The new raccoon family

[tenaya]

This is a new raccoon family.

It's a late in the season litter. The momma with two babies from July still comes around but she only has one baby with her now and he/she is about 4/5ths the size of momma. These guys are about the size the babies are when momma first brings them out to join her in her nightly rounds.

Two of the kids were on a chair savaging my screen door. I placed my hand against the glass and they went, "Oh goody! Let's play footsies!" We did that for a while until momma noticed and she gave me the crazed evil eye for a few moments until I backed off. I got my camera, opened the door and threw out some peanuts. They ran forward to get a treat. Since they aren't skittish like the last family, maybe I'll get some fun photos.

This momma is used to us so she's been here before. I don't think it's Cutiepie but who knows? I'll try to notice behaviors once she is more relaxed.


The new family:



Crazy Momma; she's not quite sure of me in this one:



Brindle usually cuddles up to the concrete bunny:



Brindle vs his nemesis:

Comments

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

Hopefully he didn't get skunked.

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

Naw. He holds his ground until the skunk decides to 'charge him.' Then he runs and the skunk chases him. Brindle runs around a bush, doubles back to the bunny and sits his fanny down. He's only been sprayed twice in 5 years. Once, he followed one under the house and startled a nest of them. Not sure what happened the last time. I came home and he was sitting there, just waiting for me with a "you gotta fix this" expression.

The worst was when he came home soaked in motor oil. I didn't even recognize him. We called the vets and they said to use liquid dish soap and to keep an eye on him for toxicity symptoms.

The skunks rarely go off. Pretty much only when their startled or scared. If they won't get out of my way, I've been known to give their tail a little tug. They just move out of my way like small, grazing cows.

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

Not being wise in the way of skunks, I defer to your knowledge. You won't catch me tugging on their tails trying to get them out of my way. I'd rather give them a wide berth.

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

I've grown quite fond of them. They are a cross between a ferret and Carmen Miranda. They parade through here displaying those beautiful tails like Vegas show girls. They are playful, kinda puppy like. I can see why people would make descented ones a pet.

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

So, now I have an image of a skunk wearing a fruit salad on its head. Do they think cats are skunk toys?

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

I think a skunk might like to wear a fruit salad on their heads (boy, I just got a strong feeling of deja vu; have I ever said that sentence before??) but actually it's kinda their silhouette as they turn and strut; the posture of their tails remind me of women standing up straight with huge displays balanced on their heads.

The skunk in that photo (it's really easy to tell them apart because their tails are so different) somehow got fixated on Brindle and the fact that Brindle will always run from him if the skunk runs at him. He would go out of his way to chase Brindle and he did it just because it was fun. Now that seems self evident that if you chase, the chasee will run, but Reggie never ran from skunks. He would march through them very business like with his eyes straight ahead. They might thump the ground a bit as a warning to keep away, but he'd ignore them. They never bothered him.

Brindle lost his nerve and is an easy mark now.

The coon babies are always intrigued by the skunk tails and will grab them and feel them. The skunks just move a step or two out of the way (which was my first clue that you could touch the tails and not get squirted.)

Everything is a toy if you're feeling playful. Do you see those two parallel wood branches near Brindle's bunny? EVERYONE, the skunks, the raccoons, the opossums...they ALL go up to them and walk them like a balance beam. If they fall off, they climb back on. They are a favorite. Brindle likes them too, and that's why he gets so much attention; he's camped by the freeway.

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

That's where you sit somewhere and just watch the fun go on, eh? Watching critters playing around is lot of fun. My parents had a bird feeder in the backyard of our place. We had a great view of it and was just so much fun watching the birds and the squirrels running around.

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I've been places like that and loved it. Stellar Jays are such characters as are squirrels. We had a bird feeder until Brindle showed up. The world is full of characters, critters just enjoying life. Nothing like a good peanut, eh?

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah. We don't have Stellar Jays, but we have Blue Jays (moreso back in the day). I think the temperments are probably pretty similiar. Blue Jays are raucous and flashy and don't take anything from anybody.

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

Pretty much the same except the Stellar Jays will take anything from everybody. They aren't around the house but they are up in the mountains and up the coast. They are the worst thieves; when prepping food at a camp ground, I've had them fly off with hotdogs, cheese, the buns...anything. Bold.

[leviathanmuse.livejournal.com]

Blue Jays aren't quite that bold, but they certainly have no qualms about shoving everyone else out of the bird feeder and then picking through everything till they find the sunflower seeds.

[moonchildetoo.livejournal.com]

Sooo adorable! Thanks for the pix!

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

I knew you'd like 'em.

[rosawestphalen.livejournal.com]

Those 'coons are so cute! I love skunks, too, though I've never been close enough to a scented one to touch it. How cool!

[tenaya.livejournal.com]

So much better than alligators. *g*

[khek.livejournal.com]

What great pictures! It sounds like you have a regular wildlife sanctuary in your backyard. It must be fun to watch. Brindle is a cutie, and a very brave kitty!

We have racoons too, but they only seem to show up around 3 am and drive Maggie crazy climbing the walnut tree outside our window. Not really condusive to watching or taking pictures.

Jessie used to bowl skunks over...mostly because she chased anything that moved, and didn't realize that she'd just run over a skunk until she turned around to see what she'd knocked over. Once she recognized "black and white, bad smell" she'd run back to me, but often the damage was done by then. Yuck! Maggie hasn't seen one yet, although from the smells, I know some still live around here. She's a hider, not a chaser, but I still won't be attempting any tail touching!

I love your pictures!

[catalenamara.livejournal.com]

Love these pictures!