I know you have to be sensible with wildlife but really they just look so adorable I want them in my back garden lol!

No you don't. The article I read stated that these little critters can open doors and get in the house through cat flaps. Geez! I was thinking of putting a cat flap in for the boys. Not now for sure! They will also tear up your garbage and try to get in your attic. Cute, but you really don't want them.

Originally Posted by WinnieTheHam

Aww how lovely. I'd love to see one in person

That's about how I feel. I'm glad I got to see them and get the photos. It's definitely so much better than on TV. They are incredibly cute. Little bandits!
But they can carry disease and they can hurt or kill Yoda, my Chihuahua. One things for sure. You can't help but go "awwwww" when you see them.

Originally Posted by velma

How conflicting, a pest but adorable! I think it's like when I get grey squirrels in my back garden. They are so funny to watch with their tails bobbing up & down but we had to change the bird feeders so they can't pinch all the food. I like to watch them but if they get in your loft, your electrical wiring is probably doomed so I have to be careful not to encourage them.

Exactly Velma! Raccoons can get into your attic. They can open doors and are persistent in trying to find some way in. They are pretty big too. Much bigger than either of my cats and way bigger than Yoda. Cute, yes. But they are a pest and can be dangerous. They are wild animals and, because they are so cute, people tend to forget that. I think without the food they should stop coming around. They don't live in my yard. They just found the food while foraging the neighborhood. No food...no raccoons.

[velma]

At least the squirrels are small enough that we can let the cats chase them which doesn't deter them from coming in the garden but it does make them a little wary of getting too near the house. Don't worry, the cats are slower than the squirrel & can't get anywhere near him once he's gone up the tree (no low branches) so they'll never catch the squirrel or hurt him but hopefully it'll remind him he doesn't want to live here

[Thin Lizzy]

Wow so close and great pics!

[Bertiebobbins]

Oh how cute are they..... I'm going to show these pics to Little Miss when she gets up!

Isn't it funny how everyone else's wildlife seems much more exciting than your own - we have urban foxes and a thriving squirrel population here as well as the plague of seagulls. The foxes will kill people's pets (I will never forget Rabbitgate a few years ago, when one snapped the heads off all the pet rabbits in my street one night), the squirrels are pretty harmless aside from the odd amusing incident such as the time they rearranged all my mother's carefully planted bulbs so the flower display was all wrong, but the seagulls are huge and so scary - they will attack people for food and you have to be careful of antagonising them especially in summer on the beach. They also empty out the bins if you don't secure them well enough on bin day. They also really like the roof of my block of flats aswell, the first night we were here one landed on my bathroom vent and started calling down it, it was terrifying! They're a protected species aswell so it's illegal to kill them even if you're defending yourself!