Would be cool if it eventually leads to a Cambrian explosion of raccoon varieties after generations of breeding desirable traits.
Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
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Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#22> Oddly, tameness has also long been associated with traits such as a shorter face, a smaller head, floppy ears and white patches on fur—a pattern that Charles Darwin noted in the 1800s. Hmm, so evolutionary pressure of existing around humans makes animals cuter. I wonder why we find these features endearing?
I believe the main biological lever is retaining juvenile features as adults, physically as well as mentally (like with dogs). What we see as cute is an honest signal that they are more child-like: less aggressive, more trusting and pro-social.
I also think that this is the central cause of a wide variety of domestic/cute adaptations. There are too many separate features to believe that raccoons and dogs and cats and a dozen other species all select for these same elements independently.
I no longer have the book on hand, but read a few months ago that this correlation between juvenile traits and domestication was one of the main theses of Barrett's "Supernormal Stimuli" in Chapter 4. She cited a few studies of fox domestication [1], [2] and other works to support these theories.
[1]: https://courses.washington.edu/anmind/Trut%20on%20the%20Russ...
[2] https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(05)...
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#23Just remember to remain wary of the cute ones.
> Raccoons are a rabies reservoir in the eastern United States, extending from Canada to Florida and as far west as the Appalachian Mountain range. Within these areas, 10% of raccoons that expose people or pets have rabies, making them one of the highest rabies-risks in the United States.
https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/php/protecting-public-health/inde...
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#24Skunks apparently make great pets (but need to have their stink glands surgically extracted), the pitch is smart like a cat but faithful like dogs
I think dogs in general are smarter than cats.
Dogs are certainly better at looking intelligent. I think dogs, being a more social animal, are more eager to please, and so are willing to be trained.
Cats can vary wildly. One of my cats seems dumb as a box of rocks and haven't even grasped the idea of object permanence. If she's tracking a laser, and I move it around a corner, she can't figure out where it went. She goes from intense staring and tracking to standing up and looking around, confused. When I bring the laser back around the corner, she's instantly back to squatting and tracking it.
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#25I think I know one or two family members who have been aiding and abetting this evolutionary process
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
I think dogs in general are smarter than cats.
Dogs are certainly better at looking intelligent. I think dogs, being a more social animal, are more eager to please, and so are willing to be trained. Cats can vary wildly. One of my cats seems dumb as a box of rocks and haven't even grasped the idea of object permanence. If she's tracking a laser, and I move it around a corner, she can't figure out where it went. She goes from intense staring and tracking to standi…
I've known many dogs that fail this test, too.
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#27Just name coyotes to the AKC, would you?
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#28Just remember to remain wary of the cute ones. > Raccoons are a rabies reservoir in the eastern United States, extending from Canada to Florida and as far west as the Appalachian Mountain range. Within these areas, 10% of raccoons that expose people or pets have rabies, making them one of the highest rabies-risks in the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/php/protecting-public-health/inde...
> 10% of raccoons that expose people or pets have rabies
I don't understand the language of this quote. What does it mean for an animal to expose people?
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#29Skunks apparently make great pets (but need to have their stink glands surgically extracted), the pitch is smart like a cat but faithful like dogs
Removing the scent glands of a skunk is considered about as ethical as declawing a cat. It just isn't really done anymore. Maybe 30 years ago...
Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication
#30I want to see an intelligence-optimized domesticated raccoon breed, like the raccoon equivalent of a border collie