This week’s edition of our Pet Instagram of the Week series showcases a friendly raccoon who made an acquaintance with two rescue dogs.
When you think of a raccoon, your first thought probably isn’t about its cuddliness but rather its peskiness. It’s time to set aside those preconceived notions and meet Pumpkin (@pumpkintheraccoon), this week’s pet Instagram star.
Pumpkin, who has more than 630,000 Instagram followers, was rescued after she broke her leg by falling out of a tree and was separated from her parents. Quickly becoming friends with her owners’ rescued dogs, Toffee and Oreo, Pumpkin adjusted well to her home in the Bahamas. In the title of her book, she is described as the “raccoon who thought she was a dog.”
Raccoons are smart – thought to be of equal intelligence as Rhesus macaque, an Asian monkey. Some raccoons have even remembered how to solve puzzles up to three years after they originally were tested. However, it is generally not recommended (or legal, in many cases) to keep raccoons as pets. They cannot be taught commands like dogs can, and unfortunately may even be euthanized if they bite someone, as there are no known effective rabies vaccines for raccoons.
Technicalities aside, let’s take a dive into the life of a friendly-looking raccoon.
Quality of Pictures
The pictures seem to be mostly phone photos with a few high-quality camera pictures mixed in, but the composition and lighting are good enough that you probably won’t be worrying about what the pictures were taken on in the first place. The content of these pictures is what matters. They often include Pumpkin engaging in activities that are generally thought to be limited to humans, such as reading, eating a watermelon or eating at a table (with a plate). She seems to have cozied up to the dogs she shares the house with, as many of the photos feature her cuddling with her furry friends. While raccoons aren’t technically “domesticated” pets, this one seems to be about as close as a raccoon can get. The account follows her life from day one in the home, where she is shown (as a baby raccoon) being fed milk from a bottle. As the posts continued, followers watched Pumpkin grow into the larger, dog-loving raccoon she is now.
A special Happy New Year Pumper's kiss to you! Tag your Oreo for tonight! #tbt
