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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

#201

Post by superultra »

IAmBroom wrote: post #172
superultra wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you’re mistaking slight natural adaption for domestication, and taking domestication for granted. Go into nature and try and train a wild wolf. Good luck! You can’t. Domestication, in the way that we see having happened with dogs (and cattle, and chickens) takes a really long time. We consider cats “domesticated” and yet demonstrably they are not. If they were much bigger, they’d eat us, and if set into wild,…

Ironic choice: ferrets are a wholly domesticated species of weasel, bred for rat hunting. They are domesticated, by any reasonable standard I'm aware of, as are cats. I'm sorry your experience with cats hasn't been as pleasant, but I assure you they are much more domesticated than chickens - which you seem to have little experience with. Screw eating us - they'll eat each other.

You’re wrong on several things. There’s a big difference in the kind of domestication of dogs - which we generally think of when we think of domestication - and animals who serve extracurricular domestication, ie ferrets.

I also have 2 cats, having had 2 prior. They’re great. But it’s just science that they are not fully domesticated.

I also lived on a farm as a kid.

So let’s not make assumptions to prove an incorrect point.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#202

Post by dwd »

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.

Wombats are the same. Cute and cuddly when little and one day just snap.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#203

Post by scotty79 »

mr_toad wrote: post #187
scotty79 wrote: post #185

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure thing. That one specific cat species was (and still is) Felis silvestris lybica. All domestic cats come from it and it's still the friendliest towards humans, out of all cat species. They still can and commonly bread with each other when they live in the same area. Some light reading: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/ask-s... So, what was your evidence again?

Dogs are genetically the same species: Canis familiaris, a type of grey wolf. They can breed with wolves, and other closely related canines.

No dog looks like a wolf unless it was intentionally bred for that look. You can barely tell mixed race domestic cats from their wild ancestor.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#204

Post by caymanjim »

barbazoo wrote: post #177
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…

What about the smell? I’ve experienced ferrets is why I’m asking.

I can't remember. We had ferrets too, and they smelled. I don't recall the raccoon having a strong smell. Maybe they smell when they're older.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#205

Post by neom »

IAmBroom wrote: post #164
neom wrote: post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Get a pet rat. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AV9z0c1hjnA (I'll convince you all to get pet rats eventually!!! :))

Breed a rat with a furry tail, and you will overcome all resistance. That hairless tail is creepy - and I say that as an admirer of pet rats.

Funny thing is a rats tail is covered in hair and is very soft!!! (although they mostly hate their tails touched, very sensitive).

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#206

Post by SpaceL10n »

lagniappe wrote: post #147
SpaceL10n wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To be fair, if you take something away from me that's mine, there's not much difference between the raccoon and myself.

You should work on that.

Is it too much for someone to ask for something?

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#207

Post by riffraff »

mamonoleechi wrote: post #128
riffraff wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's a Japanese anime from the '70s called something like "rascal the racoon", based on an American book, which tells the story of a kid with a pet raccoon. I've wanted a pet raccoon since I saw this on TV in the '80s, and raccoons aren't even a thing in Europe :(

Racoons are invading the north east of France: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2ijwZROb6g ; they are exotic invasive species: a female get 10 babies per year, and there is no predator

Aren't those the Asian/Japanese racoons (tanuki) rather than the American ones?

I recall watching a video about that many years ago when they had started appearing in eastern Europe.

Edit: looking at the video they do look like American ones tho

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#208

Post by zahlman »

tzs wrote: post #87
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.

Assuming you are starting with a wild raccoon, get one from a population that is not in the eastern parts of the US or Canada and rabies is unlikely. Here in Washington state for example there have been no documented cases of rabies in any wild raccoon in at least 60 years. Same goes for all other wild terrestrial mammals here.

Rabies isn't the only disease to worry about here.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baylisascaris_procyonis

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#209

Post by tdeck »

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.

I've heard the same thing from my mother, whose uncle had a baby raccoon as a pet. Once he got older he became mean and would yank on her hair for no reason.

Re: Raccoons are showing early signs of domestication

#210

Post by Nevermark »

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.

Puberty blockers?

If we can set aside ethics, it would be interesting if the result was a truly good life long pet. They are so smart.

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