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Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

scientificamerican.com

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Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#191

Post by astroflection »

smallerize wrote: post #18

Just in time to spread a really awful parasite. https://arstechnica.com/science/2024/09/human-cases-of-racco... "severe, frequently fatal, infections of the eyes, organs, and central nervous system. Those who survive are often left with severe neurological outcomes, including blindness, paralysis, loss of coordination, seizures, cognitive impairments, and brain atrophy"

Yes. It's a nasty parasite: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baylisascaris_procyonis

Raccoons while cute, smart, interesting, etc., should not be considered as pets as long as this parasite exists.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#192

Post by mr_toad »

_the_inflator wrote: post #132

So Kassel, Germany, may have hope to be less harassed in the future? FYI, Kassel kinda is the so-called capitol of raccoons. 30k+ raccoons life there, according to estimates. I certainly would not want to live there. It is crazy how these animals flock together and invade properties. And they aren't shy anymore due to the reverse positive reinforcement they receive by not killing them. Yes, it is of course in Germany…

> 30k+ raccoons life there, according to estimates.

Along with 200k+ of the most violent species on the planet: humans.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#193

Post by ekropotin »

gwd wrote: post #125
caymanjim wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're pretty great pets. We had one for a while when I was a kid. Its mom got run over and we nursed it and raised it for a few months. Instinctively used the same litter box as the cats. Hung out on the couch sitting on my shoulder watching TV. Friendly and playful. Would follow people around and play with toys. The biggest challenge is that they basically have hands. He would climb up the kitchen cabinets, grab a…

I remember reading somewhere once that baby raccoons are actually quite cuddly and tame; but that when they go adolescence, they have a hormone shift that makes them aggressive enough to be unsuitable as a pet. In the story a woman who had raised a baby raccoon was attacked by it after it grew to a certain age.

Well, that sounds a lot like humans offsprings

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#195

Post by mr_toad »

deadbabe wrote: post #21

Would be cool if it eventually leads to a Cambrian explosion of raccoon varieties after generations of breeding desirable traits.

For thousands of years after domestication there were only a handful of dog breeds; hounds, sheepdogs etc, which were bred for their utility rather than appearance. It’s only in the last couple of hundred years that dog breeds have exploded.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#196

Post by mr_toad »

mayhemducks wrote: post #179
ForOldHack wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Despite no one actually mentioning the white tr*sh cookbook ... I do not see the point behind raising racoons for food. They do NOT taste like chicken. How do you think your dogs would taste? I like your dogs too, and ain't no way I would disrespect them... Pets are not food sources. But a coon.. . They seem nice enough until they fight over food ... Then they become _ <- insert unfavoroable political party.

Apparently coons used to be quite a popular delicacy in the south once upon a time. Dogs are predators, which is a very primal reason I could never imagine eating one. I've eaten bear, and it tasted terrible. Come to think of it, every predator tastes terrible. But the racoon is an omnivorous scavenger. I must admin I'm coon curious now. :)

> Come to think of it, every predator tastes terrible.

Tuna tastes delicious. But you may be right about mammals.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#197

Post by QuercusMax »

IAmBroom wrote: post #160
shawn_w wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Rascal: A Memoir of a Better Era. I had that book as a kid. There was a live action Disney film of it; didn't know about the anime version. Neat. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rascal_(book)

A generation of us grew up deeply coveting a pet coon, and have never given up on that dream, really... The shocker for me was the bit about Rascal learning not to wash his sugarcubes before eating (or actually, to rinse once, because he was OCD about washing his food). Not that itself, although fascinating and charming; the idea that sugar was rationed to the author's family was mindblowing to juvenile me.

I haven't read the book but it seems that this was wartime rationing based on what I read about it on the wiki article?

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#198

Post by officeplant »

nunez wrote: post #59

People have been trying to make the house raccoon a thing: https://old.reddit.com/r/raccoons From what I remember spending time on this topic, raccoons need super challenging locks as toys and TONS of engagement from their keepers because they get bored easily and bored raccoons == ultra destructive raccoons. Also, rabies.

Family raised multiple raccoons over the years until wildlife rescue became more of a common thing you could call up. The garage was seemingly a hot spot for the occasional runt raccoon with closed eyes to be left behind.

They not only get bored they get very particular with who in the family they enjoy following. Which can cause even more havoc when someone gets upset the raccoon doesn't want to be around them. One particularly funny story was a customer's kid (Business was attached to the house) begged and cried to be let hold the raccoon. We all knew it was a bad idea but Grandpa caved to the customer's demands so the kid would shut up. The racoon gladly let me hand her over to the kid, crawled up on the kids shoulder and proceeded to shit from one shoulder to the other then immediately jump off and return to my shoulder to glare at the kid. Never again did we let anyone outside the family touch the raccoon until we gave her up to a local zoo for use in educational programs since she was fairly well trained to behave for treats.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#199

Post by intelfx »

throwaway290 wrote: post #182
devin wrote: post #162

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This style of rabies vaccine is for pre-exposure. Post-exposure vaccination is more involved if you aren’t primed. In addition, it used to be the case that people received abdominal shots and the course was pretty intense. That has ended, but people remember it.

post exposure vaccination is a thing?? does it work for everything and why is it called vaccination not treatment?

> post exposure vaccination is a thing?? does it work for everything

I believe in this discussion the context is specifically rabies.

> and why is it called vaccination not treatment?

It's both, really. You get a shot of rabies immunoglobulin (at the site of potential infection, i.e., bite) _and_ an extended course of vaccine at the same time.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#200

Post by deesep »

devin wrote: post #162
LandR wrote: post #150

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How is it not? I'm currently 1 of 3 injections into getting a rabies vaccine and it's basically like every other vaccine I've had. A simple, painless, injection in the arm. I got it the same time as my first shot of the Hep B vaccine too.

This style of rabies vaccine is for pre-exposure. Post-exposure vaccination is more involved if you aren’t primed. In addition, it used to be the case that people received abdominal shots and the course was pretty intense. That has ended, but people remember it.

Oh I remember alright! I got bitten by a stray dog when I was 12 years old. I was given abdominal shots of the vaccine for several days. I can't remember if it was for 7 or 14 days, but it was a very painful and traumatic experience. It caused me to have a deep fear of dogs for several decades.
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