Well, technically it could be called a pup, but when the kind-hearted Shanghai lady in this two-year-old video realized that the little creature that she had found on the street and raised for two months was a raccoon dog, not a baby domestic dog, it went to the zoo:
It’s never a good idea to keep a wild animal as a pet — they don’t have the extensive domestication history that has made dogs our best friends.
Some wild animals can be tamed, but they will always be unpredictable.
Unfortunately, given their size, floofiness, and beautiful face, people do make raccoon dogs pets — with predictable results.
Conservationists have come up with symbolic adoptions that sound like a more constructive way to help endangered wildlife.
Here’s another rescue.
In Vietnam, three young raccoon dogs — recognized as such from the start — were rescued and released:
Out in the wild, or even on palace grounds, mom and dad are usually there to keep an eye on the youngsters:
More information:
- Canid Specialist Group page
- Ecology Asia page
- On a grimmer note, raccoon dogs and COVID-19
Featured image: Miroslav Hlavko/Shutterstock
Flight To Wonder 