4 ms·
A mother with her cub was hit by a car in front of my house when I was a kid. The mother didn't make it, so we raised the raccoon in our home. For the first cou
by slacka 12y ago
A mother with her cub was hit by a car in front of my house when I was a kid. The mother didn't make it, so we raised the raccoon in our home. For the first couple years it was a better pet than our dogs and cat. After the second year,it started spending more and more time outside and less time with us. By the 3rd year, he stopped his regular visits and would only occasionally visit from a distance.
In an alternative history, where humanity started in North America, I could see the raccoon filling the place that the cat does today. Considering how few generations it took to breed tame foxes, I'm surprised no one has done it for raccoons.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domesticated_silver_fox http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domesticated_silver_fox
- murbard2 12y agoAnal glands. I suspect the domesticated silver fox has the same problem.
- lbotos 12y agoIs the problem the "size" of the gland? My girlfriend has a boston terrier that "expresses their anal gland" enough that I know what that means. I'm curious what exactly you are suggesting. (I know very little of the animal world.)
- dyeje 12y agoCould you elaborate? I'm not sure what you're replying to.
- CapitalistCartr 12y agoMany mammals have a "musk" gland they use to mark territory and other stuff. The smell is vile. If you've ever lived with an unfixed tomcat, that will give you an idea.
- murbard2 12y agoI'm replying to the question as to why there isn't selective breeding of raccoon to make them suitable as pets. A likely reason is that they have a very strong and unpleasant musky odor. Though I suppose that could be bred out too.