S**T! Distemper

The other week I got home pretty late one night after doing a bit of shopping after work.  It was about 11 PM when I pulled into the driveway.  I saw a raccoon out on the sidewalk and thought "oh cool!"  A raccoon in Toronto at night is pretty common.  Next thing I know he is between my car and the one next door.

Interesting and really not that odd around these parts.  Most will scurry off to safety but some linger around, being used to people and I'm sure some do expect a hand out as many feed these animals.  As I unloaded the couple bags from the car, he moved in closer.  Don't mind the below image and its shape, unintentional artistry.  

Next thing for me and this raccoon is it following me up the steps to our porch/front door.  Okay, now this is getting weird and concerning.  I was fearing something was wrong with him like distemper but held out hope he was just overly tamed by someone around here.  It was too dark to really get a good look at him, and our Christmas lights are still up, emitting a light blue light to everything.

And as I went back to the car, he would follow me there.

Whenever I stopped, he would start to grab my shoes and pant legs.  A red flag that I didn't want to see.

With it being so late now and I was so tired, I had to shut out the situation and would look out for him in the morning.  I still had this silly hope that he was not sick.  As I was about to go inside, he came to me one more time.  Photo edit to B&W and I could see his eyes were maybe not quite clear.

I was out of bed around 7:20 AM and went to look out to the backyard.  I do this every day.  Will I see a screech owl at the box?  Will I see our feral cat friend Dusty down by the shed waiting for breakfast?  And on this morning, will I see the raccoon?  My answer to that last question is "yes".  He was wandering down at the back seemingly without a purpose, just going back and forth.  S**T!

I was barely dressed and didn't have the coffee on yet.  I threw on my coat, yes I had pants on, and went down to investigate.  As I neared the raccoon, he quickly came to me.  Again, like the night before, started grabbing my shoes and pant legs.  Why do they do this?

I had a better look at him and sadly his eyes were crusty and runny.  I take pictures for potential blogs and social media posts but also in times like this, it's great for when I need to report something to the wildlife centre or animal services.  Look how bad his eyes are!

In the past, before I knew anything about distemper, I would have taken a hundred pictures of the animal and left him, knowing he wasn't well, but having no idea what was wrong.  Then even just a few years back I would have hummed and hawed at this, not sure if I should call it in as I knew it would be euthanized.  That's a tough pill to swallow.  You catch the sick animal who then will be "destroyed".  No, please, not the cute little raccoon!  And to now in the present, knowing it is the best thing for him and the other animals.  He will not suffer any longer, getting worse.  He will not spread it to the other animals.  While we don't have minks who can get it, and there's few coyotes wandering around, there are a lot of raccoons and skunks (who can also get it).  Oh, then there's the dogs who are vulnerable if they aren't up to date on their shots.  There's a lot of people who will argue this, stating we have not given the animal a chance to get better.  I just had it out with someone yesterday online about this.  They told me to not jump to such a conclusion which I did not, I only suggested it could be and to look for other signs regarding a raccoon in someone's yard during the day grabbing the person's shoes and pant legs.  Every day this week I have seen post after post about people seeing raccoons out during the day, just wandering aimlessly.  

Okay, back to the story...

I knew he had to be contained.  I got a large carrier from the shed.  I found a plastic lid and put some peanut butter as well as some stinky wet cat food on it.  I put the carrier on the ground with the door open and the bait inside.  The raccoon caught the scent of the food and a few times only stuck part of its head inside and then quickly backed out.  He would then go for my shoes again.  I kept turning in circles with him, trying to keep the carrier door facing him.  A few more times his head went in and then he'd back out again.  I tried tapping on the back of the carrier which got his attention and even had him go a little further in, only to quickly back out.  So close!  I saw one of the plastic snow shovels leaning against the fence.  A light went on in my head.  I grabbed the shovel, held it with one hand and then knelt down, tapping on the back of the carrier.  The raccoon went to the carrier, put his head in, right up to his shoulders.  In a flash I used the shovel, gently but firmly, I pushed his back end into the carrier.  I tilted the carrier up, so the door was facing the sky, and shut and locked the door.  The plastic floor, with the help of gravity, made the raccoon slide to the other end, allowing me to do this.  I should add that he had a moment of clarity during this and he tried to get out but he couldn't get a grip.  I threw a towel over the carrier and that was that.

I called 3-1-1 and filed a report.  Soon after someone from Toronto Animal Services called me and asked me a handful of questions, mostly regarding my observations of the raccoon.  He then wanted confirmation that it was contained.  They are quicker to come out knowing the animal is contained than follow a report of one looking sick and freely wandering around.  They have limited resources and cannot "waste" time coming out for an animal who may not even be there when they arrive.  You don't have to get it into a carrier if that isn't possible, but even a box over it and someone staying with it until they get there is very helpful.  The man thanked me for all my help and making their job all that much easier.  Then within the hour someone came for him.  The person was very nice, gentle and had the patience and care for the raccoon.  Instead of forcing it out of the carrier, she held up a net to the door and waited until the raccoon came out on it's own.  It only took about 10 minutes and we had a low tone conversation while waiting.  The chat was eye opening and educational for me.  We talked about a past awful outbreak of distemper where they were collecting between 100 and 150 sick animals per day for over 2 weeks.  They were concerned about this spring and another outbreak since we didn't have much of a winter to slow the virus down.  I've since heard it has really hit the skunk population just north of us.

So, yeah, this happened about 2 weeks ago, and thankfully with all the raccoons that I have encountered since, none appear to be sick.  Let's hope it stays this way.  

Thanks for stopping in.  Have a great weekend if you are catching this blog on the day I posted it as it is Friday!!!!!  Cheers!