toronto raccoon rescue

Toronto woman scoops raccoon up and away from traffic during harrowing rescue

Toronto undoubtedly has a reputation for its raccoon population, but the city has had what feels like even more trash panda-related antics than usual lately, with the critters ending up in some pretty dangerous places they definitely shouldn't be, from atop construction cranes to behind the counters of popular coffee shop chains.

Earlier this week, one raccoon was saved from wandering into traffic by an unlikely hero on a Segway, who simply grabbed the furry friend by the scruff of the neck and transported them away from the road near Keele and Dundas.

And now, another similar incident has taken place, this time at King and Shaw Streets in the downtown core.

A resident managed to capture on video the forays of one seemingly lost and disoriented raccoon from her condo window as pedestrians tried to prevent it from sure vehicular death.

As passersby tried to shoo the raccoon away from oncoming traffic, it meandered in and out of safety, confused.

At one point, it was fully in the road, with one dedicated Good Samaritan following it closely to ensure it didn't get smushed.

She eventually corralled the creature up against a storefront and threw her coat over it in order to gather it up and carry it off to somewhere out of harm's way.

Based on how slow-moving and out of it the animal was, filmer Nadia Wil aptly speculates that it may have had distemper, a virus that is unfortunately common among trash pandas in Toronto. Wandering aimlessly in unnatural places and at midday and seeming "drunk" are two telltale signs.

"It circled around the intersection for hours causing a few traffic jams," Wil told blogTO. "People tried guiding it away from the intersection, but then others kept guiding it back".

Though the kindhearted raccoon rescuer in the clips had the best intentions at heart, it is not always the best idea to trap and relocate a raccoon, for your own safety and theirs.

If the animal does indeed have Canine Distemper, the best option is to call a local wildlife centre (Ontario Wildlife Rescue has a good list) and/or 311, who will dispatch the appropriate personnel to pick up the animal and, sadly but mercifully, likely euthanize it.

According to Wil, the raccoon in this case was brought to a slightly less busy area, where it was then monitored by two police officers on the scene.

Though there is no cure for distemper, hopefully the little guy somehow ended up alright.

Photos by

nidigreedy on Facebook


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